“If I'm going to get hit, why let the guy who's going to hit me get the...” — Walter Payton Quote

“If I'm going to get hit, why let the guy who's going to hit me get the easiest and best shot? I explode into the guy who's trying to tackle me.”

“I developed my training routine going into my senior year at Jackson State. I found this sandbank by the Pearl River near my hometown, Columbia, Miss. I laid out a course of 65 yards or so. Sixty-five yards on sand is like 120 on turf, but running on sand helps you make your cuts at full speed.”

“I always thought, 'That's just the way you do it.' You work as hard as you can for as long as you can, and the small gains you make will eventually pay off.”

“Verjuice may not be the easiest thing in the world to find, but you should be able to track some down in good delis and online.”

“It's always easiest for me as a writer if I know I have a great ending. It can make everything else work. If you don't have a good ending, it's the hardest things in the world to come up with one. I always loved the ending of 'The Kite Runner,' and the scenes that are most faithful to the book are the last few scenes.”

“I do not think about formations too often. It is the easiest thing to recognize and to see on the pitch, but when the game starts is when things start to get weird.”