Robert Griffin III is known for his unique sock collection, but on the field he’s unable to wear socks that are not part of the Washington Redskins’ uniform. So for training camp, Griffin decided to begin a new trend – writing inspirational messages on his cleats.
In the first week of training camp, a Redskins’ fan spotted “HTTR” on the star quarterback’s cleats. HTTR, of course means “Hail to the Redskins” and Griffin said he wrote that on his cleat to just express the excitement and privilege it is for him to play for such a valued franchise.
Saturday, I decided to glance at Griffin’s shoes as he walked out of Washington’s training facility in Ashburn, Va. and greeted Virginia Governor Bob McDonald. The Governor told Robert how big of a Redskins fan he is, and that he’s highly excited for the season and next year’s training camp in Richmond. As I took a peak at Robert’s black cleats, knowing he wrote HTTR on them last week, I noticed the phrase – “Seize the Moment” written in white.
After practice, I was able to catch up with Griffin and asked him what “Seize the moment” means and why he wrote it on his cleats. Even though media can only interview Robert once a week, he was nice enough to oblige and explain the saying to me. “God has given me an opportunity to play for a great team and every time we step on the field we must seize the moment,” said Griffin. “We have to take advantage of the now and not worry about anything else that way we can achieve our goals.”
I asked Griffin if he plans on writing similar quotes on his game cleats, and he replied simply, “If I’m allowed.” Griffin ended our brief conversation with one of the strongest handshakes I’ve ever experienced. There is definitely something special about this guy.
Redskins Nation has hope for the future, but Robert Griffin III is all about the now. Seizing each moment and chance he gets to bring this franchise back to glory.
By Emmanual Benton