After his NFL plans were dashed in 2007, he went to Montana for a short time to play semipro football. But his heart was not into it and he became grossly overweight. “I weighed 385 pounds,” AK said. “I was a disgusting human being.”
AK then left football for good and started devoting himself to Greco Roman wrestling (he had been a champion high school wrestler). He got into great shape and has stopped partying. He moved to Maryland and volunteered to help coach a college team.
AK works full time as a youth counselor (he wants to get a certificate in addiction counseling) and also trains in wrestling, keeping his eye on his goal of being an Olympian. “I love wrestling,” AK says. “The sport is a part of me.”
While he is not publicly out in the sport, he also does not hide who he is. He has a couple of wrestling friends who know he is gay. “They'll razz me by pointing to a guy and saying, 'No, no AK – he's not for you.' ” AK was in one brief relationship with a man, but says that between work and wrestling he doesn't have much of a social life.
AK says he is telling his story because “I don't want a 15- or 16-year-old kid to have to experience what I did,” hoping he can make a difference. AK is much more at peace with himself than when he was a scared yet wild college athlete.
“Nothing changes if nothing changes,” he said.
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