James Island native and NFL star Roddy White credits his biggest fan for where he is today
She greets you at the door wearing a No. 84 Atlanta Falcons football jersey and an easy smile.
Joenethia White is gracious but almost embarrassed as she shows you around the modest, four-bedroom home at the end of a dirt road, just a stone's throw from James Island High School where her son, Falcons All Pro wide-receiver Roddy White, first made a name for himself.
She points to the backyard, where even though she was exhausted from a 10-hour shift at work, she would summon the energy to race her 6-year-old son on many hot summer nights.
"My mother wasn't one of those parents that would just let you win," Roddy White said with an infectious laugh. "She would run as fast as she could, so if you beat her, you earned it."
White figures those early duels against his mother lit the competitive fire inside him.
"I figured if she was giving it everything she had, I needed to do the same thing," he said. "I know how tired she would be after work, but she still was out there trying to beat me."
Joenethia White made a lasting impression on her son.
"She sacrificed everything for me," White said. "It's one of the reasons I play so hard, I don't want to let her down."
Since 2007, only two players in the NFL have caught more passes (371) for more yards (5,126) and more touchdowns (34) than White. He earned his third straight Pro Bowl invitation this season after leading the league with a franchise-record 115 receptions for 1,389 yards and 10 touchdowns. Tonight, he and the Falcons begin their quest for a spot in next month's Super Bowl, facing the Green Bay Packers in the NFC playoffs.
Not bad for a guy who was considered too small to play football as a kid.
"I wouldn't be where I am today without my mother," White said. "I owe her everything."
Growth spurt
In the spring of 1998, the idea that Sharod Lamor White would one day become one of the elite wide receivers in the NFL seemed, well, laughable.
After his sophomore year at James Island High School, White was barely 5-feet, 4-inches tall and weighed a mere 130 pounds.
But size had always been an issue for him. As a kid, the local recreation department refused to let him play for fear that he would get hurt. Finally after some intense lobbying from White's mother, the department relented and let the skinny 8-year-old into the league.
His coach, however, wasn't impressed and refused to let him on the field.
"I knew the rules. Everyone had to play," Joenethia White said.
After four games, the coach finally put White in the game for a kickoff. Destiny or fate intervened, and the ball came right to White, who weaved his way through the defense and scored a touchdown.
Mother and son were finally vindicated, but she didn't gloat.
"I wanted to go up to the coach and say, 'I told you so.' but I didn't," Joenethia White said.
White grew six inches between his sophomore and junior seasons at James Island. Joenethia White, her mother and sister had to pool their money to replace his wardrobe.
"All of his pants were too short," she said of her son, who is now 6-feet-3 and 180 pounds. "It was tough getting him clothes that he could wear because he grew out of everything so fast."
In less than two seasons with the James Island Trojans, White finished as the school's all-time leading receiver and earned a spot on the South Carolina Shrine Bowl team.
But despite White's impressive statistics on the football field, he lacked the most important numbers of all -- a qualifying score on the SAT.
When he finally achieved the score after his eighth attempt, schools like South Carolina and Clemson had moved on. Alabama-Birmingham was the only school to offer White a scholarship.
In four seasons, White rewrote the school's football record books and finished his senior season as the nation's leading receiver.
The drop
White has made many memorable catches in his career, but he said it was one pass he dropped that led to him becoming a perennial Pro Bowl participant.
Late in the 2006 season in a game against New Orleans that the Falcons needed desperately to win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, former Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick threw a perfect pass to White as he headed down the sideline.
It should have been an easy touchdown, but White dropped the ball and the Falcons lost for the fourth straight time.
"I've made that play a million times in my life," White said. "I've made that play with my eyes closed. I realized then just how unfocused I was on football, and that if I didn't change things pretty quickly, I was going to be out of the league. I still cringe every time I see that play."
The criticism from the media and fans was intense. White, who had been a first-round draft pick in 2005, had been considered a bust during his first two seasons in the NFL, spending more time at the local night clubs than he did preparing for that week's opponent.
His mother tried her own version of tough love.
"He would come home at four or five in the morning and would get a couple of hours of sleep and go to practice," his mother said. "I told him he was going to party his way out of the league."
Enter veteran wide receiver Joe Horn.
The Falcons had invested millions in White and fellow wide receiver and first-round pick Michael Jenkins, but had little to show for it.
"It was like the blind leading the blind," White said. "We didn't know how to be professionals."
Horn, who had a 100-reception season in his football resume, instantly became White's mentor.
"It changed my whole career," White said. "I wouldn't be where I am today without Joe. I saw his work ethic, how much work he put in during the week just to get ready for a game."
The partying stopped and White had a breakout season in 2007, catching a career-high 83 passes for 1,202 yards and six touchdowns.
The catches kept coming, and last season he received a six-year, $50-million contract that makes him one of the highest-paid wide receivers in the NFL.
"I went up to Joe Horn and thanked him," White's mother said. 'You saved my son's career.' Without Joe I don't know what would have happened to Roddy."
The House
Joenethia White was perfectly happy living in the mobile home she, Roddy and his brother Ty had shared.
When White signed his first multi-million-dollar contract in 2005, he wanted to do something for his mother.
"People kept telling Roddy he needed to build me a house, but I told him I didn't want one," his mother said. "I was happy where I was."
White came home one afternoon with several floor plans for his mother to consider. The 2,400-square-foot home on Ben Road is the one she finally settled on.
"He was determined to build me a house," Joenethia White said. "When he makes up his mind, there's not a whole lot anyone can do to change it. I finally told him I didn't want anything too fancy."
The result is a two-story structure with a sweeping Victorian-style front porch. The spotless home has shiny wood floors throughout and a gourmet kitchen with granite counter tops. The walls are covered with photos from White's childhood, family portraits and even a few footballs from his NFL career.
"That was a special moment for me," White said. "To give her the keys to a house that was bought and paid for was a feeling I can't describe. I know what she sacrificed for me when I was growing up, and this was my way of thanking her for all she did for me. It doesn't make us even, but it's a start."
Father figure
Growing up in a single-parent family wasn't easy for White.
For that reason, he vows to always be there for his children -- 4-year-old Roddy White Jr. and daughters Amyia (5) and Milan (1).
"My mom did the best she could, but there are some crucial things that only a father can teach you about becoming a man," he said. "That's why being a good father is so important to me."
White said the time a father spends with his children is what really matters.
"You can't throw money at everything. Money isn't going to solve all your problems," he said. "The most important thing I can do is spend time with my children."
Another lesson learned from his mother.
"After a game when I've been beat up pretty good, the last thing I want to do is come home and play more football," Roddy said. "But Junior or someone will ask me and there I am in the basement or out in the yard playing with them. Racing them, playing football, whatever they want. That's what my mother did for me and that's what I'm going to do for them."
Like mother, like son.
