"God Will Hold His Blessing for the Right Time!"
Aug 26, 2024As a little boy, Shammai always wanted to follow in the footsteps of his dad Lionel Gates.
One of the tips that Mr. Gates has shared with Shammai is to aim higher. Don’t just aspire to be in the NFL but strive to be in the Hall of Fame or be in five Pro Bowls!
In little league Shammai played on the D-Line. With his father as his Coach, he recommended that Shammai switch to running back. He would play running back all the way until 5th grade. He would stop playing football for a bit when basketball caught his attention. He would eventually come back to football in the 6th grade. In the 7th grade, he made the switch to receiver.
Shammai picked up his first Division 1 offer his sophomore year. His junior year he sustained a couple injuries that held him back. His senior year the coaches recommended that he pivot to running back. It would be as a running back that he would get an offer from the University of Louisville committing that same weekend.
Shammai believes that one of the best attributes that you can have is being versatile and willing to fulfill the needs of the team.
With the majority of his family members as U of L Alumni the decision to put on the Cardinal Jersey was the best decision for Shammai.
Even for big games like the Male vs Manual rivalry, Shammai was able to exhibit his influence over the younger players to help them settle down and handle business.
Shammai was able to learn from his experience of coming up short during the 3rd round of the state championship to motivate him to never fall short again when faced with a similar situation. Even though he didn’t want to lose, it was good for him to learn from that experience. This experience is the preparation for something bigger!
Top lessons that Shammai has already learned from sports:
- Pick Yourself Back Up During Hard Times
- Not Everyone Is There For You
- Stay Disciplined - Coaches want to see how disciplined you are
- Be True To Yourself - Don’t try to be like anyone else
You gotta know your end goal to silence all of the distractions!
As an athlete, Shammai uses social media as a method to promote his career instead of keeping up with the latest drama. He also encourages you to limit who you follow.
Shammai’s tips for finding the right young lady:
- She must be smart - Date someone that is smarter than you
- Personality
As Shammai transitions from being the top of his game at The Louisville Male to being a Freshman at the University of Louisville he gives a special shout out to the coaches and players for being supportive and encouraging with this process.
Shammai’s best tip for time management is using a scheduler. He sits down on Sunday and maps out the upcoming week. He also makes sure that he’s early to everything.
Name Image and Likeness is so much bigger than Shammai even thought it was.
Shammai’s tips for those currently in high school on what they should be doing now to get to the next level are:
- Stay focused
- Stay Motivated
- Have a Good Work Ethic
- God Will Hold His Blessings for the Right Time
- Stay Disciplined
- Stay in the Books in School
Link Mentioned In The Episode:
