Justin Forsett | The Undersized NFL Player with an Oversized Heart

Audio Transcription

Welcome back to another exciting edition of the thrive time business coaching show on your podcast download in today. We’re interviewing a man who was an. It was an undersized nfl player with what I believe to be an over sized heart. Mr Justin for set. How are you, sir?

Oh, great. Thanks for having me on today.

Well adjusted your story is so exciting and I’d like to start off at the very beginning. You growing up in a Christian home where your father was a pastor, a, I believe he was into. He was a pastor, but he also wanted a barbecue restaurant. Andy was a trucker. Is that correct? When you. Did your dad have three jobs at the same time?

It. Hey Man. Yeah, he, he was uh, an unbelievable hard worker doing everything he could to provide for our family. We didn’t always have the best of the best, but we’ve always had something he was taking care of us. So, uh, definitely a great example in my life

where you grew up in mulberry, Florida, where it’s a phosphate mining town, it’s small farming. Can you describe what your childhood was like growing up in a town that was largely agricultural and if this phosphate mining town out there in Florida?

Yes. A typical small town living in a town of 3000 people. Not a lot of people make it out to accomplish their business coaching dreams and goals and aspirations. Usually after high school you go right into like the phosphate mining industry that we have there. Um, but it’s just a country town. Everybody knows everybody’s business. You got about three traffic lights. We just got a walmart a couple of years ago.

Big Deal.

So, uh, we’re, we’re, we’re upgrading, but, uh, still got a ways to go, but it’s a, it’s a unbelievable a towel cd with a lot of heart, a lot, have a great work ethic, a lot of family, um, you know, uh, in the community and uh, we take care of each other. It’s blue collar.

You guys, you grew up with, with, with you and your brothers and you go, you all played sports. How important were sports for you as a family? Growing up

is extremely important, man. It’s kept us out of trouble. It was, gave us activities to do what my parents had all these different, you know, at least my dad having these jobs are working, you know, why they were out providing, um, you know, we basically were at the, we had the field at the park playing sports and uh, they kept us busy, occupied and you till they got home.

You have said on multiple interviews, and I only know this because I am, I, I consider myself to be fan number one of the Justin for fanclub here you talk about no days off. You talk about no days off. I’ve heard you say no days off. And I’ve heard you mentioned the name Uncle Kevin. Who’s Uncle Kevin? Yeah. And how did he teach you? How did he, how was I was uncle Kevin a source of inspiration for you

in a small town that we live in? You know, sports was at a, at a premium, everybody loved watching and playing sports. Um, my uncle growing up, which is my mom’s brother, he was a big star in the town. It was a starting quarterback in high school and the homecoming king and all those things and I would just see him trained and uh, how seriously he took his craft. I mean, I would see him run miles and miles and miles up a workout. He had a, he had a bench in a weight room set inside the inside of his bedroom and he will be lifting and working out and curl. So I would kind of mimic him. I see him running, I would want to run, I would see him lift and I would want to live in this kind of trying to emulate his, his work ethic and you know, he was successful. So I wanted to chase after, you know, what he was chasing. So, uh, he was a big inspiration, a big driving factor for me growing up and a big example. So, uh, definitely shout out to my uncle Kevin

and you know, this, you’re the uncle Kevin for a lot of people. There’s a lot of people out there that see you and I know that’s what you’re all about. I mean, you want to teach people that there is another way. You don’t have to go the bad way, you know, there’s a good way. And one of the things that you did that uncle Kevin I think taught you was this concept of no days off. Can you share with our listeners about your Sunday workouts during high school?

Yeah, no it was for me coming from not having a lot growing up and I didn’t want to ever have to deal with some of the things that I, you know, I didn’t want to ever have my kids. There was some of the things that I dealt with growing up, you know, being financially unstable, moving from house to house, never owned a home. Um, you know, many times when the power’s out in our home, uh, when I had to do a read my goosebumps books under candle light or I had to take baths with bottled waters are that are at a time when we didn’t have a home where we were living out of a motel. Um, you know, I made a declaration at an early age that, you know, I didn’t know how I was going to happen, but I was going to make it out and I was going to beat the business coaching odds and I knew that was going to take work that I was going to take no days off.

Uh, so when people in high school was doing, you know, going out, partying and drinking, going out in the mall, I know I was doing 100 pushups and sit ups tonight. I was gonna that was determined not to allow those bits of adversity or those things that I couldn’t control to define me, but refined me. It made me a better person, better athlete. I knew. I saw my uncle with great work ethic and he was, he was making it out. He went off to go to school at Rutgers, um, and then I saw a guy named Barry Sanders on Sunday and I saw his size and stature, which I was, you know, I was a short guy, never the biggest and fastest and I wanted to achieve those things so I know how to put a time and so on Sunday when everybody was chilling and maybe hanging out after the church, just relaxing, I would go out sprints to a local high school field and just run and just me, my blood, sweat and tears going after it. When my dreams in my head and my mind what I wanted to attain and just pushing myself, just beat my body up a so I can see is my opportunity. When it came,

you know, your, your dad or your mom. Somebody made the decision. They said, hey, here’s the deal. We’re gonna. We’re gonna. Move to Arlington to get you more exposure. We’ve, we’re hearing people say, you need more exposure. And unlike most people, your parents decided to move to Arlington instead of just talking about it. They did it and they brought a good friend of yours by the name of lance with them. Can you talk about when they told you we’re gonna take. We’re gonna. We’re gonna enroll you in Arlington. Grace Prep. We’re moving from Florida halfway across the country to Texas. And then when they told you, oh, by the way, we’re bringing lance.

Yeah, no, it was around my sophomore year. It was, it just didn’t pop out of nowhere. We had talked about it a while because my older brother had went out and stayed out in Arlington, Texas and went to that same school. Um, my older brother did and stayed with some family friends out there. So we had some relationships already, some connections and uh, we see. So how, uh, uh, a great opportunity it was for my brother that, you know, it was going to be a great fit for me and my younger brother. And uh, we decided to bring along a friend, a family friend of ours named Lance and uh, he was going through some things, uh, and his high school, I’m not really doing what he was supposed to be doing, so we wanted to give him a chance to, to get a fresh start and uh, we went out together and fight for our dreams,

you know, and I heard that lance was a five star recruit glance really put on a laser show during highschool. And so schools would come out, colleges would come out and want to Scout Lance and uh, what’s Lance’s last name?

Last leg it.

Okay. So everyone’s out there trying to go see lance, the five star athlete and they’re out there and then lance is going, hey dude, the real star is my main man over here, five foot eight of. Great. Mr Justin for set. I’ll tell you that. He’s like your height man almost. Can you talk about your level of exposure that he was getting and the level of recruiting that he was getting at that time?

Okay.

It was crazy, man. Just to see him, because I mean, you’re talking about a six slash four receiver that runs a 40 3:40 on just incredible gifted athlete and uh, you know, that really wasn’t, you know,

really, uh, you know, reaching his potential, you know, in the place we were in Florida. So, uh, whenever we get another chance to fresh start to Kinda get his name out there and show his abilities, it was amazing. And that brought in scouts that brought in a head coaches I remember, you know, going to camps and Bobby Bowden and pulling them in and talking to them when people, these big time coaches, I mack brown coming to our school and it was incredible. Like the silencer and practice were filled with scouts, coaches and I just brought a lot of exposure. There’s a lot of exposure not only for him but for us and for me. And it meant a lot for him. They kind of always, uh, you know, support me and try to pump me up and to the scouts and um, you know, it was, it was love, man. It was unbelievable experience. Now all of them were saying that I was too small or too short or too slow to play, uh, but it still was the opportunity and to get in front of some scouts, which not everyone gets a chance to do in high school.

I know you don’t hear this a lot anymore, but I just want to remind you that you were definitely too small, too short and too slow to play, but you did it right now. Notre Dame, these crazy guys said the fighting Irish thereafter thereafter, me just 10 percent. They said to you, they say, Hey, I, I would like to extend you maybe an offer we would like to recruit you. How close did it get to signing a scholarship with Notre Dame? Because I know they were after you. How, how close did you, did you get to signing with them?

Well, it was really cool

justin. It’s cutting out somehow. It did maybe switch to Bluetooth or something.

Can you hear me?

Adjustment? Can you hear me switched to Bluetooth or something? Do we have his cell phone, his cell phone now?

I’ll come right back. It is

just for some reason it switched to Bluetooth or something. I don’t know what happened, but we’re back now. Can you hear me now? I’ve lost your right. I’m just going to reset that question. I’ll edit it together. Still sound great. So how close did you get to actually signing with Notre Dame?

It was very close. I remember them coming down, running back coach, coming down to my, uh, to visit me after my all star game. I didn’t have any offers on the table at the time. The scholarship. I’m really excited and I’m thinking like, man, this is perfect. The stars, the funding and especially after I saw with my business coaching teammates, get these scholarship offers and you know, have everyone come and a really level on them and support them and you know, want to offer them. And I’m thinking, man, this is it. This is, this makes sense. I want to know today I’m thinking go to Dover touchdown. Jesus. I’m thinking rudy. I’m like

rudy, Rudy,

that I’m going there. And then, you know, obviously a couple of months down the road, I’ll get a call from them a week before signing day and telling me that they didn’t need me anymore. And I just remember getting that news been heartbroken as a 17 year old kid going down to my room, crying my eyes out, you know, my knees and praying and just Kinda, you know, Kinda refocusing, dusted myself off and having a piece of by myself, like I don’t know what’s going to happen in my future, but I know I’ve got to excel at what I can control and I’ve got to have a string faith. And uh, that’s what I did. I kept working, I kept grinding, no days off. And then all of a sudden I get a scholarship offer from a UC Berkeley. I don’t know where.

No, you get an offer from UC Berkeley and you’re joining this ridiculous a team of running backs. I mean, you guys have marshawn Lynch who’s still in the NFL, phenomenal player. Jj Arrington. Uh, I mean, what did it feel like to be on a team with beast mode during college?

Man, it was amazing. Um, you know, we came in together, me and him were both freshmen at the same time. We’re roommates coming in a play with Jagan Harrison. He started back, but we all rotate again. It was just great. You know, we’re number 11 at the time, Aaron Rodgers was a quarterback and a was well in the world, you know, we were pretty successful and uh, you know, we kept playing me and marshawn shirt, uh, the back the backfield for next two years. Then he went off to next three years and then he went off to get drafted by the buffalo bills. I stayed and uh, you know, started my senior year, had the workload on my own. Um, so it was a great experience, man. Just a lot, a lot, a lot. I was there, I learned a lot from, you know, guys like marshawn lynch and Rogers, those guys. And I’m just one step closer to my dream.

Here’s the deal. That is crazy awesome about our listeners to understand this. And I know you don’t want people to Brag on you on your own podcast, but let me just, let me just clarify this. You’re backup behind Jj Arrington and marshawn lynch. You didn’t complain. You stuck around until your senior year. Your senior year, you had 1,546 yards on 305 carries even scored 15 touchdowns before you enter the NFL draft. And to this day you’re still friends with marshawn lynch. You didn’t complain, you didn’t get a lot of carries, you didn’t complain, you didn’t. You actually are. You’re still friends with the guy. So can you explain to the personality, because so many people misunderstand marshawn lynch. Can you explain it was one of the most interesting personalities and in the nfl, can you kind of explain your relationship with him and what his personality is like? Because I hear he’s a great guy.

No, he’s an awesome person, man. We’re like brothers. He was a grown man in my wedding. Um, was still close to this day. We talk almost every, every week. Um, just unbelievable guy. He has a big personality. He loves to laugh, loves having a good time. Um, he, he comes from a, you know, a really tough background being in Oakland, seen a lot at an early age, a lot of death and random, lot of pride of violence around him, but he made it out to successful and he has a big heart. He loves this community, loves to give back. I’ve literally seen them on campus as a college kid or see somebody in need, like literally give the shirt off his back. So, uh, he’s just, uh, uh, a great guy with a big heart and a, and a big personality. So those pleasure, pleasure, uh, being connected with him all these years.

You know, you put on a laser show your senior year, 1,546 yards, 305 carries 15 touchdowns. Are you kidding me? Awesome. So the guy’s too slow, too small to whatever you get drafted in the seventh round by the seahawks. Then during your first preseason preseason game, I man, you put up 261 all purpose yards. And as a way of saying thank you, they wave you on September fifth, during August 15th, you, you gained 261 yards. And then as a way to say thank you, they wave you. What did it feel like being waived from the team that drafted you right after you just put on a laser show?

Man, I was crushed. I was heartbroken. You know, you think that, you know, for me, I thought once I made the team the opening roster that I was going to be there forever and my entire career and then, you know, I’ll get cut and uh, you know, I was kinda hoping and it’s like, man, I’ve got to get to work. I got to find a way to, to get back on the team. I was claimed off waivers they get to play for the Indianapolis Colts. So I was headed to indy, but, you know, I was determined a lot of that setback. So it Kinda made me better. It made me a better person, better football players. So, um, it definitely did that.

And those dudes cut you. The colts cut you are waived. You seven days after

theme of my whole career, clay.

I know. That’s what I’m saying. Listen, I have no talent. I took an act three times. I took Algebra three times. I have grown up super poor and it’s just. I’ve been working for seven years, seven consecutive years to get into the top 10 of itunes. That’s why I feel like we’re like the I, I get your story. That’s I’m a big fan of yours and so you. You get cut again by the colts just seven days after they claimed off of waivers. How did that feel?

Man? It was tough. It was a lot of things, a lot of emotions going on in that room because again, I was fired. I’m like, man, I’m. This is my first season nfl. I’m on fire. Like in the first, you know, how to do, you know, of the bay in the NFL and it was tough for me and then get news that, you know, my mom’s cancer has come back and they didn’t know how long she was going to be able to live a. I just knew I had it. If I got my shot again, I had to make the most of it because it wasn’t guaranteed I was going to get another one. So I went out and I was fighting for my friend, for my career and my life is, it

did after you got cut, right. So you know, your mom is not doing well with cancer and you get signed again by the seahawks who just cut you two months ago. How did that feel?

It was great, you know, because I was familiar with the team, the organization, they really didn’t want me one one a cut me the first time and uh, so it was good to be back with them and it felt good. Felt like I was at home.

How did you stay focused on football and I know that you help support your mom and if I, if I’m, if I’m inaccurate there you, you tell me why you support your mom and your dad financially with your checks. Your mom’s dying of cancer. You’re supporting her. Is that correct? Am I. Am I wrong there?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. No, I was saying mean. That was part of the reason why I had to fight so hard. I wanted to make sure that I could provide everything that she needed. Um, you know, treatments and whatnot. So sending money, whatever I could to send back home.

So here’s the deal. You carry a Bible. You were, if, if I’m wrong, if I’m exaggerating, tell me you were a virgin until you’re married. Am I correct? You carry a Bible. You have a Bible, you read a Bible, you talk about the Bible. You are all in. Am I? Am I. Am I exaggerating at all? You’re all in.

I’m all in.

Okay. You’re in the NFL. I’m not sure if you’re aware of that, but you’re in the nfl where it’s not necessarily known as being like the Bible belt of America. Could you explain what it’s like to be a guy who’s praying for his mom? Who’s going through the emotions of trying to support your mom while being cut three times and two times and just a period of two months and being a Christian? I mean, what kind of adversity were you facing in the locker room? Being the Christian guy and then dealing with your mom, how did you, I mean, what kind of adversity or were you dealing with mentally at that time?

A adversity to overcome. But I never allowed it to affect my play and, and how was I treated my teammates in the locker room. Like, you know, I was all in, in, into my faith and all in, into my work, you know, being able to go out there and be at my best for my team. So, um, you know, the, the good thing about the locker room is, which I think, you know, most, uh, the main main society could learn from is that it’s a melting pot of people from all different types of backgrounds, all different types of faith. And we got along because we had one common business coaching goal at the end of the day and that was the wet. So we respected each other. We may not always agree on the same things, but we saw brother and need, we were there to help him. And you know, I had people that I can count on get encouragement when those times got really rough.

And I was facing adversity, you know, so, uh, it was really, it was really cool to be in there. I was never one of those guys. I was in there preaching in the locker room and telling people, you know, you should do this, you should, you know, uh, you know, read this Bible, whatnot. I wanted them. I wanted to live in such a way is that it intrigued them to find out why I believe what I believe. And I wanted to, you know, I wanted to live in such a way that it would be a, it would inspire people to, you know, to want to know boy and uh, and do more. So that’s Kinda where I took it in the locker room.

You went from the seahawks to the Texans, to the Jaguars and into the ravens. You’re on the ravens ray rice star running back, made some poor decisions and uh, was suspended. Bernard Pierce gets injured. Now the man who’s too small but has the oversized heart gets the starting job. What did it feel like to know that you were the starting running back for the Baltimore Ravens?

Kind of gives me chills because I was at that point, I was the seventh year of my nfl career. I was at age 29 a, which is, you know, basically when guys are going down in their career, especially at my position and I’m thrust into the lineup and I’m going to start starting on the starting running back and I’m having the best season of my career. I’m at the top of my game, top five, Russia, all these different things and I’m just, I’m, I’m overwhelmed with emotion. Just just, you know, how good God has been to me of all of the things I’m thinking about that, that motel room that had to stay in a growing up and thinking about the rejection from Notre Dame. All those times I been cut. All that adversity had to face like, man, I finally got to a place where someone gave me an opportunity and I’m maximizing it and I’m just so thankful and grateful with the answer to a lot of prayers.

You made the pro bowl, my man. You made the probe. I mean, you had an awesome year. I would like to ask you, because I, if you were the black rudy, I’m like the White Rudy’s backup’s backup. I’m like, so what’s it like to be hit at five foot eight? You’re carrying the ball. They call it a play through the three hole though. You know, you’re, you’re, you’re maybe a move. You’re going to do a sweep, you’re running, you’re running the ball. Here we go, here we go. And then boom. What does it feel like to get hit in an NFL game by NFL linebackers? Defensive in. What? Can you describe the physical pain of that experience or the or the are? Are you scared? What does it feel like to be hit in an NFL game?

To be honest with you, it’s just your normal everyday, a car wreck that you would see outside on the freeway, you know, your body, you putting your body out there and using it as a weapon, you know, uh, so to speak and uh, and you know, it’s a violent game, but you’ve got to have that mindset, that mentality that you’re going to go out there and you’re going to be the hammer. And not the nails, so my mentality didn’t matter what the size of my stature if I was five, eight and you know, you know, slow, short, all this, all this stuff like I was going to be out there and I was going to be a giant and you know, I was going to, you know, create that type of image by the way I worked by the way I prepared, um, and I was going to go out there and my job was to go out there and uh, you know, strike fear by my, by using my skill set, using my mental ability and being physical, uh, at every point of contact that I had.

Now you, uh, when you’re carrying the ball, you’re carrying the ball, you get hit a lot. Sunday you play how, what day of the week do you stop hurting?

Maybe Thursday. At the beginning of the year. Then you don’t get probably Saturday, sometimes Sunday morning when it gets to late in the year and the season.

So you’re hurting all week?

Yes.

What? Oh, have you broken or hurt in your career? Can you list off what you’ve broken or hurt?

See, I was thankful. Thankfully enough, I’m. I’m one of those guys. I’m an anomaly. I had one surgery my whole entire life that happened in year eight of my career and I broke my arm, got tackled by Aaron donalds and rams, and it kind of snapped my arm and my arm facing the wrong way, but that’s all I really had a broken foot. Also a nothing with my knees for the most part. I have tendonitis in both knees and my shoulders have a slight tear in my rotator cuff

everyday.

Yeah. So right now because I just finished a little crossfit workout with my wife.

I’m not. I’m not hurt your face. Your face is a beautiful face. No. You’ve teamed up with faces of Steve Smith senior. You’ve teamed up with Jonathan Stewart and marshawn lynch to create this new product called the shower pill. Steve Smith, senior Jonathan Stewart. Marshawn lynch is the product called the shower pill. Can you tell us about the shower pill and how you came up with the idea to get this product that the listeners can now buy in target stores?

Yeah, so it was actually a company that started with two of my college teammates. Um, you know, we’re always working out and training and sweating and will always that left us always be stinky and sweaty and gross and uh, we didn’t, we don’t want to practice bad hygiene. So we wanted to create a solution and we created a hero product, the shop body wight, which is an antibacterial disposable washed off where you can wipe down and clean up after cooled off after an interval of sweat after camping, hiking, cycling, you name it would be on a long business trip. And the military like showers on the go when the shower’s operable but not possible. So, uh, we created that product. We took it to the NFL. It was shower pill was the name that was passed down to us from NFL greats and legends. It was a locker room joke, guys like Joe, Joe Montana, John Elway swag and all these guys had this term in the locker room. They passed onto us and it was called shower pill and it was a hypothetical job when a guy after patty’s couldn’t get into the shower, he said, I took a sharp little bro. Don’t on judgment, so I’m good.

Yeah.

We created the company and the brand. We have some other partners come on board, but the guys that you listed, like with John Stewart, I’m like, excuse me, are senior on the towel, use check some of those names that really [inaudible] April that really want to support a business partner with us, invested in us and a really growing it. And when target right now we’re online type product in our category on Amazon and uh, continue to grow and expand. It’s been fun.

I, uh, I cannot tell you thank you enough for being an inspiration, watching you take the field on the ravens knowing your story before you took the field. That was exciting for me. So I got goosebumps when you’re out there, man. That was exciting. So I appreciate that. Uh, I, one of my good friends, Clifton Taulbert actually was a sponsor for your father in law, Paul Pressey when he was a basketball player at the University of Tulsa. And so I got turned onto Paul Pressey and when my dad passed away from als, I don’t know if you know this, but Paul Pressey knew my dad was sick and he met my dad one time, Justin, and he would call my dad every week and check in on him when he was still the assistant coach for the Lakers. And he met the guy one time he would call, he would call and check in on him.

Then when he found out my dad was near the end of his life, he, he flew out there. Phil flew out there and he gave my dad his nba draft Jack, you know, the one that gives you, when you get drafted, the hat and the jacket and all that. He gave it to them. And that’s actually in my studio that Paul Pressey bucks draft jacket. So your father, awesome. You’re brother-in-law feels great. I’ve heard your wife. I don’t even know how you tricked her into marrying you because you’re a good guy, but I hear she’s a great lady, so I am a big fan of yours. For the listeners out there that are very action orientated, I want to respect your time. What is the website you would direct all of our listeners to check out? You don’t have to go to your website, shower pill. Where would you direct all of our listeners? Who are big fans of yours? What website would you direct them to go to

to know about the product and the company? Entrepreneurial background that I have, kind of the things that we’re doing in the community with disaster relief or helping out our military. Um, if you want to learn more about me and what I’m doing on a day to day basis, I would say go to j four, set a on twitter, social media, instagram. Um, and, uh, you can follow me there,

brother. Keep up the good work. I appreciate you for letting me take your day down to the bottom. It’ll get better from here. I promise this is the worst part of your day. You have an awesome, awesome rest of your day and I appreciate you so much,

man. I thank you so much. It was a great time which he play and I’m much more successful.

This is the part of the show where we typically end with a boom, so I think that we must now joined together in a ceremonious chorus of booms. Are you ready? I’m ready. I’m ready. Are you ready? Let’s have you emotionally prepared. You’re. No, no, no. There’s no way to emotionally prepare, but I am as ready as psychologically got yourself into the right mindset needed. Have you physically adjusted yourself? Have you modified them? Have you modified the movement so that you’re ready to go here? Yes, I’m crouching tiger. Hidden Dragon. Alright, three.