Scott to Tutor Wilkerson

[flgreen]

Jets first-round pick Muhammad Wilkerson visits seventh-graders in hometown of Linden

Published: Thursday, May 26, 2011, 11:55 AM Updated: Thursday, May 26, 2011, 7:09 PM

Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger By Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger

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When Janine Guderian's seventh-grade class sent a letter to Muhammad Wilkerson a few Fridays ago, the students weren't sure if they would hear back. But by the following Monday, just three days later, the Jets' first-round pick had accepted their invitation to visit McManus Middle School in Linden, the town he has called home since sixth grade.

This morning in the school's auditorium, the 6-4, 315-pound defensive lineman patiently answered a few dozen students' questions about his path to the NFL, and afterward signed an autograph for each.

"When I got the letter, it was an honor," said Wilkerson, who attended Linden's other middle school, Soehl Middle School. "I’m a young guy, and all this is new to me. For them to encourage me to come in and speak to them, I was all for it."

With a smile, Guderian noted that Wilkerson's visit probably wouldn't have been possible if NFL operations were currently not suspended in a lockout. The rookie might otherwise be moving into a new place, attending mini-camps and organized team activities and receiving a crash course in the defensive playbook.

Instead, he is living with his mother in Linden and working out on his own at a facility in Morris County. He has been able to study the playbook — he received a copy during his visit to the Jets facility after being drafted, in the brief window when the lockout was temporarily lifted — but acknowledged it's more difficult to process without the guidance of coaches.

"I look through it day to day just to keep my mind fresh, so once the lockout is over with, I'm not going into camp wide-eyed," Wilkerson said. "It’s a little hard, because there might be things I'm looking at that the coaches want to change up or give me a tip on, but they can't because of the whole lockout situation."

The one Jets teammate he has been in contact with so far is linebacker Bart Scott. Wilkerson considered joining Scott, Vladimir Ducasse and several other NFL players, including a handful of Dolphins, for a week-long OTA-style camp in Boca Raton, Fla., this week, but was unable to head down.

Instead, he plans to meet up next week with Scott, who has offered to tutor Wilkerson on the Jets defense.

"He let me know I can call him and we can go over the playbook, so he can teach me some things," Wilkerson said.

This morning, it was Wilkerson doing the teaching, telling the students that hard work means putting in the extra effort, when your peers might be taking a day off, and emphasizing the importance of good study habits, which he said he wished he had learned earlier in life.

He told the students about a time when he considered giving up football, after one of his lungs scarily collapsed one Friday night during his freshman year at Temple, but drew on encouragement from teammates to keep going. One of his former teachers and coaches also recounted to the group how Wilkerson overcame sports-induced asthma to be a football star and basketball state champion for Linden.

"I come from the same city as them, grew up in the same area as these kids," Wilkerson said. "If I can make it, they can make it."

For more Jets coverage, follow Jenny Vrentas on Twitter at twitter.com/Jennyvrentas

Jenny Vrentas: jvrentas@starledger.com

[T0mShane]

Lesson One: Talk a lot, stand next to Ray Lewis, and some clown will hand you $48 million dollars to be a slightly above average player.

[Klecko73isGod]

Lesson One: Talk a lot, stand next to Ray Lewis, and some clown will hand you $48 million dollars to be a slightly above average player.

You just don't have a clue.

[Jets Voice of Reason]

Lesson One: Talk a lot, stand next to Ray Lewis, and some clown will hand you $48 million dollars to be a slightly above average player.

Got to disagree with you here. No, Bart Scott is not Ray Lewis, but I think he's been very good for us. He does the dirty work and doesn't have the compulsive need to always be the missile in the defense like Lewis does.

Edit: Take out the slightly and I probably agree with you

[T0mShane]

Got to disagree with you here. No, Bart Scott is not Ray Lewis, but I think he's been very good for us. He does the dirty work and doesn't have the compulsive need to always be the missile in the defense like Lewis does.

Edit: Take out the slightly and I probably agree with you

I totally agree with you. I just hadn't heard from Klacko in awhile.

[SenorGato]

So Wilkerson's going to learn to be an overrated, second fiddle, psuedo stud is what this article is saying?

Why I'm doing this after T0mShane did, I do not know.

[sirlancemehlot]

Jets first-round pick Muhammad Wilkerson visits seventh-graders in hometown of Linden

Published: Thursday, May 26, 2011, 11:55 AM Updated: Thursday, May 26, 2011, 7:09 PM

Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger By Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger

.

"I come from the same city as them, grew up in the same area as these kids," Wilkerson said. "If I can make it, they can make it."

For more Jets coverage, follow Jenny Vrentas on Twitter at twitter.com/Jennyvrentas

Jenny Vrentas: jvrentas@starledger.com

If I can make it, they can make it. So long as they grow to 6 feet four and are 350 pounds of athletic muscle. Anyone can be special! Nice sentiment. Bull$hit, but nice sentiment.