Top recruit plays for late brother

CYPRESS As Cypress football player Jamil Douglas pulls up the sleeve covering his right biceps, the depth of his motivation becomes clear.

The muscular, 6-foot-4, 247-pound senior reveals an arm covered with tattoos that honor his late brother, Donvey.

There is an image of two hands peacefully at prayer. Rays of sunshine appear to be shooting off the hands. There also is a patch of reassuring clouds.

Above the clouds there is an inscription: "Living in the sky."

But when Douglas takes the field Friday night against El Toro in Southwest Division quarterfinals at Western, his brother also will be alive in his heart.

Before each game, the Division I-A recruit prays for his brother to join him in spirit on the football field.

"I pray the night before or before the game," said Douglas, whose also has tattoos on his arm for his late grandfather. "(Donvey) brings me strength and keeps me focused. I actually feel like he's still around."

Donvey, 25, died in his sleep Sept. 21, 2008, a few days before the Centurions' game last season against Pioneer. Douglas said his brother had an enlarged heart.

"We were very tight," Douglas said. "We had a lot (of good times). Food fight. We both got yelled at. ... Playing basketball. Playing football together. Video games. We did a lot of stuff together."

Douglas stayed close to his teammates during the week after his brother's death.

Despite receiving permission from Coach Ray Fenton to do whatever he needed to do, he didn't miss a practice.

Douglas arrived at the Pioneer game in Whittier after attending the funeral. The defensive end/H-Back then played arguably his best game.

"Unbelievable," Fenton said of Douglas' strength after Donvey's death. "In that week, I learned more from Jamil than I taught him in the last two years.

"It was amazing how well he handed the adversity."

Douglas credits his teammates and football for helping him. A few of his teammates went with him to the funeral.

"I was around football and family," he said. "They (my teammates) told me that they were going to play the game for my brother."

This season, Douglas is the one there for his teammates. He is the unquestioned emotional leader for the Empire League champion Centurions (10-1), seeded fourth in the Southwest Division.

"(As) he goes, we go," Fenton said of Douglas, who earned a 3.29 grade-point average last year.

"He leads by example and leads by making sure guys are in line and doing what we expect. ... They really gravitate to him."

Fenton also is quick to mention Douglas' work with the Little Centurions youth program, Cypress' Best Buddies program for special-needs students and the city's challenger baseball program.

But the quick-to-smile teen is anything but friendly on the field. In the Centurions' multiple-set offense, he primarily plays fullback and tight end. He is a key blocker for Akeelie Muhammad, the county's second-leading rusher with 2,156 yards.

"When he gets his hands on you, he's a man-child," Fenton said of Douglas. "Guys are just flying off him."

Because of his athleticism, Douglas amazingly shifts to wide receiver. He has one touchdown reception.

On defense, he has 66 total tackles, two sacks and three caused fumbles.

College recruiters envision Douglas as a left tackle. He has committed to Utah but is exploring scholarship offers from Nebraska, Arizona State and San Diego State. He also is receiving interest from Oregon.

"I'm still going to look around and I'm still going to take some visits because I haven't been anywhere else," he said. "I don't know where else I would fit in."

But as he has shown at Cypress, Douglas has the motivation to succeed no matter what school he picks.