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FILM AT ELEVEN
Wedlock, known for his infamous WSSU football video, is playing in indoor league
Journal File Photo
Jonathan Wedlock blocked more than he ran the ball at WSSU.
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Published: June 20, 2008
The last time Jonathan Wedlock made headlines, it was for all the wrong reasons.
Wedlock, a former fullback at Winston-Salem State, released a controversial video on the Web site YouTube.com last May that cast the WSSU football program in a negative light. The video, which Wedlock shot throughout the 2005 season, included vulgar language, profanity, shots from a nightclub and a scene in which it appears that players are mixing grain alcohol into a large bucket for a party.
Athletics Director Chico Caldwell of WSSU called the language in the video "deplorable" and said he was "disappointed and very disturbed" by the behavior of the players.
Wedlock posted the video shortly after he graduated and has never apologized for it.
Now, Wedlock is making headlines again. This time, however, it's for his football talent and his play with the Florence (S.C.) Phantoms of the American Indoor Football Association.
"I'm having a great time playing football again," said Wedlock, who makes about $1,500 a month for playing and has his housing and food paid for.
Wedlock, 24 and a native of Fayetteville, landed in the AIFA and with the Phantoms because of YouTube.com. He posted a highlights video of some of his best plays at WSSU, and team officials saw it.
"It circulated around, and Coach (Tavares Bowens) saw the tape, and one thing led to another and I wound up here," Wedlock said.
Wedlock hardly touched the football while playing at WSSU but was a very good blocking fullback for 1,000-yard rushers Jed Bines and Martin Hicks. Wedlock gets his hands on the ball a lot these days and has helped the Phantoms to a 9-4 record and first place in their division.
"I'm touching the ball a lot now, and it feels great," Wedlock said. "It's obviously totally different than when I was in college."
Wedlock (6-0, 260) is No. 2 on the Phantoms in total offense and leads the team in rushing with 236 yards and five touchdowns on 64 carries. He also has shown the ability to catch the ball out of the backfield and has 21 receptions for 219 yards and seven touchdowns. In his four years at WSSU, Wedlock scored just one touchdown rushing, and that was during his senior season in 2006.
When Wedlock made the football-team video, his hope was to land a job producing videos. He still hopes to get into that line of work, but there is also the possibility of playing more football.
"My options are wide open right now," Wedlock said. "I'm hearing that I might have a shot at Arena Football II or maybe even in Canada."
Wedlock said he also has an offer to work for a production company in Atlanta but that he most likely will go home to Fayetteville.
"I've networked a lot and know a lot of people, and I still want to get into producing at some point," he said.
As for the video he made at WSSU, Wedlock said he still hears about it often.
"Nobody has forgot about it, and people ask me all the time, especially when I'm back in Winston," he said. "I'm never going to apologize for it because it was real, and it's what happened. There was nothing fake about it."
■ John Dell can be reached at 727-4081 or at jdell@wsjournal.com.
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