"I was pretty passionate about trying to get them to change the rule," Abdur-Rahman said. "Daquan Cooper, Jaelen Strong-Rankin, Brandon Hollomon . . . there were lots of guys in that game that I'd played against or grew up with and all I kept thinking was, 'I should be out there with them.' Plus, my dad [Amin; known as Jerome Ruff during his early 1980s days at Germantown] played in the game. I thought it could have been a great culmination to my high school career.
"I did speak with coach Fluck [Brian, head coach at West Catholic and an all-star bigwig] and he said he'd check with the other coaches, but I guess they didn't go for it. I never did hear back from him."
Please put away all tissues.
Tomorrow night, 7 o'clock, as a cornerback, returner and, perhaps, even a part-time rusher/receiver, Abdur-Rahman will represent Pennsylvania vs. Ohio in the 54th annual Big 33 Football Classic. (Televised across the state on PCN.)
OK, so the site will be HersheyPark Stadium as opposed to Lincoln Financial Field, but you won't hear Abdur-Rahman complaining. In fact, via cell phone yesterday, he sounded pretty darn excited.
"I'm very happy," he said. "To know you've been selected to play in a game like this, with all the best players from around Pennsylvania, it's a humbling experience. Counting those people in our house, then aunts and cousins, I figure 10 to 15 family members will be there."
Cooper, a wideout from George Washington who's bound for Temple, will also play for PA. Ditto for Hollomon, a running back from West Catholic whose next stop will be the Salisbury School, in Connecticut. And Pennsy's quarterback coach is Drew Gordon, La Salle's head man.
"He's trying," Abdur-Rahman said, laughing, when asked whether Gordon would steal him for offensive duties. "You might see me over there for a couple of plays."
As he stated earlier, Abdur-Rahman already knows Cooper and Hollomon very well. Since arriving in the Hershey area last Saturday (the team has been practicing once/twice a day), he has mostly attached himself to others.
"It's fun meeting all these new players, guys I might be playing against for a long time," he said. "I feel like I'm building lasting friendships.
"And I'm having a great experience with my host family, the Johnsons, who live maybe 2 minutes from the place where we're having all our practices, Lower Dauphin High. They have three sons [two in high school and a 10-year-old]. We went to a place called Adventure Land [Wednesday night] and we really got to bond. Lots of fun."
Meanwhile, in case you're wondering, Abdur-Rahman did attend the City All-Star Game, won by Public over Non-Public, 30-20.
"I was sitting in the first row. On the Non-Pub side," he said. "Bummer."
