Arizona State's Jamil Douglas more than a weight room freak
LOS ANGELES – Arizona State offensive lineman Jamil Douglas made news earlier this year after being named to multiple lists for freaks in college football. NFL.com’s Mike Huguenin reported that Douglas could power clean 385 pounds, bench 430 and squat 565.
If you thought that was impressive, however, it appears some of those numbers are outdated. Speaking Thursday at Pac-12 Football Media Day, Douglas mentioned that he recently power cleaned 390 and squatted 585. As if squatting 585 once wasn't enough, he did two reps at that weight.
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“I love the fact of training for a season; training to prove what you’ve been working on the whole season,” said Douglas, who also noted that he benched 415 the same day (slacker).
Those monstrous numbers mean more than just being a freak in the weight room. Sun Devils head coach Todd Graham says Douglas, now a team captain alongside Taylor Kelly, leads by example.
“His numbers in the weight room are just off the chain,” Graham said. “When you see your best players train and improve like that … you see everybody moving to that standard, so he has set the standard there.”
There’s obviously more to Douglas than being Hulk. He has already graduated from Arizona State with a degree in criminal justice and is working on a master’s in liberal studies, all the while maintaining a 3.92 GPA. Graham calls him and Kelly two of the best leaders he has had since he has been in coaching.
But it does help that Douglas is 6-4 and weighs 300 pounds.
“I think when Jamil raises his voice, [his teammates] tend to respond pretty quick,” Graham said.
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Despite his weight room numbers, don’t expect him to participate in The World’s Strongest Man competitions at the end of his playing days.
“I’ve never given it a thought,” Douglas said, laughing. “I don’t think I would ever get into competing for weightlifting.”