Hunter Draws Inspiration from Mother
9/24/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
TCU Athletics Media Relations
A day never passes when TCU defensive tackle Chucky Hunter doesn't think about his mother.
Tenia Willis died of lupus when Charles -- as she liked to call him -- was just nine years old.
More than a decade later, her teachings still echo in his ears: Have high morals, honor womanhood, respect your elders, work hard and get an education.
As a 21-year-old senior, Hunter is doing just that.
"She was a great woman and I'm grateful I had her in my life for nine years," he said. "I miss her getting on me for some things, but I can still hear it in my heart, I hear it in my body and I hear it in my head, "C'mon, Chucky, you're better than that."
Hunter is now fulfilling the dream he and his mother had long ago.
"She never saw me play in high school or college, but I know she is up high in the sky looking down on me and smiling because I'm doing what I told her I was going to do," he said. "I told her, "Mom, I'm going to get a Division I scholarship. I'm going to be pretty good at football. Watch me.'"
At powerhouse West Monroe High School in West Monroe, La., Hunter was a four-star recruit and was ranked as the No. 27 defensive tackle in the nation and No. 3 in his home state. He was the 5A District MVP, a 5A first-team all-state selection and the Louisiana Defensive Player of the Year.
It didn't take him long to figure out that all those high school accolades didn't mean a whole lot at the next level.
"I was an 18-year-old freshman going up against a 21-year-old senior. The first play of practice in two-a-days I got put on my back by (Kyle) Dooley. It taught me so much, and that I have so much more to prove," he said. "I really thought I was going to come here and it was going to be the same type of competition but I recognized you have to up your competition each year you go somewhere."
In 2011, he became the first TCU true freshman to start a game in five years when he took the field against Portland State. He started just one game that year but appeared in 12 and recorded 18 tackles.
"I was a four-star athlete. I thought I had it made. My head got too big. I came here my freshman year and I didn't perform how I wanted to perform," he said. "It took me in the offseason of getting in shape and getting strong to start recognizing why I play the game."
As a sophomore in 2012 he started the fourth contest and has started every game since -- 24 in all.
Last year he led the defensive line with 43 stops, including six for loss and two sacks, and with those numbers he was named to the 2014 watch lists of the Rotary Lombardi Award, Chuck Bednarik Award, Bronco Nagurski Award and Outland Trophy.
Despite all the attention, Hunter, who is a two-time All-Big 12 Second-Team Selection and 2014 Preseason All-Big 12 honoree, maintains his focus and leadership.
"The big thing about me keeping grounded is I haven't made it yet. You've got to recognize why you play the game and you want to be the best in everything you do," he said. "With me, I'm not at the top of my game right now, but I want to make sure I'm at the top of my game. I want to be the best. I want to train the hardest and work out the hardest. It comes with maturity.
"I put a lot of expectation on myself. I expect myself to run hard to the ball and play hard with great effort and be a great leader and great player for this team."
Off the field, in just 3 ½ years at TCU, Hunter will graduate in December with a degree in criminal justice. He wants to be a probation officer for youth and possibly return to his hometown.
"When I was younger, kids from my neighborhood really didn't go to the next level. They are fantastic athletes -- strong and fast -- but they don't have the right people to push them into being successful," he said. "I was so grateful to have my grandparents. I had great people in my corner -- my aunties, my cousins. In my family there is a strong connect."
With a successful college career and degree in his back pocket, Hunter has the goal of playing in the NFL and when he's done, he'll fall back on education, just like his mother would want it.
"My mom taught me everything. She took the responsibility of being a single parent and made the best of it," he said. "She knew her time was coming to an end, so she showed me the way to fight, the way to never say no."
