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Humble Beginning For USF's Selvie

Tribune photo by JASON BEHNKEN

George Selvie has 14.5 sacks this season and 31.5 tackles for loss, one off the Division I-A record.

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By JOEY JOHNSTON, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 26, 2007

Updated: 12/25/2007 10:12 pm

George Selvie's wonderful life is not an accident. His rise to football glory is not a coincidence.

True, this story doesn't happen every day. One minute, he was practically begging to be noticed by college recruiters. Now he has emerged as an example-setting, God-fearing, quarterback-wrecking phenomenon at the University of South Florida.

Even though he is 6-foot-4 and listed as 242 pounds (soaking wet with a brick in each pocket). Even though his buddy, defensive end Aaron Harris, thought the raw-boned Selvie was a wide receiver when they were first introduced.

Selvie, a sophomore, has become a consensus first-team All-American defensive end, another milestone for USF's burgeoning 11th-year program, which arrives today in El Paso, Texas, to prepare for Monday's Sun Bowl game against the Oregon Ducks.

"It's crazy," Selvie said. "It's all moving pretty fast."

If you want some explanation for how this happened, there is evidence on USF's practice fields or at Raymond James Stadium, where he compiled many of his 14.5 sacks or 31.5 tackles for a loss (one away from the all-time Division I-A record).

But look deeper. Look first to Pensacola, to the house on Zachary Boulevard.

No, make that a home.

As a teenager, Selvie often wanted more freedom. He questioned why he couldn't roam around at night, why his friends always had to come to the Selvie residence. He looked at his household duties, the way he was instructed to treat people, the ramifications if he strayed, and it always came back to the same question.

Why?

His mother, a spiritual woman, always pointed to the same answer - Proverbs 22:6.

Train up a child in the way he should go. And when he is old, he will not depart from it.

"I just told him, 'George, you may not like this, but all I'm doing is training you up,'" she said. "'One day, you will understand.'"

The Only Way He Knows

Structure and discipline.

George Selvie's way of life.

"Even with the way George plays and prepares, it all goes back to the home," USF defensive line coach Dan McCarney said.

His father, George Lee Selvie Sr., served 20 years in the Navy. His mother, Twana, is an ordained minister at the Deliverance Tabernacle Christian Center.

Selvie grew up in the church. He was active in the youth ministry, community work, social functions. From an early age, he learned to respect authority.

"The decisions are all on me now," Selvie said. "But my parents gave me the background. There might be times when I back away from some of it, but I always know right from wrong.

"I don't know any other way than to call people 'Mister' or 'Sir' and say, 'Yes, sir.' Some people tell me, 'George, you don't have to talk like that anymore. You're away at college.' But no, I do. I really do. It's who I am. It's how I was raised."

The Selvie family has been stationed in several Navy towns - from Pensacola to Jacksonville to San Diego to Virginia Beach - but Pensacola became the city of choice when George Sr. retired from the military as young George was entering high school.

When the sleekly built Selvie first entered the athletic office at Pine Forest High, Coach Jerry Pollard took one look and thought, "Quarterback or running back."

Selvie said he wanted to play center.

"That was my first indication that this was a person of some character," Pollard said.

Who wants to play center? Even in pickup games, doesn't everyone want to go out for passes? Who was really interested in snapping the ball and getting lost in a pile of blockers?

George Selvie - even fighting to keep his weight above 200 pounds - that's who.

"George was a darn good center," USF coach Jim Leavitt said. "I still think center could be his best position."

Leavitt's program had a singular vision. Selvie received no other Division I-A scholarship offers. Too small, most coaches said, even the ones at Alabama, which recruited Selvie's teammate, Mike Johnson, to play right tackle. Johnson pleaded Selvie's case, but no one listened.

Except USF.

The Bulls liked Selvie at center - or maybe on the defensive line, his occasional position.

"When Coach Leavitt put that offer on the table, it was the happiest day of my life," Selvie said. "The pressure was off. And I thought I was going down there to play center. I really did."

That's when Selvie's story got really interesting.

Making A Name For Himself

Somewhere in Selvie's redshirt freshman season, the Bulls were heavy at center, short on the defensive line. So Selvie, against his deep-down wishes, shifted to defensive end.

Almost daily, coaches noticed special qualities.

"In meetings, where he's so quiet, you think he's not even listening to you," said former USF defensive line coach Bernard Clark, now at Florida International. "Then he goes on the practice field and does exactly what you've asked. He soaks it up like a sponge.

"He plays with a motor. But that's how he practices, too. His get-off initial move is the fastest I've ever seen."

Selvie's freshman season was an evolution.

"He never beat me," said Kansas offensive tackle Anthony Collins, who blocked Selvie in USF's fourth game of 2006. "But he was the fastest man I saw all season. I thought, 'Man, when this guy gets more experience, he's going to flat-out kill you and make you look bad.' Glad I got him early."

Selvie's sophomore season was a revolution.

"He's top-notch," Rutgers running back Ray Rice said. "When you have to game-plan around a defensive end and not a guy who's in the middle of a defense, you know that's a force to be reckoned with. Even with USF's great linebackers, Selvie was the guy our coaches were most conscious of."

What next?

"He'll never be the same," USF defensive coordinator Wally Burnham said. "On the football field, he will always be challenged. His work is going to be double. He's got to stay humble, stay a worker. But he can do that because he's a cut above.

"It might be tough to match these numbers. And if you look at his plays, they're almost all meaningful plays - turnovers, third-down plays. This is a productive guy. This is an impact guy."

NFL scouts already have noticed. Selvie hears speculation that he is looking to leave school early for a big paycheck.

Selvie says don't be so sure.

"I've still got two more seasons left in college, so I plan on playing those," Selvie said. "It's going to be pretty tough to top this year, but I'd like to win a Big East championship. I plan on helping Coach Leavitt get his 100th win Leavitt is 79-46. I'm up for that challenge."

Selvie getting complacent? Don't expect that. Some things don't change.

When McCarney, the former Iowa State head coach, arrived at USF, he called the parents of all his new players. He remembers the words of Selvie's father.

"He said, 'Coach, if George gives you any trouble, if he's not going to class, if he's not working hard, you pick up the phone and call me,'" McCarney said. "I said, 'Mr. Selvie, I will do that.'

"Know how many times I've had to call? Zero. I don't have to tell George what to do."

Train up a child in the way he should go. And when he is old, he will not depart from it.

"I can't think of a player I've enjoyed coaching more than George Selvie," McCarney said. "He has a great story."

And it's not finished yet.

Reporter Joey Johnston can be reached at (813) 259-7353 or jjohnston@tampatrib.com.

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