/// RUN 24

Shannon Howard is a native of Glennville, GA, in the county of Tattnall. He was a star athlete at Tattnall County, where he won a state championship in track and field. He signed to play football at Savannah State as a receiver. After college, Shannon moved to Jacksonville, where he has enjoyed a career in financial services.

Q: Why did you create RUN 24?

In honor of my childhood best friend, Larry Davis, who died from ALS. RUN 24 is a social media platform where we believe that wellness is an integrated process of physical activity, mental reflection, social engagement and emotional awareness. The reason I called the platform Run 24 is because Larry was known for his legendary speed and running. He wore number 24, he got married on the 24th, his son was born on the 24th and he died on the 24th.

Q: Have you always been into fitness?

Yes, my dad expressed the importance of health and fitness at a young age. I played five sports growing up: football, baseball, basketball, track and tennis.

Q: Tell us about your high school career?

I was a four-letter athlete for my entire high school career. I participated in baseball, football basketball, and track. I was honorable mention in baseball as a sophomore for All-State shortstop and led the team to a state final four. I was an All-State shortstop my junior year and senior year. Baseball was definitely my best sport, but football was my first love. My team also won the state track meet in 1994.

Q: Why didn't you play baseball at Savannah State?

I initially went out for the team my freshman year but I was so burnt out from football and trying to get adjusted to life without my parents that I fell behind in my studies so I focus on being eligible for football.

Q: What schools were interested in you coming out of high school and what sports?

I was interested in Florida A&M. I had soft offer from Miami, offers from Wofford, Georgia Southern and West Georgia. I initially signed with Georgia Southern. They wanted me to continue to play quarterback, but I wanted to play defensive back or wide receiver. I never really wanted to play quarterback in high school, but I was the best fit for the team. I grew up watching Shannon and Sterling Sharpe and they both played wide receiver, being that I had exceptional hand eye coordination, that's what I wanted to play wide receiver as well. I ended up going to Savannah State.

Q: What was it like watching the Sharpe brothers in high school? How did it motivate you as a player?

It was great watching them in high school. You could tell they were special. I watched them more in college and the NFL. I just wish that they would have come back home and share the knowledge on what it took to get to that level.

Q: How did Coach Hall impact your life?

Coach Hall helped me sign with Savannah State. When I decided to opt-out of signing with Georgia Southern, he personally went to Coach Joe Crosby. Coach Crosby signed me on Coach Hall's word. Coach Clark had saw my high school football tape, but Crosby saw me only saw my track footage, and that's how I ended up at Savannah State. I still carry Coach Hall's letter of recommendation in my wallet to this day. My family and I respect and love him dearly.

Q: Describe your experience at Savannah State?

My experience will always have a lasting impression on me. I learned a lot of life skills such as teamwork, dedication, perseverance, commitment and many others. I do have a small grudge that didn't affect me directly but seeing it affected me indirectly. My roommate Ramon Huff signed with the Baltimore Ravens, but still participated in a national track meet on behalf of Savannah State. He injured himself at the track meet and wasn't 100% when he returned to Ravens camp. He got cut due to injury and then had to continue to pay his own education even though he put his neck and promising future out on the line for Savannah State. This caused me to think it was more about what you can do for Savannah State, instead of what Savannah State can do for you.

Q: Is it hard trying to play two sports in college?

Very hard, especially if you don't have the discipline as an 18, 19 or 20 year old. Today, kids can enroll into school earlier and get acclimated to the college life. Therefore, they’re able to adjusted a lot easier with the options of playing multiple sports.

Q: It seems that many of us have the same stories of being burned at Savannah State. I know I have mine. How do you think the landscape has changed since we were in college? Is it better for the athletes?

I think the landscape has changed with the times. The athletes today have better and more accessible resources (weight room, nutrition, practice fields, etc). However, I think we had stronger and more intangibles as athletes in our era.

Q: I agree, we had some great athletes come through Savannah State during our era, do you think the rule changes with eligibility have caused Savannah State to miss out on top notched talent?

Yeah, the eligibility issues definitely hurt Savannah State. The lack of scholarships hurt their opportunity to spread the wealth among top-tier local and home state athletes that didn’t get into the big schools. Also, with the NCAA relaxing their eligibility rules since our era, it has been easier to qualify and get into the bigger D1 schools than it was during our time. I feel we had top D1 skill set athletes, who didn't have D1 academics coming out of high school.

Q: How do you feel about the school's move back to Division II?

From a personal standpoint, it can go either way. However, I feel the school will be more competitive at that level. It will also feel good to not see the lop-sided tail cutting we were taking each Saturday.

Q: What do you say to people when they try and downplay education at a HBCU?

I often let them know that HBCUs are just as prominent as mainstream universities. Also, HBCU students come out with more of an edge or chip on their shoulder.

Q: Do you think it is because the schools are smaller (teacher:student ratio or the culture?

I think there's more of an engagement relationship with black college professors and their students. Many of whom have attended an HBCU themselves.

Q: Tell us about Larry Davis.

I have played against, played with, and watched a lot of world-class athletes that went on to the professional level; and to this day Larry was the most gifted athlete I have ever seen in person. Larry was the top running back in the state his senior year. His speed was legendary. He didn't qualify academically. He missed it by a few points.

He actually came to Savannah State to walk on, however, they didn't have any more dorm rooms available for athletes, so he attempted to commute 120 miles round trip everyday. That's how crazy Savannah State was. They had a world class athlete on campus, but no one bothered to do their homework on him. Coach Hall once said on our rides back to Savannah, that Larry Davis had as much or more talent than Sterling and Shannon Sharpe. Granted there were a lot of athletes from Glennville that were cut from the same cloth.

In 1992, there was story that spread like wildfire across Georgia about Larry. Coach Hall made him enter the 100 meter dash at the last minute. It was so last minute that Larry did not have time to change into his track uniform. Instead of coming out of starting blocks, Larry was in a standing start with jeans, a dress shirt and David Robinson basketball shoes. Larry stood there with his hands on his hips, while everyone else was in the blocks. When the race was over, Larry had won by at least 10 meters. They clocked him at 10.8.

Larry never really ran as fast as he could. He always ran as fast as he wanted to (Usain Bolt style). Some of his best races were in practice against Rodney Nails. Rodney ran the 100, 200 and 400 as. He too was a gifted athlete that posted times of 10.8 in the 100, 21 in the 200, and sub-50 in the 400. One day, Larry and Rodney almost got into a fight at practice about who was the fastest. So to settle it, they line up and run the 100m dash. Rodney was in top shape, but Larry left him at least 10 meters. He might have gone sub-10 that day.

Q: How did the merger change things in Tattnall? What high school did you go to before the merger?

The merger was great. Many athletes with talent, however, I think it was a year too late for us. If Glennville (my school) and Reidsville had merged one year earlier, we could have won state championships in multiple sports.

Q: I have met a lot you all from that school. You guys are always the same. Athletic, intelligent, hard-working, humble, and overall good people. Do you think it was the environment? Has the tradition carried on?

I think it was a little of both. Our fathers were all-state athletes that went to the segregated schools. They all had kids around the same time and would often share their stories with us. It was a way of life that was passed on from generation to generation. My dad won the state track meet the last year before they integrated the schools. I won the state track meet the first year of the merger. This story was so unique that Coach Hall spoke of it in a GA Hall of Fame interview.

Q: Do you think high schools programs die off because there aren't people around to come back and keep it going?

I think it helps when we come back. However It is more of an impact if the ones that live there are more involved and engage with the kids. The community has to take care, motivate and encourage themselves.

Q: Have you ever wanted to get involved in youth or high school sports in Jacksonville?

Yeah, that's always been a thought and when I come across youth, I try to instill positive motivation and some of the things I wish someone would have came back to me. My goal is to have a performance training center one day. I also want to help single moms,who have no idea how the college recruiting process goes.

Q: What are the common misconceptions that single moms have about the recruiting process?

That their son will make it to the NFL. I've seen moms cut friends and family members off who helped their son stand out in high school. As soon as the attention came, the mom's mind immediately went to money as if their son was a golden egg. The same goes for basketball.

Q: So how do you think you can fix the problem?

With an effort of spreading information about the process. However, the mom has to take the initiative to expand their knowledge base on the process and not remain naive or think they already know it all by watching TV. My biggest topic for talking to youth these days is entrepreneurship. We're so institutionalized as a country and even more granular as a race. While growing up, we're taught to go to school graduate, get a good job and retire. No one ever talked about going to school, graduating, owning your own business and providing jobs for pathways for others.

Q: Would you get the dads involved, even if they are not with the mom (if possible and in the area)?

That would be the very first attempt, however it has to be bigger than just sports. They would need to be more engaged about life, academics and the value added to society.

Join Shannon's Facebook Group / / / Run 24

https://www.facebook.com/groups/257687588014031/