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Rasul Douglas path to becoming the top defender on a Big 12 title contender included weekends at the bowling alley, a bus stop and sometimes only a dollar a day for food.And now hes one of the biggest reasons why West Virginia has emerged as a dark-horse hopeful for the College Football Playoff heading into a Saturday showdown with ninth-ranked Oklahoma (8 p.m. ET, ABC).Hes just a kid that keeps fighting, said West Virginia defensive coordinator Tony Gibson.On the field, as perhaps the Big 12s best defensive back on the leagues leading defense.And before that, off of it.Im actually doing what I came here to do, Douglas said. I always envisioned it.The struggle is paying off.One of seven siblings raised by his grandmother in East Orange, New Jersey, Douglas grew up where, as he puts it, kids are lost to the streets.Thankfully for Douglas, he had a strong-willed grandmother, a little league coach who saw something special in him and an innate passion to play sports.Mike Davis, a P.A. announcer for East Orange High School sports and a mentor for at-risk youth in the area, first met Douglas while coaching him in little league baseball. The two immediately hit it off.I was hard on him as a coach, Davis said. Because he was so competitive, he took a liking to that.Davis made it his mission to prevent this kid brimming with potential from falling into trouble on the streets.It was like a vehicle, Davis said. There was a lot of trouble around in that community. Unfortunately, a lot of young people there were getting involved in gangs. Sports offered him something else.He was the one who took me out of the streets, Douglas said. He made sure we did what we had to do.Davis kept Douglas focused on sports. All sports. Any sport. One time that was the Vince Carter basketball camp. Other times, it was taking Douglas and his brother to the bowling alley.Time spent playing those sports didnt just keep Douglas out of trouble; they provided him with a foundation, turning him into a terrific all-around athlete by the time he reached high school.Douglas had dreams of playing basketball at the next level. But at 6-foot-2, he didnt have the height to draw the attention of college recruiters. He did, however, have the size as a defensive back to catch the eye of Nassau (New York) Community College coach Curtis Guilliam.Coach Guilliam, he kept hitting me up, What is he going to do? said Douglas high school football coach, Marion Bell. At the last moment, I finally convinced Rasul to take a shot at it.Nassau didnt have dorms. Instead, Douglas had to find an apartment located eight miles from the Garden City, New York, campus. Douglas didnt have a car, so he had to take the bus every day to class and to practice. And because his grandmother still had to take care of his younger siblings, Douglas essentially was on his own financially.That was probably the hardest part of my life, for sure, said Douglas. It felt like nothing was going my way. I couldnt ask my family for money, because they needed it. I didnt have a lot. I was struggling to eat.Sometimes, Douglas would just wait until the evening to eat. Other times, he would go to McDonalds, order off the dollar menu, eat half of the meal and save the rest for dinner.Douglas, however, remained determined, despite being redshirted that first year.He did what he had to do, Guilliam said. He made sure he got to class. He did the work. Got to study hall. Did everything he was supposed to do. We call it the juco grind. But he never complained and just continued to work.That mentality carried over into the weight room and onto the field. And by his second year at Nassau, Douglas was primed to shine.Early in the season against Lackawanna College -- which produced former West Virginia All-American wideout Kevin White and his brothers KaRaun and Kyzir, both starters now for the Mountaineers -- Douglas delivered a breakout performance.He picked off a pass, and it was like, Oh, shoot, this guy is going to be a dude, Guilliam said. Then he laid a hit on a receiver, knocked him clean out, and you were like, This guy was going to be a thumper.By his third year at Nassau, Douglas had turned into one of the top junior college corners in the country. He garnered scholarship offers from the likes of Florida State and Louisville, but after visiting Morgantown for the Mountaineers game against TCU in 2014, he knew West Virginia was where he wanted to be.Due in large part to Douglas, West Virginia leads the Big 12 in scoring defense, despite losing several key defensive backs off last years team. He is tied for second in the country with six interceptions, including one last weekend in West Virginias 24-20 win at Texas.Saturday, hell face off against Oklahoma wideout Dede Westbrook in what figures to be the premier matchup of the game. Westbrook has emerged as a Heisman contender after a scorching past two months. But Westbrook hasnt faced a corner in the Big 12 the caliber of Douglas, either.Im glad weve got him, said West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen. Right now, hes our best defensive football player. Hes continuously gotten better. Hes making big plays that have a big outcome on the game.I couldnt be happier or prouder of what Rasul has done.Though hes come far, Douglas hasnt forgotten the path he traveled or the people who helped him along.On Thanksgiving a few years ago, Davis was in the middle of calling the P.A. for an East Orange football game when he got a text that still touches him.It was Rasul just thanking me for keeping him on course, Davis said. Im in the middle of this game, and Im in tears.Ive been blessed to have been part of his life. Its been a wonderful privilege. Sydney Leroux Jersey . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. Ali Krieger Jersey .500 on the season. The Jets are now 0-5-1 in the second game of back-to-backs. 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"It just felt like it was my time to move on," she said in a phone interview from her hometown of Burlington, Ont. PHOENIX -- Yasmany Tomas is on some kind of tear of late.With two home runs and a career-high six RBI in the Arizona Diamondbacks 13-5 victory over the New York Mets on Wednesday night, eight of Tomas last 13 hits have left the yard.Tomas and Rickie Weeks Jr. both homered twice and drove in a combined 11 runs and Tomas had his major league-leading seventh multi-homer game of the season. Weeks tied a career high with five RBI and recorded his first multi-homer game in more than three years, the eighth of his career.Tomas has eight home runs in 10 games has hit safely in 16 of his last 18 starts, with 23 RBI over that span. His solo shot in the fourth gave Arizona a 3-1 lead, right after Weeks first home run, then he added a two-run triple in the seventh and three-run homer in the eighth.In the last three weeks, Ive had a different routine, Tomas said in Spanish. Im recognizing the ball better right now and my swing is comfortable. I always try to be ready and if the pitch looks good to me, I swing.Manager Chip Hale said Tomas is getting the right pitches to hit and has overcome a neck problem he dealt with recently.Just taking advantage of some pitches that are up in the zone. Thats what good hitters do, Hale said.Zack Godley (4-2) earned the win with 7 1/3 innings of five-hit ball. He allowed two runs, struck out four and walked two, holding the Mets to one hit over the first five innings.Godleys outing was the longest of the 26-year-olds career. He sprinted off the mound when removed in the top of the eighth.Zack had really good stuff, Hale said. They werent squaring too many balls up on Zack. Sinker and cutter were both working, changeup had so much depth to it.Mets starter Jonathon Niese didnt allow a hit for three innings until Paul Goldschmidt led off the fourth with a base hit. Weeks homered on a 2-2 pitch, and two pitches later, Tomas took Niese deep to left field.Niese got the first two outs of the fifth after Godleys single, then gave way to reliever Erik Goeddel, who walked Goldschmidt and gave up Weeks second homer. Goeddel faced four batters and did not register an outt.ddddddddddddGoeddel was pitching pretty good until tonight so it was the right move to make, Mets manager Terry Collins said. We just didnt get the outs.Wednesdays game marked the second time in club history the Diamondbacks had two players with five or more RBI each. Justin Upton (6) and Miguel Montero (5) did so in 2011.Weeks was able to take advantage of a rare start.Just being a veteran, honestly, he said. Coming off the bench is not the ideal situation, but you have to go out there and try to do your job.Niese (8-7) was making his first start since July 10 and had been working out of the bullpen since. He allowed four runs and four hits, walked two and struck out six.Tomas hit his first triple of the season to drive in Goldschmidt and Weeks, giving the Diamondbacks an 8-1 lead. His three-run shot into the television camera opening in center field in the eighth made it 13-2.Curtis Granderson homered and Rene Rivera hit a two-run shot in the ninth for the Mets.GOLDEN ARMOlympic gold medalist and Phoenix resident Bethanie Mattek-Sands, who took gold in mixed doubles tennis in Rio, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Wednesdays game.TRAINERS ROOMMets: OF Yoenis Cespedes went 2 for 3 with a double, RBI and run scored while playing six innings in left field Wednesday night for Single-A St. Lucie. I felt comfortable at the plate. Ill be ready for Friday, Cespedes said. He is due to come off the DL on Friday from a quad injury. ... INF Asdrubal Cabrera (strained patella tendon) went 1 for 3 with a double, two RBI and scored a run while playing six innings at shortstop in the same game. ... OF Justin Ruggiano (hamstring strain) had two hits for Triple-A Las Vegas Tuesday night.UP NEXTMets: RHP Jacob deGrom (7-5) is scheduled to face the San Francisco Giants Thursday night. DeGrom has a 1.56 ERA since the All-Star break.Diamondbacks: RHP Archie Bradley (4-8) faces the Padres in San Diego on Thursday. It will be his third career start at Petco Park. ' ' '