He trudges across campus without fanfare, another Morgan State student with a bulging backpack, a blue-and-orange sweat shirt and a shy, winsome smile for the world at large.
Nothing about George Howard suggests mayhem until he steps onto the football field.
And then?
"He turns into a monster," said Devan James, Morgan's star runner.
The Bears' middle linebacker, Howard is the crux of a 5-1 Morgan team that is off to its best start in 30 years. A fearless and punishing hitter, his 84 tackles (43 solos) rank second nationally among players in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA).
On Saturday, Howard leads Morgan in quest of its sixth consecutive win at Delaware State (1-4). Picked to finish far back in the pack, the Bears remain undefeated (3-0) in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
At 6 feet 1 and 235 pounds, Howard hurtles toward ball-carriers with willful abandon. He lives for the jolt of the hit, the sound of the slam.
"Hearing the 'thwack' of clashing pads makes me feel good - and it gets the crowd hyped," Howard said. "I'd rather make tackles than touchdowns."
He thinks like a ram, teammates say.
"George has a big head and he loves to put it in somebody's chest," said Justin Lawrence, Morgan's All-MEAC defensive end.
Howard's play makes running backs flinch.
"By the second half, they start tippy-toeing toward the hole," linebacker Troy Leftwich said. "That's the effect of George's hits."
A senior from Chesapeake, Va., Howard has filled the shoes of the graduated Jarrell Guyton, Morgan's 2008 Defensive Player of the Year. In his first full year as starter, Howard, 23, has buoyed the Bears, who have allowed 45 points in five straight victories since their opener, a 41-0 loss to Akron, a Football Bowl Subdivision team.
What's unique is the change in Howard's demeanor once he removes his helmet. Off the field, he's quiet, affable and orderly - a neat freak, friends say. Count on Howard to shower twice, maybe three times a day.
"He's the showeringest guy I've ever seen in my life," said his mother, Vanessa Howard. "And the haircuts? Oh my ..."
Every Thursday finds the Morgan defender at a barber shop at Northwood Plaza, getting a trim of near-military precision.
There are other pre-game rituals. Football socks, wristbands and even cleats must be spotless.
At the whistle, however, habit yields to havoc.
