Jahan Dotson joins Santana Moss | Episode 12

Former Washington wide receiver Santanta Moss welcome to Dotson to discuss his life and career before going sixteenth overall. Heydsha boy, Santanta Moss. I'm here today. What the Washington Commander's first round draft pick, John Dotson. Welcome, my brother, than How you doing it? I'm good. How are you doing? I mean, I'm great, man. How you feel on the right now? Yeah, I'm good. First day in the building. Just excited for

the opportunity. Honestly been tering to get here. I can't wait, can't wait to see what was in store now that that that process, I mean you know when I say the process, I've been in them shoots before I understand how we are as collegiate athletes. I mean, my goal was out the gate as a five six year old and I was asked what do I want to do or what I was gonna be when I grew up? I said, a football player. I'm not sure if that was your number one goal. But now that it's over

and you're here, what feeling do you have? Yeah, kind of just achievement, just excitement. Like like you said, from an early age, you knew that this is what you wanted to do, and I feel like it's the same exact way for me. Um, I've always, like my parents always told me when I was a young kid, I never really played with toys. I grew up playing with football, football, football, basketball, So I always kind of knew I wanted to do something like this, and in football, I took it serious

from a young age and it's finally playing on. So it was football number one sport for you, Because I know I ran track, I did a daly with basketball, but I knew football was number one. Track got me into college. But you know, how was it like for you growing up? Yeah? Football, football was always my number one. I didn't start running track till high school, started playing basketball to middle school. But I've been playing football since like a walk. So I always knew this was what

I wanted to do. So tell me you was born in New Jersey. I'm right? Did you grew up in Jersey or did you grew up in Philly or Pennsylvania. Yeah, so I grew up in Jersey for about seven to eight years and then basically just moved to Pa my dad putting us in a better opportunity for me and my family, just getting away from just a toxic city. For it was good the opportunity to come to Pennsylvania. And really it was a big culture shock for me, but just adapting to it, it was good for me.

So how was it? I mean, like, take take me, Take me through your childhood. I remember being a kid man, and I remember, you know, I stayed in Miami all my life, but but I stayed in two different sizes of Miami. And if you ever, I'm not sure you're familiar with it, but you know, folks always talk about South Beach when they hear in Miami. I grew up. I was born and raised in Liberty City, and Liberty City is a world now known, it's known. Everyone knows

what Liberty City is about. And then then I turned twelve, I think, and I moved to Carroll City, which was like rival cities. I remember those days, I remember vividly. Do you have that memory of you leaving one spot to the other, Yeah, for sure. When I first left New Jersey, I cried the whole way there. I didn't. I didn't want to leave Jersey just because that's where all my family grew up. My grandmother, grandfather, cousins and uncles,

like everyone was back in Jersey. So my dad moving up, so we were the first ones to really move away from the connected family. And I cried the whole car ride, a whole hour, fifteen car ride. So it was tough for me just going through that process, just because I was a very young age. Yeah, and I kind of only knew one place. But it was good for me. But it was a better life though, better lifestyle, just better opportunities. Around what age did you start playing you know, football,

or rather the organized football? Yeah, so I started playing around four. I started playing flight football around four years old, and I pretty much been playing ever since. Got You Got You, You Got You? So high school yep, And I know we all go through it. You know, you started whether you started ninth grade or you started TIM grade. I started tim grade and I started straight out the gate to varsity. Yeah, how was your journey in high school knowing that my goal is to get to college

doing what I'm doing I love to do. What was it like for you? Yeah, my early years of high school were tough. Um. I went to a very small, small high school and I was always like kind of the best player on my team. So my ninth grade year, they moved me right up to varsity just basically threw me in with the big dogs, and I was I was about thirty five one hundred thirty five pounds, just

ready to make plays. But it was it was really a shock to me to realize that, like, there's so much more than just your talent that will get you there. So just really having to understand throughout high school putting the work in, um, it's going to enhance your ability to play on the field. Was it always a given that you knew that what you was doing at that time was going to allow you to or allow your parents not to have to pay for, you know, for college.

For you I'm not sure how you got into Penn State, but you know, I knew the process for me was a lot different. I remember it got down to my last year and I was like, well, you know, I look like I would be not going to school and then things just drastically changed. How was that journey like for you, Yeah, so basically my sophomore year of high school was basically my breakout season started again. I probably had around forty offers after that year, and going into

my junior year, I was highly highly recruited. And that year I had broke my leg. That was the first injury I've ever faced, and it kind to seem like everything just shut down. Everything went downhill. A lot of schools stopped talking to me. Um, it's not getting recruited as as I was the previous year. So it was tough going through that and knowing that like football isn't everything, there's much more to life than just football, and I really just had to hone in on on daily life

and just really let it take me. And I'm glad you spoke on that because I remember going through something going into my junior year. Football was taken away from me. They said I had scoliosis. They said I couldn't participate in anything of that sort. And I remember now thinking, like when I'm just out here to the park with my friends and the life that I knew, that I that I loved dearly and wanted to have, you know, pursue and and go pro in it might be over

from me, What was it like keeping your faith? Because I remember what it was like for me. I kind of it was a roller coaster from me. But what was it like keeping that mindset and just knowing that I can overcome this and still have the opportunity. Yeah, it kind of just made me hungrier. Yeah like that, Like you said, that was the first time football had ever been taken away from me, And that's when I realized how much football really meant to me and how

much I really love the game. Like I wanted to get back out there so bad. It hurt me. I tell everyone the thing that hurt me most was sitting on the sidelines watching and not being able to participate with my guys. Because football is really somewhere where I kind of bring out who I am and expressed myself. So it's tough. It was really tough for me to go through that. I'm you know, I'm just sitting here.

Things you're seeing is just I'm connecting with it because you know, I tell folks all the time, I suffer from I guess social anxiety. I'm not good in the crowds. But when I'm on that field, no matter how many people in that stands, I'm at home. I don't feel no one around me. I don't care what's going on between the white lines. That's my safe haveing. So to hear you say that, I mean I feel you. I feel I'm in the same boat. But tell me something,

in college, it's a different ball game. You know. You get there, you seeing it these guys and nothing like the guys that you played with in high school. That's one thing we get away within high school. We play against You might have a Blue Chipper or a five star here or there, but the team sucks, you know, to be real, you know, and you take advantage of everybody is in front of you. That sucks because it's not your fault that this guy can't, you know, live

up to the competition. What was it like when you first introduced the Penn State and you realize this is a different ball game. Yeah, enter in the Penn State once again the same thing. I was light. I was real light, probably about one hundred and fifty five pounds going in there. And that was the first first adversity I facing, just because that was the first time I realized that there's guys out there that can do what

you can do. So that was that was a culture shock to me again and it really made me honing on my skills, honing on my abilities, and really just want to be that guy. I had a guy in front of me by the name of kJ Hamler, tremendous talent, and it really like it. It dug at me that he was that guy, like that was my brother and he was that guy because I wanted to be that guy so bad. I was that guy in high school. So it really dug at me and just made me just want to go harder, always be that guy. When

did it come to the realization that you can go pro? Like, you know, we all get that nod. It might be a coach, it might be somebody that's watched you play that say hey, bro, you got potential to go to next level. You know, I got it. I got it early, like I played out the gate. But by my sophomore year, folks are telling me, hey, you're gonna be a first rounder, and you know, being that guy listening to it, I'm just one of those guys. Didn't want to hear the noise.

I wanted to go out there continue to produce. When did you stop believing or even hearing that you can go pro? I would probably say after my sophomore season that's when I really I really just took it in an account. Like I had talks with a coach, Franklin, and he was like, listen, like, if you you have the ability to be a first round pick, you have the ability to be successful at the next level, but you really got to take this, take this to the

next step, and that off more. After that sophomore season, going into my junior year, that was when I really just enhanced my game. I started really taking the weight room real seriously, just getting that extra working, and I just I really started feeling in love with it and just never got tired of it. So your game grows, I mean every year we get better. And then you hear those noises, you hear the sounds, and you hear

everybody just you know, chopping in the whispers. Of Man, this guy has potentially who is that one guy you looked at, you know on that nixt level one, say this is who I I basically resembled this guy? Who who was that one one whit received me that you watched growing up? Yeah? Um, I watched a lot of Sean Jackson growing up. He was always kind of a guy who's right there in that Philly area, right in the Philly area. Wasn't very big in stature, but he

made it happen. Um, And then that's that's kind of how I've always been, just trying to trying to make it happen. Uh, you you can't. You gotta deal with the cards that you're dealt with and you gotta make it happen. That's great, man. Well not you're here, man, Um, I want to first, and I'm pretty sure I'm sure I'm not the first, but I want to congratulate you. But I will say this, and I don't have no more questions for you. I want you to know that

we all been in those shoes. Most of the guys that you see that's gonna be doing this, you know throughout the year is gonna you know, be former players or we've been in them shoes. But keep that hunger that's first and foremost, whatever it was that got you here, continue to let that, you know, build up in you, man,

and just have fun with the process. Trust me. I mean, it's gonna be a journey, it's gonna be a task, But if you're having fun with it, man, you're gonna be able to do something the same things you did on the collegiate level. All right, thanks, thanks, yes, sir. For all your Commanders news and analysis, be sure to tune into Command Center weeknights at five thirty ten pm

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