Like most NFL defensive tackles, Haloti Ngata has an insatiable appetite.
The 6-foot-4, 345-pound Ravens lineman loves to devour Italian food (except during the season when he tries to keep healthy), anything with curry and his latest favorite - Maryland steamed crabs.
At Glen Burnie's Seaside Restaurant, Ngata will go through a dozen of the largest crabs without breaking a sweat. If you try to interrupt him, the affable Ngata has been known to strike a glare that would make Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson shudder, showing he has become a true Baltimore guy.
"When he's eating crabs, you don't really get many words out of him," said his wife of two years, Christina. "He's pretty serious."
What separates Ngata from most of the elite run stoppers is his hunger for something else. As he prepares for next Sunday's season opener against the Chiefs, Ngata remains driven to learn as much as possible, knowing he can dominate as much with his mind as his muscle.
After practices, he will chat with six-time Pro Bowl center Matt Birk about the best way to place his hands to shrug off blocks. During film study, he's taking notes on tendencies of offenses so he can anticipate plays before the ball is snapped.
Ravens coaches proudly call Ngata a student of the game. Ngata, though, takes similar pride in being a student in college.
Four years ago, he left the University of Oregon after his junior season to enter the NFL draft because he wanted to help pay for the hospital bills for his mother, who was in the early stages of kidney dialysis. She died a week later.
This offseason, Ngata, 25, returned to school to get his sociology degree. He is 12 credits shy of graduating from the University of Utah, which is close to his offseason home.
"He made his promise to his mom that he would finish school," Christina Ngata said. "I think that has always been in the back of his mind."
Ngata is one of three Ravens to take college classes this year, but he could find himself in a more select company soon. With his contract up after the 2010 season, he might soon become one of the highest-paid defensive players in the NFL.
Still, as defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth was signing his $100 million deal with the Washington Redskins, Ngata was stressing over giving an oral report on whether players prefer to play on grass or artificial turf. It was part of a sociology research class, and he got an "A."
