The Eagles are set to face the 49ers and their rookie QB, Brock Purdy, in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday. Ray Didinger gives you everything you need to know about the young signal caller.
Each week during the 2022 season we’re going through the Eagles’ media guide to find an interesting nugget.
The Eagles’ PR interns do a great job filling out these little oddities in the media guides and they serve as a good way to meet the player behind the helmet.
This week, we chatted with defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, who says he’s surprising good: “Definitely basketball. I can swim like hell too.”
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Me: Is that right?
Hargrave: Yeah. Heck yeah.
Me: Did you grow up playing basketball?
Hargrave: Yeah. That was my first love until I didn’t grow no more. So then I realized.
NFL
Me: How late in your life did you play basketball?
Hargrave: Just in high school. During high school and stuff. I almost got a thousand (points). But I had like 903.
Me: Oooh. What position did you play?
Hargrave: A little power forward.
Me: Have you played with the guys in this locker room?
Hargrave: Nah, we just shoot around a little bit. I don’t really play no more. I don’t be wanting to risk it.
Me: I get that. Are you a good shooter?
Hargrave: Yeah, I’m a streaky shooter.
Me: Who’s the best shooter that you’ve seen here?
Hargrave: Here? Ahhhh, I’d have to say it’s probably Zach Pascal.
Me: Pascal. OK. I hear a lot of G-Ward too.
Hargrave: I haven’t seen G-Ward. But Zach shoots every day. He be making it. He can shoot.
Me: What was your style of play?
Hargrave: Bully ball. Get rebounds, put it back. Had a little jumper. Just a little Charles Barkley, a little Zion (Williamson). Just a little powerful.
Me: Like an elbow jumper? You’re not stretching, right?
Hargrave: Yeah, elbow jumper. Elbow.
Me: So you played through high school?
Hargrave: Through high school.
Me: Do you miss it?
Hargrave: Not really. I do but I don’t. Not really.
Me: At the end of high school did you realize football was it?
Hargrave: Yeah, I knew football was going to it after my freshman year and sophomore year. Started seeing them 7-footers and … things started changing. Football was always easy to me.
Me: If you look around this locker room and you had to put a five together, who would you put on your starting five?
Hargrave: Of course Zach (Pascal), probably put (Darius) Slay, a little Kobe (Nakobe Dean), Kobe could be our point guard. Me. And …
Me: You need a 5.
Hargrave: I want to say Jordan (Davis), but Jordan kinda sorry, but I’ll say Jordan.
Me: Lane maybe?
Hargrave: I’ll go Lane. He might can do something. … I don’t know. I don’t trust the offensive linemen. So I might go Fletch (Cox) or Jordan. Probably Jordan though.
Me: And then the other part: Swimming. Did you grow up swimming?
Hargrave: Yeah, it’s just something I did. I wasn’t competing or nothing. I just like to swim.
Me: You still get after it sometimes?
Hargrave: Heck yeah. I do laps.
Me: You do it to work out?
Hargrave: Yeah, I do it sometimes in the offseason, just to work out and stuff like that.
Me: Cool, thanks man. That’s all I needed.
Hargrave: Sure.
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