Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson rolled into Jackson Saturday morning to get a look at some potential stars for his new XFL, which is set to make its debut next spring.
“Here at Jackson State, in particular, they’ve been incredible. They’ve welcomed us with open arms. They also appreciate our desire to shine a new light on these players who want to achieve their greatness, and they should have a shot. So we’re looking in this direction, and we’re here today, and there’s a lot of talent,” said Johnson.
In the lead-up to the season, the league, now in its third iteration, will be holding showcase camps this summer with stops in Arizona, Florida, D.C., and Hawaii, among others.
His first stop was right here in the heart of Mississippi at Jackson State, with the focus on HBCU alums.
Jackson State and Alcorn State were well represented, and chief among those were quarterback Felix Harper and linebacker Keonte Hampton.
Like everyone else in attendance today, they want to keep that football dream going, and the league’s esteemed owner wants to help with that.
“Looking at places that are generally overlooked and even the ones that are looked at, for example, like a Jackson State when scouts come here, and they look, and they see, and they evaluate the players,” Johnson said. “Well, now we come along, and we want to evaluate the players, but maybe there is an opportunity here. Let’s explore, let’s dig deeper.”
“We’re not at the biggest level for power five, but we’re able to showcase our talent, and we can get the job no matter what school you come from,” said Harper. “Just be you. I feel like you don’t have to do nothing but just be special.”
“That’s our dream, we want to play football, we want to play in the NFL, XFL, it don’t matter. “We don’t want to give up our dream. It’s our first dream. God always has a plan, and we’re going to follow God’s plan,” Hampton said.
“We give opportunity, but we also look for quality,” said Johnson. “So these players that are walking behind me, they bring the dreams, we bring the opportunity, but also there is a great quality, there is a great quality of work ethic and a great quality of athlete here.”
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