HOUSTON — Sprinkled throughout the country, there are now super-super-super seniors playing college football. One of them is at Rice University – a right tackle with the right frame of mind.
Jovaun Woolford is like a coach on the field because he may be older than some of the coaches on the field.
He's a 6'5", 300-pound lineman. But number 70 stands out due to another number.
“Definitely, with my age, a lot of people look up to me, and will come for advice and different things,” said Woolford.
Jovaun Woolford is 25 years old and enrolled in Rice’s Masters of Global Affairs program. Players like him are rare because he's in his seventh season of college football.
He received an extra year of eligibility due to the pandemic and he came to Rice on a medical waiver, so that's two years. Before that, he spent five seasons at Colgate University in upstate New York. He was a redshirt freshman in 2015.
Since then, he's heard every wisecrack and joke there is.
Yeah, I’ve called him a couple ‘uncles,’” said teammate Ikenna Enechukwu. “Called him ‘grandpa.’ Definitely. Definitely. Old people jokes come up every day, every other day."
For Jovaun, the jokes are a badge of honor.
“I want to be able to come and be that older brother, be that uncle, be that grandpa or whatever people need to make sure this team's successful.”
On the field, one of his greatest strengths is his physical strength.
“The thing that I see is his play strength, like he is a grown man,” said coach Mike Bloomgren.
Grown men typically don’t play college football. But being one now, Jovaun is grateful.
“I'm just really blessed with the opportunity to go ahead and get two degrees paid for by this great game," he said. "I can't ask for anything more."
In the future, Woolford wants to give pro football a shot. He also plans on helping underprivileged kids enroll in college.
He may be old, but right now, Woolford is the one laughing - all the way to the real world.