^this is for the high school foxhole.
his name is my-king johnson,
he is 17,
and he happens to be gay.
not only that,
he also got signed to play college football for the wildcats.
this is what the root had to report…

My-King Johnson is the latest millennial to eschew the closet, becoming the first active openly gay scholarship player in Division I football history.

Known to his friends and family as “King,” the 6-foot-4, 225-pound defensive end starred at Tempe High School. The Arizona Republic reports that he signed with the home-state Wildcats after verbally committing to Pac-12 Conference rival UCLA.

King reportedly told the Arizona defensive line coach Vincent Amey that he was gay during the recruiting process. Johnson said that Amey replied, “We want you to be a Wildcat.”

“When I found out, I really couldn’t sleep,” Amey said, according to the Arizona Republic. “And it wasn’t like I was uncomfortable with it. I was just like, all right, it’s different, it’s new. … I said, ‘Look, you are who you are, I am who I am and I’m going to coach you the same way. I’m going to treat you the same way. I’m going to get on you the same way as everybody else. There’s no difference. You do what you do.’”

Amey also said he stressed that all his players should give King their support.

“I said, ‘When the players find out, especially my room, I’m going to tell [those] dudes: Look, you gotta have his back.’”

King says that he was 12 when he came out to his friends and family. He was raised by a teen mom and has two siblings, A-Queen and Nadette. He chose to live with his grandmother in Arizona after his mom and sisters moved to Seattle for work. His father was not very present in his life, drifting in and out of jail.

Yet family and friends describe the teen as smart and quick-witted, and his mom calls him an “old soul.” He played tuba in the Tempe High School band for two years, performing at halftime while wearing his football jersey and cleats. He maintains a 3.8 GPA.

not “my-king” and the sis being named “a-queen” tho.
sorry.
this is a celebration.
well this is good news!!!!!
i hope he has a successful season.
he can call most of us when he turns 21.

he knows what he is getting himself into as quoted as saying via al.com:

“I do feel like when I say that (I’m gay), it can put a target on my back. But whatever,” Johnson told The Arizona Daily Star over the weekend.

this just means he will have to prove himself.
he got this.
i just hope he doesn’t make the same mistakes michael sam did.

lowkey: what happened to michael sam?
ya’ll deaded him already?

article taken: the root

follow my-king on his new journey: instagram | twitter