Panthers' Kawann Short becoming a tall order for enemy blockers

Lorenzo Reyes | USA TODAY

CHARLOTTE — Kawann Short remembers the nights when it was best not to look at his phone, because that’s where temptation lay.

This was back in East Chicago, Ind., where he was a student at Central High School. It was the summer of 2007. Short was within reach of his goal but knew he was behind — several credits behind.

Now a budding star for the Carolina Panthers, Short remembers back when his friends blew up his phone. They wanted to hang out. They had just completed their senior years and many would be heading off on different paths. For some, that meant finding a job. For others, more school.

Short was committed to play football at Purdue that fall but if not for one thing, he would have never made it there.

He spent those summer days juggling night classes, summer school and online courses just to qualify for college. When his friends were at the movies, he’d haul his 6-3, 270-pound frame to the East Chicago Public Library, where he wrote papers in his bid to graduate — a goal he was also trying to reach for two other people: his mother, Yvonne Green, and godmother, Diana Burns.

“That was incredibly challenging,” Short told USA TODAY Sports in a recent interview. “That’s why I made the vow to myself: I’m doing all this to get into school just to play football. I’m going to do everything I need to do to graduate and then go to the NFL. You’ve got football, and you love that. You’ve got classes. But you’ve got to learn to love classes to get to football.

“There wasn’t another choice. That was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done. And the reason why I did it was because I wanted to let them know that I’ve done this school work for them. I graduated and got my degree for them.

“I’ll tell you, man, without those two, I wouldn’t be here today.”

And today, Short, 26, is one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL, even if he doesn’t get much fanfare. A third-year pro, Short was named to his first Pro Bowl this week. His ability to push offensive linemen off the snap and disrupt the timing of opposing quarterbacks has been one of the biggest assets for a Panthers defense that ranks 10th in the NFL in points allowed (19.9 per game) and third in yards allowed (314.9 per game).

Short's nine sacks are third-most at his position, trailing only more established stars Aaron Donald of the St. Louis Rams and Geno Atkins of the Cincinnati Bengals. Short is tied for 11th in the league with 13 tackles for loss and has also collected 46 tackles and forced three fumbles.

"He’s quick. He’s explosive. KK has got that little slither," Panthers coach Ron Rivera told USA TODAY Sports, referring to Short by his nickname.

"He’s a very smart football player. He understands things. He has a good feel for when he’s being doubled, how to slip that. KK has done a really nice job for us, and he’s one of the biggest reasons why we’ve had success on that side of the ball.”

Short had one of the best games of his season two weeks ago in a 38-0 beating of the Atlanta Falcons. He recorded three tackles, two sacks and forced two fumbles. As Carolina continues its quest for an undefeated season, Atlanta again stands in the way in Week 16.

Another big game from Short should help the Panthers get one step closer.

“You saw it,” Panthers defensive coordinator Sean McDermott said of the potential Carolina saw in Short when scouting him during the draft process in 2013. “You saw the ability there, the ability to flip his hips and get to the quarterback. I don’t know if we would’ve seen multiple-digit sacks, but the potential was always there.”

The scary part? Short is improving. He has just 23 starts in his career. He’s still figuring out how to use his leverage and hips to explode through linemen. And in order to keep progressing, Short monitors a pair of NFL veterans that have been among the best at the position over the last decade.

“You just watch guys that have been doing this for a while,” Short said. “Gerald McCoy (of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Geno Atkins. You just look at those guys and take pieces of what those guys have. Obviously you have your own traits. And when you put that together, it’s crazy. It’s all a mind thing.

"If you want to be great, you can be great. You’ve just got to work for it. That’s the whole mentality I’ve always had.”

No doubt about that. Just ask Kawann Short about that time in night school.

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Follow Lorenzo Reyes on Twitter @LorenzoGReyes

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