European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 12, 1995, Darmstadt, Hesse Acc championship games tellers capt. Crunch poised for big charge san Diego. At a. Pittsburgh 6 30 . Get sunday on of nov and radio by Chuck finder Pittsburgh Post Gazette capt. Kevin d. Car conc . Army reserves had the target in his crosshair. Direct hit. Another quarterback sack. Capt. Crunch smiled a crazed smile Quot Felt like i was in my War and football Battles and Ball games they Are inexorably linked for the Man who is equal parts militaristic and a manic. A. A a a / \. A a a a a he is Gen. George Patton his hero. He is Hulk Hogan his hero. He has an equal passion for the smell of fired tank artillery shells and the sound of a quarterback being crushed to the ground by a linebacker his words. Upon joining the Pittsburgh St clerk 21 months ago the pass rusher Extraordinaire told reporters. To would provide them the secret to his Success but then he would have to Kilt them. A. Yet this is what you need to know about Kevin Greene 32, the son of a retired army colonel the brother of an army major a worldly army brat who arose in 15 years from a walk on walk off at Auburn to the 1994 nil sack Lead pro bowl acc title game and the status of Pittsburgh a most beloved Greene this Side of mean Joe a a a a a a the secret to his Success dates Back 20 years to Mannheim Germany to his dad Thurman a maintenance officer. Quot our team was the Oakland raiders in the athletic youth association on the base Quot Greene recalled. A my father he was the coach of every football and baseball team i was on until High school. He wanted to show everybody on the team about hitting. So he got everybody in a big Circle arid put my older brother Keith and me in the Middle. And we hit each other. And we hit each other. And we hit each other. Quot it must have measured like 15 min . He really hit me. I remember cry ing. I remember my dad Yelling at me a get up. Do it again and id get up and do it again. Quot my brother busted my lip open. I was crying. And my dad said a get up. Hit harder a real taskmaster but it taught me a football it remains Greene a Credo discipline determination and work will help you to achieve your goals. Those three traits enabled the 185-Pound walk on quitter at Auburn to come Back two years later a 235-Pound weight room enabled him to Rise and Rise again from Auburn backup to 1984 Southeastern conference sack Leader from the los Angeles rams special teams to nil sack Leader from 1988-90 from the free agent scrap Heap just two years ago to raising sack standards this season. A a a a a / a a a a a a \ yet discipline determination and work Are merely variations of the Drill. Get up. Do it again. Hit harder Quot he firmly believes that if you want something bad enough you work hard enough to achieve it. That a the Story of his life basically Quot said his brother maj. Keith d. Greene 34. Steeles linebacker Greg Lloyd has come to understand the Man of whom he was initially sceptical of. Lloyd discovered both had similar backgrounds hailing from the deep South starting College in Roth training at fort Knox by. Lloyd is a weapons Man Greene is tanks. Together at outside linebacker they have become lightning strikes and rolling Thunder meteors hitting lots of somethings. They combined for 24 sacks 14 by Kevin Greene the 1994 nil sack Leader and former army brat came to the Steeles by Way of Mannheim Germany. It m y brother busted my lip open. I was crying. And my. A a a Ter. Big dad said Getup. Hit harder a real taskmaster. But it. Taught me a football Pittsburgh linebacker Kevin Greene or conc on the a Fly a second ranked de of Csc. A. A a a a a said Lloyd Quot he is relentless. He is not Gonna give workout and business partner Isaac Russell has come to understand the Man who initially ticked him off with his noisy style of weightlifting. For this season they established a list of or conc goals 10 sacks playoffs pro bowl super bowl. Check Check Check arid one game away. Said Russell a a he a crazy. He a ape. The Man ainu to got Good and he meant that in a Nice Way. To understand Greene fully you must Start with the military / three Days after he graduated from Granite City 111. High the ninth Stop on his childhood tour of duty the 6-2, 185-Pound linebacker tight spurned Small time offers from Arkansas state and Northern Iowa to enrol in the military police Academy at fort Mcclel Ian Ala. Three months later he followed his older brother Keith to greenes roomed together were in Roth together. They attended airborne school also known As jump school together at fort Binning. In 1982, while still in College Kevin was commissioned As a second lieutenant Armor officer army reserves. In 1985, he became a first lieutenant. In 1988, a Captain. At Auburn he taped his lieutenants bars to one thigh pad and his airborne wings on the other. Quot i thought it was just a kick taking that stuff into Battle a he said. In los Angeles he often wore fatigues and talked the military talk. Jack Faulkner the rams director of pro personnel lived in the same apartment Complex and swore he saw Greene running around wearing camouflage paint. Quot Attila the Haig a rams cornerback Leroy Irvin called him Quot you know Alexander Haig. To me he Sall about hitting the Beach and dropping grenades and dropping napalm bombs on the opponent. He talks military Alt the time. He wears those fatigues and he always talks about 0700 hours. He a not from Here. He a not from in 1988, he was profiled in. The a air Force there a a photo of Greene and other Reserve insists standing in front of a tank with Greene holding an artillery Shell. He lives in Oxford Ala a town of about 10,000. He and his wife Tara have a House across the Street from his sister Karen and near his parents. He works out Mani Acly in the of season whipping Russell around five Days a week huffing and puffing and clanking weights in the Gold a gym they run in nearby Anniston. So just what gives with Greene a mane of blonde hair How can such a Rigus military Man allow such a thing everybody wants to Cut it a his wife his dad folks in Oxford. But that is precisely Why Greene wears it so Long. Quot extremely rebellious Quot Greene said. A the blonde locks Are Gonna stay until after the super he will not be rebuffed will not be stopped. At Auburn his first foray into football was an utter failure. He tried to walk on As a punter in 1980, but coaches made him a scout team halfback. Ouch. Quot i was getting clubbed. Into next week without a lunch. So at that time i now this was t easy the son of a career army Man quitting anything. Greene hardly enjoyed it. But a solider does no to go into Battle without ammunition. He knew he did no to have needed size strength or Speed. So he threw himself into Power lifting charting his so Van Day a week Progress in a notebook. He led a Rocky like existence consuming of protein supplements potatoes eggs. It resulted in 50 added pounds of heft in two years v 1 a a a a \ Quot the next time i saw him a said Gregg Carr an Auburn linebacker then Quot he was a there were whispers of steroid use. C the Disci-1 Lupei but or conc claims his growth came the natural Way the or conc Way Pline determination work. Sacks Are his Field decorations. That is Why he covets the statistics one shy of 100 for his career one shy of the a Eccl Erst season Mark of 15 set by Mike Crri a Cather in 1984 the eighth most career sacks since the nil began keeping such numbers in 1982. If he Isnit hitting his target Isnit hearing the Bones of the quarterback being crushed he has lost his personal Battle. So capt. Crunch is relentless crazy disciplined Long haired rebellious yet unchanged. In Short Kevin or conc is Many things. He gave 50 pairs of shoulder pads to his Alma mater Granite City High where he returns every Spring to speak at the senior banquet. He has been known to do Charity work at the last minute. A what a Model a said Jerry me Ketchan Greene a. Former coach. Quot i mean How Many pros come Back to their High school and talk to kids Quot now the Guy who once wanted to command tanks or Fly choppers still wants to Lead men. But As a football coach. A a in a ultimately love to go Back to Auburn a Greene said. Dmitr buted by Scripp Howard new service
