This is from 2001, but this is the first time that I have seen how much he hates his Dad. Why he has not changed his last name!
http://bengals.enquirer.com/2001/08/18/ben_bengals_pick_catches.html
who has attracted as much attention as any Bengal at training camp, is the rookie wide receiver from Oregon State with deep speed and gold teeth whose cousin is Keyshawn Johnson. T.J. Houshmandzadeh is the second rookie wide receiver from Oregon State. The other guy. Taken in the seventh round by the Bengals, five rounds after they took his college teammate.
But Houshmandzadeh (pronounced hussh-mahn-ZAH-duh) is determined to establish his own identity outside Johnson's shadow.
For one, Houshmandzadeh possibly has the longest hair of any NFL player. He hasn't cut it since 1997. It's braided and flows from beneath his helmet down to the top of his back.
Houshmandzadeh also stands out because, if he makes the Bengals' opening day roster, it's believed he'll be only the second player of Iranian heritage in NFL history. Guard Shar Pourdanesh, who played five seasons for the Steelers, was born in Iran in 1972 and fled the country during the 1979 revolution.
But Houshmandzadeh, whose first name is Toraj, wants to be known for his football skills.
Although he has been slowed in the past week by a foot injury and is questionable for next Saturday's preseason game against Buffalo, he will be one of the Bengals' wide receivers this season.
So far, he has returned four kickoffs for a 21-yard average and one punt for eight yards.
“Special teams is my role now,” he said. “We have so many good receivers. When I get my opportunity, I got to make my plays.”
Houshmandzadeh was Oregon State's leading receiver last season with 48 receptions, 11 more than Johnson, for 730 yards.
He slipped in the draft because of uncertainty surrounding his 40-yard dash time, but he ran a 4.38 for Bengals wide receivers coach Steve Mooshagian in March.
“I like his size,” Mooshagian said of the 6-foot-1, 197-pound receiver. “He's got speed and quickness to go with the size. You usually find one or the other with big receivers, rarely both. And he's got a good set of hands.”
The Bengals' receiving corps is crowded and deep. Darnay Scott, Peter Warrick and Johnson are the top three. Danny Farmer has taken hold of the fourth spot. The fifth and sixth spots are between Ron Dugans and Houshmandzadeh.
But the Bengals are wary of exposing Houshmandzadeh by putting him on the practice squad, where another team could claim him. Houshmandzadeh played in both preseason games. In Chicago, the referees said nothing about his hair. In Detroit, they told him to tuck his pony tail into the back of his jersey.
He doesn't worry about another player pulling his hair, though one college opponent grabbed it by accident during a tackle.
“If you pin it up, it hurts in your helmet,” he said. Would he cut it to make the team? “I don't feel it would come down to that,” he said. “I'm not going to cut it. I like my hair, really.”
Houshmandzadeh thinks even less often about his Iranian heritage.
His mother, Deborah Johnson, is African-American. She met T.J.'s father while they were students at San Diego State University in the mid-1970s.
“It's a part of me, but I don't consider that me because I didn't grow up around it.” Houshmandzadeh said.
Deborah and Toraj Sr. planned to marry, but he wanted her to return to Iran with him.
“My grandmother told me he used to buy my mother all these diamonds,” T.J. said. “He came back and asked her again, but she said no again. I couldn't care less about my (inheritance). He ain't ever done nothing for me. I don't need him now.” Now, Houshmandzadeh wants to make his mark on the NFL, never mind the exotic hair and ancestry.
http://bengals.enquirer.com/2001/08/18/ben_bengals_pick_catches.html
who has attracted as much attention as any Bengal at training camp, is the rookie wide receiver from Oregon State with deep speed and gold teeth whose cousin is Keyshawn Johnson. T.J. Houshmandzadeh is the second rookie wide receiver from Oregon State. The other guy. Taken in the seventh round by the Bengals, five rounds after they took his college teammate.
But Houshmandzadeh (pronounced hussh-mahn-ZAH-duh) is determined to establish his own identity outside Johnson's shadow.
For one, Houshmandzadeh possibly has the longest hair of any NFL player. He hasn't cut it since 1997. It's braided and flows from beneath his helmet down to the top of his back.
Houshmandzadeh also stands out because, if he makes the Bengals' opening day roster, it's believed he'll be only the second player of Iranian heritage in NFL history. Guard Shar Pourdanesh, who played five seasons for the Steelers, was born in Iran in 1972 and fled the country during the 1979 revolution.
But Houshmandzadeh, whose first name is Toraj, wants to be known for his football skills.
Although he has been slowed in the past week by a foot injury and is questionable for next Saturday's preseason game against Buffalo, he will be one of the Bengals' wide receivers this season.
So far, he has returned four kickoffs for a 21-yard average and one punt for eight yards.
“Special teams is my role now,” he said. “We have so many good receivers. When I get my opportunity, I got to make my plays.”
Houshmandzadeh was Oregon State's leading receiver last season with 48 receptions, 11 more than Johnson, for 730 yards.
He slipped in the draft because of uncertainty surrounding his 40-yard dash time, but he ran a 4.38 for Bengals wide receivers coach Steve Mooshagian in March.
“I like his size,” Mooshagian said of the 6-foot-1, 197-pound receiver. “He's got speed and quickness to go with the size. You usually find one or the other with big receivers, rarely both. And he's got a good set of hands.”
The Bengals' receiving corps is crowded and deep. Darnay Scott, Peter Warrick and Johnson are the top three. Danny Farmer has taken hold of the fourth spot. The fifth and sixth spots are between Ron Dugans and Houshmandzadeh.
But the Bengals are wary of exposing Houshmandzadeh by putting him on the practice squad, where another team could claim him. Houshmandzadeh played in both preseason games. In Chicago, the referees said nothing about his hair. In Detroit, they told him to tuck his pony tail into the back of his jersey.
He doesn't worry about another player pulling his hair, though one college opponent grabbed it by accident during a tackle.
“If you pin it up, it hurts in your helmet,” he said. Would he cut it to make the team? “I don't feel it would come down to that,” he said. “I'm not going to cut it. I like my hair, really.”
Houshmandzadeh thinks even less often about his Iranian heritage.
His mother, Deborah Johnson, is African-American. She met T.J.'s father while they were students at San Diego State University in the mid-1970s.
“It's a part of me, but I don't consider that me because I didn't grow up around it.” Houshmandzadeh said.
Deborah and Toraj Sr. planned to marry, but he wanted her to return to Iran with him.
“My grandmother told me he used to buy my mother all these diamonds,” T.J. said. “He came back and asked her again, but she said no again. I couldn't care less about my (inheritance). He ain't ever done nothing for me. I don't need him now.” Now, Houshmandzadeh wants to make his mark on the NFL, never mind the exotic hair and ancestry.
