A move that changed his future

[lamberts-lost-tooth]

A move that changed his future
By Teresa Varley
Steelers.com



The road to the NFL varies for every player, but when you look at the Steelers draft picks, fourth-round selection Ryan McBean has traveled the toughest path.

McBean was born in Jamaica where he was forced to grow up fast. His parents separated when he was young and in an attempt to make a better life for her family, his mother headed to the United States, where she lived in Brooklyn, New York, close to family.

When she left, money was tight, and she couldn't take McBean and his brother with her. So they were left behind, living in foster care for several years.

"Just like everybody else, I had a hard time growing up," said McBean. "I had to grow up and be a man at a real young age. It's okay though. I've overcome all of that, and here I am now. So, I'm good."

After a few years, his mother became settled in the United States and made enough money to fly her boys to Brooklyn to live with her.

And it seemed like all was going to be fine. But, it wasn't.

"I wasn't running with the right crowd, and my brother wasn't running with the right crowd at the time," said McBean, who was 14 when he arrived in Brooklyn. "He got into some little trouble."

And it was then his grandmother stepped in and encouraged them to move and make a fresh start. So they hopped aboard a Greyhound bus and headed for Texas, a place they knew nothing about and where they would be on their own.

It was the best move they could have made for McBean as that's when football entered his world. And it helped mold his future.

He attended Trinity High School in Euless, Texas where football was a right of passage for young men and that helped put him on the right path.

"I had some real good coaches and real good teachers that cared about me," said McBean. "People in Euless?in the Fort Worth area?they really care about the players, and they looked after me as soon as I came into the district?the coaches and the teachers and everything else. I had a chance to cope with my surroundings. At Trinity they helped out a whole lot. They fit me into the system a whole lot."

Playing at Trinity was McBean's introduction to football, and even though he had an outstanding career at Oklahoma State, he still is growing and developing.

"I'm still learning. Put me with a coach; I'm just like a kid," said McBean. "I'm still learning, and I want to learn. I want to keep learning. I'm good right now, but I know that I could be better. I could be great at anything that I could do. That's my position; I'm very young at the game. I'm with Coach Mitchell now, and he's going to teach me everything that he can."

[DACEB]

I really hope this kid pans out. I think he has good upside, and it would be nice to get him in the rotation on the d-line and allow Keisel to roam.

The future could be very bright with Timmons, Woodley and McBean.

[Stlrs4Life]

Best of luck Ryan.

[The Duke]

kid's got a future on the team

[Galax Steeler]

I would love to see mcbean make the team.