LINCOLN, Neb. — Before his first night on the street, Jamal Banks' mother chose a supportive family from the community to live with him. After being evicted from her Maryland home, Christy Martin begged him to leave. It was only temporary, she said.
She promised to see Jamal every day at his private school, Landon School in Bethesda. Twelve years ago, she wanted to make sure his clothes were ironed before he walked into class each morning. She wanted to make sure he had a decent table to eat his meals at every night and do his homework.
He said no.
“I told my mom, 'Wherever you're going, I'll go,'” Jamal said.
He told her he wished he could feel her pain and take it away.
Christy, Jamal, and Jamal's two sisters, Jasmine and Zuri, lost their home after Christy divorced Jamal's stepfather, a marriage that Christy says fell apart under unhealthy circumstances.
“It was a mental, financial, emotional and psychological blow,” Christie said. “I didn't get a black eye or lose any teeth. When you get a blow, you heal. For three years after that separation, I closed myself off from the world. What kept me going were my children. They are my joy, my four heartbeats.”
“I lost everything, but I chose my children.”
Christy's oldest daughter, Kayla Martin, was attending Bowie State University in Maryland on an athletic scholarship at the time, playing volleyball and softball, and the rest of the family sat in her Chevy Tahoe that horrific day while Christy cried for 30 minutes.
Before the divorce, Ms Christie said she had three months' worth of mortgage payments in the bank. A long-time paramedic, she was awarded for her trauma response skills.
But in that moment, Christie says, she lost herself.
“I didn't know what to do,” she says. “I lost control. I was so organized. I didn't realize that I would have to sample bread and not know where to sleep.”
A friend took them in that first night. Over the next few months, Christie and her three children bounced around hotels and shelters in the DC area. They witnessed the aftermath of the murders. Christie says she lost her steady job to work at Safeway and Macy's to accommodate her children's schedules in their new home.
Christie said there were times when she had to choose between buying gas or buying food.
Christie's perseverance helped her get back on her feet, she said.
“God put certain people around us at certain times,” she said, “but every day was a battle. I found strength I didn't know I had.”
Throughout it all, Christie and her children have also seen the good in people who gave them a place to sleep or treated them to an unexpected meal in a restaurant.
The experience shaped Jamal, who turns 23 next month. In his first season as a wide receiver at Nebraska, Banks is well-positioned to be a team leader and one of freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola's top targets. Banks, a transfer from Wake Forest who caught 101 passes over the past two ACC seasons, was Nebraska's only offensive player to receive a single-digit jersey in August, given to the 10 toughest teammates as voted on by players.
“Tough” doesn't even begin to describe him.
“Jamal is an exception,” Christy Martin said, “and not just because he's my son. You probably meet a kid like him once every 15 to 20 years. He's been through a lot without a father. We've beat a lot of statistics. And the fact that he's excelling academically and athletically gives me strength.”
Christy Martin (left) has attended every one of Jamal Banks' (right) games for Nebraska this season. (Photo by Christy Martin)
Coach Matt Rhule wouldn't disagree with Banks. Rhule's first Nebraska team finished 5-7 and lost several key players, but the coach has a plan to rebuild on the backs of his departed leaders.
Lue expected the second team to carry on the work of the first team and set a new standard in the offseason, but Lue didn't expect a rookie to come in and raise the bar.
Banks led by example in training, but his main influence came outside of the training and weight room.
“He's one of the first guys I've ever seen, some guys say that, but he's here to inspire other people,” Rhule said. “There's not a day that goes by that I'm not amazed at the impact he has on people.
“He's a really great guy.”
Banks led Nebraska players in offseason community service hours, which are tracked and rewarded with points, creating a competitive environment on the team. Banks also scored more points in the offseason than any player Lue coached at Temple, Baylor or Nebraska.
“He came here to change our culture,” Lue said.
Banks didn't just want to change the Huskers, he said, that's who he is.
Banks puts in all the effort, even if it doesn't result in points or go unnoticed by teammates or coaches. Recently, he bought food for the group behind him in line at Chipotle.
why?
Jamal said he kept his emotions to himself while his mother and sisters felt pain.
“He wanted to make sure we were OK,” his sister, Kiera, said. “That was Jamal's way of doing things.”
An inner conflict began within him.
“Eventually, I had to confront myself and the issues I was having,” he said. “And it gave me a purpose to make an impact in the world. I wanted to do more for my family and be someone they could rely on and have their back.”
Jamal said he found the key to his purpose and identity at First Baptist Church in Northwest Washington, D.C., where he developed a spirit of giving that extended beyond his family.
This was especially evident in his first season at Nebraska, when he bought food for strangers who didn't know anything about it.
When presented with the opportunity to help others, Banks doesn’t hesitate to use his experiences from difficult times in his childhood to help.
“My son gives so much,” Christy Martin said.
He caught a 21-yard touchdown pass in the first half of his Nebraska debut, but has had a quiet spell since then, with seven catches for 76 yards in three games.
But the Huskers are 3-0 and ranked 22nd as they prepare to face Illinois on Friday night in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
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“It's perfect,” he said, “because I'm not results-driven, I'm process-driven. I make it all about us. I just continue to enjoy the journey. It's a constant battle, but you have to love the process.”
Jamal Banks transferred from Wake Forest University to the University of Nebraska during the offseason. (Photo courtesy of Nebraska Athletics)
Jamal played trumpet for several years and competed in lacrosse, basketball and football, emerging as an elite prospect on the gridiron at Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia, before transferring to St. Francis Academy in Baltimore as a senior to compete against the best competition in the nation.
Ivy League offers were pouring in. His mother wanted him to attend the University of Pennsylvania, and Jamal was drawn to the allure of a major-conference program.
“For her, it wasn't a four-year plan,” Banks said. “It was a 40-year plan.”
They found a middle ground with Wake Forest University, a small private school in a major conference. He wanted a change after last season and conveyed his concerns to Christie, saying there were “no guarantees” when considering Nebraska, Wisconsin and Purdue.
“You're the surety,” Christy told Jamal.
Christie said when she met Lu during a visit to Lincoln last winter, she “saw the passion” in him.
“Oh my goodness, it was so different,” she said. “I knew this was the place for him to be. I felt like (Lou) had what he wanted to say and would show me.”
Jamal had no intention of doubting his mother at that time.
“She gave to me, she saved me, she changed my life,” Jamal said. “Looking back, in another timeline, Jamal wouldn't be here. But in the timeline that was meant to happen, he's here because of the sacrifices she made.”
He has written, performed and released music about his life experiences.
He often reflects on the turbulent path his family has taken.
“It's in my heart,” Jamal said. “I think about my sisters. And looking back, what I really want is not money. It's not fame. It's healing.”
Christie has attended all three Huskers games at Memorial Stadium. She is working in the medical field again and will have to miss this Friday's game. She will be there for the remaining games with several family members.
Meanwhile, Kiera coaches volleyball at Duval High School in Lanham, Maryland, and plays tackle football for the DC Divas in the Women's Football League.
She said it was Jamal who inspired her to compete in the sport.
Jasmine attends the University of Maryland and is studying law, while Zuri, a high school student, wants to be a veterinarian.
“I told Jamal he's my role model,” Kiera said, “There's a lot going on in the world, but it's ingrained in us to help those in need. Jamal has always been a thoughtful person, even before his thoughts are out in the open.”
(Above photo courtesy of Nebraska Athletics)
