Call him Jawad Nesheiwat, or the tight end formerly known as J.J.
Some still call him J.J. but he's known as Jawad by the media and the common fan. Fellow tight end on the Syracuse football team and roommate Arthur Kapalanga is one of those who still calls him J.J. He also calls him "The Franchise," for reasons none other than giving his friend an iconic nickname.
"Sometimes, I call him Jawad Jawad," Kapalanga said. "The two J's really don't make any sense."
As a name, J.J. doesn't stand for anything. Jawad - his birth name - does.
"A lot of people were calling me J.J.," Nesheiwat said. "They didn't know where my ethnic background came from. I just wanted to show the community that there are Arab football players playing out there."
Nesheiwat is in his sixth year of eligibility, with Syracuse being the third school he has attended. After getting redshirted twice in his career and walking on at SU, the senior tight end has finally stepped into a starting role. He's also fully embracing his heritage.
Growing up, Nesheiwat spoke both Arabic and English with his family at home and can still hold conversations in both languages. Kapalanga has heard him speak Arabic and can decipher a few choice words.
"Mostly curse words, to tell you the truth, I understand," Kapalanga said.
Nesheiwat is a first-generation born American whose parents were born and raised in Jordan. The nation's black, red, white and green flag hangs in Nesheiwat's room and pictures of his family from the country remind him of his roots. He has been to Jordan on four separate occasions.
"It's awesome," Nesheiwat said of his parents' home country. "A lot of people think it's different over there, but it really isn't. They're starting to be more westernized like we are."
Nesheiwat is not the only member of the SU football team who has been in that region of the Middle East recently. This past summer, senior wide receiver Max Meisel traveled to Israel to connect with own background. Israel is directly west of Jordan, but even with the similarities in geographic location, Meisel and Nesheiwat do not exactly share the same customs.
"Most of the conversations we have are in jest about the differences of cultures," Meisel said. "Mostly involving humus and chicken shawarmas. We'll talk a little bit about life in the Middle East since he has roots there, and now I've had some experience with it. It's interesting. It's a different culture over there, and it's nice to talk to somebody about it."
Nesheiwat's frequent travels to Jordan can be seen as a microcosm of his well-traveled college football career.
After being redshirted due to injury his freshman year at Hudson Valley Community College in 2002, Nesheiwat played one more year at the junior college before transferring to Western Carolina.
Before the 2005 season, Nesheiwat transferred again, landing at Syracuse before his junior year. He didn't receive a scholarship, though, and needed to walk on the team. He made the team but was redshirted the entire season.
In 2006, Nesheiwat finally got a chance to make his presence felt on the team. He started five games, notching 11 receptions for 56 yards. He also caught the final touchdown pass of the season against Rutgers.
The 2006 season was supposed to be Nesheiwat's last. It would be his fifth season, the last eligible year according to NCAA regulations. While petitioning for a sixth year of eligibility, Nesheiwat participated in SU's spring practices with full knowledge that his appeal might go sour. Nesheiwat would wake up at 6 a.m. for practices, while taking 18 credits to finish his degree in biology and pre-med requirements.
"You've got to have to want to do it," Nesheiwat said of his pre-med studies. "And I want to do it. It just takes time with studying. You've got to cut out a lot of social activities."
With no guarantee of a sixth season, it was more than a sigh of relief when the tight end found out he would be back at Syracuse in the fall.
"I went crazy," Nesheiwat said. "I was so excited. There's nothing like college football. Just to have another year to be around the guys and having fun, there's nothing like that. Money can't buy that."
Not only would Nesheiwat be returning for a sixth year, but he found out his role would increase significantly just before the start of the season. Former No. 1 tight end Tom Ferron quit the team, leaving Nesheiwat with the starting duties. Nesheiwat was disappointed that a good friend would not be returning, but he relished the increased responsibilities.
"It's a bigger load on me," Nesheiwat said. "I'm here to take advantage of it. I mean, I'm not going to complain about getting more plays."
After offensive struggles for the Orange in the first three games, the team finally broke out of its slump with a 38-35 victory at Louisville on Saturday. Nesheiwat had three catches for 85 yards and the offense gained a total of 423 yards through the air. The balanced passing attack is something head coach Greg Robinson has been striving for and knows that Nesheiwat can be a key to open up big plays for others.
"J.J. is a good player and, like all other things I'm saying, we need the offense to proliferate," Robinson said. "Once it starts going and (wide receiver) Mike Williams has something, (wide receiver) Taj (Smith) has something, (running back) Curtis (Brinkley) has something, J.J. has something, (quarterback) Andrew (Robinson) has something, and there are others, you get it rolling to where all the pieces are being utilized."
What comes next is still in question for Nesheiwat. His 6-foot-4-inch, 251-pound frame is large enough to try out for an NFL squad, but he also has the skills and desire to get into medical school. Whatever Nesheiwat decides, he will try to make Jawad a household name.
"If the NFL thing happens, if there's an opportunity I'm going to take it," he said. "If not, I'm going to study for the MCATs for about half a year, take it, and go from there."
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