San Francisco 49ers select South Carolina DT Javon Kinlaw in 1st round of NFL Draft
By SDS Staff
Published:
You won’t find a better story than Javon Kinlaw in the 2020 NFL Draft, and after being homeless during his youth, Kinlaw is now a multi-millionaire after being drafted by the San Francisco 49ers with the No. 14 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
The former South Carolina star is considered as the Draft’s second-best interior defensive lineman behind only Auburn’s Derrick Brown.
With respect to his incredible story, Kinlaw was homeless for some of his youth living out of basements in Washington, D.C. He didn’t have any running water or electricity and would boil water on a gas stove in order to take a shower. His story went viral during January’s Senior Bowl.
“At a young age, we just thought that was normal,” Kinlaw said at the Senior Bowl. “That’s how we was living. We didn’t know how everybody else was living, but we knew that’s how we was living, and we was cool with that, especially me. But now that I look back at it, it was tough, man. But it made me a man at a young age. Grew up early, definitely.”
Eventually making his way to South Carolina after JUCO, Kinlaw got his body in shape by losing 40 pounds and was a rock for the Gamecocks defensive line. At 6-foot-5 and 324 pounds, Kinlaw is built to have immediate success in the NFL. Sure, there will be learning curve, but his early impact potential and upside are tremendous.
Kinlaw made 6 sacks during 2019 making him a first-team All-American.
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
