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University of Minnesota Athletics
Meet The Newcomers: Vincent Calhoun
7/15/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
Since he was a young child fascinated with the game of clue, Vincent Calhoun has been interested in criminal justice.
He has matured into a dominating offensive lineman and sees a lot of similarities between the position he now plays and his interest in criminal justice.
"It is trying to serve those and protect those who can't always help themselves," Calhoun said.
Those protective instincts are something that Calhoun sees as important to have as an offensive lineman. It is also one thing he noticed about NFL offensive lineman Michael Oher who in 2009 had his life depicted in the movie "The Blind Side."
"In the movie they talked about him protecting his family and protecting the people he cared about," Calhoun said.
After the movie came out Calhoun's friends at Centennial High School in Roswell, Ga., started calling him Big Mike after Oher. He embraced the nickname and considers Oher his favorite player.
"He had a whole bunch of problems, which I also had with school and everything," Calhoun said. "He overcame all the obstacles that were put in front of him. I look up to him and am trying to do the same."
Coming off two strong seasons at Southwest Mississippi Community College Calhoun is well on his way to doing just that. Calhoun earned NJCAA Second Team All-America honors last season and allowed only two sacks the entire season. He was also named the Most Valuable Lineman in his conference.
Like Oher and fellow junior college transfer Garrison Wright, Calhoun has a gentle presence off the field, but on the field is a different story.
"You have to be a nasty guy," Calhoun said. "You have to get nasty with defensive tackles. That physicality is something I am used to."
