By Geoff Neville
Franklin Times
Just across the border in Nash County, J.J. Arrington was a lightly recruited running back from Northern Nash High School earlier this decade.
Most people outside of the Nash area had never even heard of the diminutive-but-quick running back.
In fact, Arrington wasn’t even the most recruited member of his family. His older sister, Janette, was a star at Northern Nash, helping the Lady Knights win the 1998 Class 4-A State Girls Basketball Championship.
Janette ended up at Louisburg College, where she was a two-year standout before concluding her exceptional career at Division I Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C.J.J. regularly made the trip to Louisburg to watch his older sister in action, hoping he might have his opportunity to one day shine at a high level.
Sunday in Tampa, Arrington will compete on the grandest stage of all.
Now a member of the Arizona Cardinals, Arrington will line up against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl.
Arrington began his football career in 1992 as a member of the Nashville Hornets youth gridiron squad.
During his four-year stint with the Hornets, Arrington was coached by Jim Glover -- a former basketball stalwart at Louisburg College under J. Enid Drake. Glover taught Arrington the nuances of the game before sending him on to Nash Central Middle School and Northern Nash High School.
At Northern, Arrington was coached by legend Jim Brett -- who also guided current Franklinton mentor Clark Harrell when he prepped at Tarboro in the 1970s.
Arrington was a good high school back, but nobody could have imagined what would happen next. He was only 5-foot-9, so most area colleges shied away from Arrington.
Little did they know what he was on the cusp of accomplishing.One of Brett’s connections gave Arrington the opportunity to play at the College of the Canyons -- a junior college in California.
“J.J. really blossomed when he went out there,’’ said Northern Nash Athletic Director Dan Richwalski.
A successful two-year JUCO stint drew the interested eye of University of California coach Jeff Tedford.Arrington signed with Cal to play in the PAC-10 -- far, far away from his lifelong friends and family members.
An injury to Cal’s starting running back pushed Arrington into the starting lineup as a junior, and he never looked back.During his senior year, Arrington broke Cal’s single-season rushing mark with over 2,100 yards -- one of the most prolific totals in NCAA football history.
The Cardinals drafted Arrington in the second round of the NFL Draft in 2005. This is his fourth season in the desert, where Arrington has served as a backup running back and kickoff-return specialist.
One of Arrington’s strengths is catching the ball out of the backfield -- a strategy that many observers deem necessary for Arizona to be able to move the ball against the staunch Pittsburgh defense.
For the year, Arrington has rushed 31 times for 187 yards and caught 29 passes for 255 yards.In the NFC Championship Game against Philadelphia, Arrington was part of a flea-flicker pass play that resulted in a key touchdown for the Cardinals.
Arrington later left that game with a knee injury, but is expected to be ready Sunday in the Sunshine State.
Not bad for a personable guy from nearby Nash County that nobody wanted coming out of high school.
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