It’s hard to imagine someone involved in professional sports could shun the nightlife, alcohol and no strings attached sexual liasons that are available. Back in the 80’s it was the Lakers AC Green, as of late it’s been Tim TeBow. But there is another NFL player who is staying true to his religious roots by abstaining from sex and alcohol. Giants CB Prince Amukamara. Prince’s teammates refer to him as “The Black Tim Tebow.”
In a recent interview with “Muscle and Fitness,” Amukamara discusses his decision to hold off on sex, his relationship with his fiancé, why he doesn’t drink and the infamous “cold tub” incident.
When we spoke right after you entered the league, you said you had never been drunk in your life, and that you’ve actually never had a drop of alcohol. Is that still true?
A lot can happen in that time, but it is still true. I still haven’t had a drink. I told my fiancé that I’ll probably take my first drink at my bachelor party. I don’t know if I will, but…
Maybe you should wait til the wedding. If you do it at the bachelor party, that could get out of hand quickly.
[Laughs] I know. I still haven’t had one, though.
If you plan on having one, clearly you’re not against it. How is it that you’ve waited this long?
I grew up Catholic, so it just started out as one of those things. I’d think, “If I do this, maybe I can get to heaven,” so I said no drinks, no sex, all the big things. As I grew up, I realized that’s not what it’s about. It’s about having a relationship with Jesus. It’s not about “Don’t do this. Don’t do that.” But still, it’s just one of those things I haven’t done, and I don’t see any benefit to doing it. You’re always reading about people getting DUIs. So many bad things that happen and wind up in the paper are alcohol-related, so by not drinking, it saves me, my team, and my family a lot of trouble.
You said one of your nicknames is “the black Tim Tebow.”
[Laughs] Yeah, some people call me the black Tim Tebow.
Well, Tim Tebow famously said that he was a virgin. Are you? Are you open to talking about that?
Yeah, I am a virgin. I’m not ashamed to say that.
Knowing that about you—that you don’t drink and you’ve never had sex and here you are in the NFL—from the outside looking in, the cold tub incident where Jason Pierre-Paul picked you up and threw you in, it would seem like you were being ostracized. That you didn’t fit in with the rest of the guys. Is that line of thinking on the right track?
The whole cold tub thing wasn’t just JPP, it was like eight guys. And it definitely was not anything personal. That wasn’t the first time I was in the cold tub, it was just the first time anyone saw it. And what the video doesn’t show is what happened 15-20 seconds after that, which is all of us messing around. JPP is great. I just saw him this morning and he was congratulating me on my engagement because I just engaged this past Friday. So there’s no hard feelings. It wasn’t a personal situation.
Another question people would ask from the outside is if you don’t drink and don’t have sex, how do you blow off some steam?
I still enjoy going out. I still enjoy dancing, and I get high off of everyone else’s high. If everyone is having a good time, that makes me have more fun, even though I don’t need everyone to be happy for me to be happy, if that makes sense.
Your name, Prince, is literal. You’re an actual prince. Can you explain that how that works?
My dad is a chief in a village in Nigeria and since I’m the first son, I get the title as prince. I think if I wanted to become a chief there, I would have to live there, so it would be whenever I’m ready.
You say you recently got engaged. What’s the lucky lady’s name, and have you guys set a date for the wedding?
Her name is Pilar Davis. We want to do it the week after the Super Bowl.
Did she know you were an NFL player?
No. Usually I tell people if I meet them that I’m a construction worker. One time my friend said he was an astronaut and I said I was a manager at Gap. All I told her was, “I just moved here from Arizona and I’m just trying to live right now.” She’s from Sacramento, and if you remember at this time, we had to go to San Francisco to play them for the conference championship, so if I wanted her to visit me while I was out there, I’d have to tell her what I did. So two days later, I said “Hey, I play for the Giants.” She thought I meant San Francisco Giants. [Laughs] That’s when I thought she might be a keeper.
Kudos to him for upholding his beliefs. Especially playing in a city like New York where temptation is always available.
