SERBY’S SUNDAY Q&A WITH…
The Post’s Steve Serby chatted with the running back from Arkansas who was selected fourth overall by the Raiders in yesterday’s NFL Draft.
Q: How are you similar or different from Adrian Peterson?
A: We’re both big backs, pretty fast. He probably is a little more physical when he runs than I am.
Q: Can you make the kind of impact he made as a rookie last year?
A: I feel like coming into the league that I can make the same type of impact that he did.
Q: Do you run angry or mean when you put that uniform on?
A: I wouldn’t say angry or mean. . . . I guess just aggressive.
Q: Describe the best run you have ever made on any level.
A: My junior year of high school . . . it was third-and-23, coach came into the huddle and called a run play, and we were out of the huddle thinking, “What is he doing?” And I ended up breaking it for 87 yards.
Q: What is it about big games that turns you on?
A: You know that all eyes are on you, so it’s something you want to show what you can do, and you always step up when it’s a big game when the pressure’s on.
Q: What was it about Terrell Davis you liked as a kid?
A: He’s relentless. He had a migraine in the Super Bowl and rushed for over 200 yards.
Q: On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate the stiff-arm your dad/Little League coach taught you?
A: I have a deadly stiff-arm. I’ll rate it as an 8 ’cause I feel like there’s always room for improvement.
Q: Tell me about Willie Williams.
A: He’s one of my best friends I played football with when we were 10 and 11 years old, He ended up getting killed by his junior year of high school.
Q: Did you witness that?
A: I didn’t witness it. But right before it happened we were together, we were at a basketball tournament. We went our separate ways when we were leaving the tournament, and by the time I made it home. I got the call that he had got shot.
Q: How did that affect you?
A: It hurts you a whole lot. You just don’t want to believe it.
Q: You have a tattoo remembering him on your left forearm.
A: Chill Will.
Q: What drives you?
A: I’m a pretty self-motivated person, but when people say bad things about me, I just want to prove them wrong.
Q: You like playing in hostile environments?
A: For me, when you’re in a hostile environment and under pressure, I feel like that’s when I perform my best. I start pumping their crowd up, telling them to “come on” when I’m out there.
Q: Impressions of New York City?
A: Everybody seems like they’re about running when they’re walking.
Q: The weirdest draft question you got was, “Would you rather be a dog or a cat?” Why does everyone answer dog?
A: Who wants to be a cat? Cats get chased around by dogs, you don’t want to be a cat (smiles).
Q: The best costume you’ve ever worn?
A: My junior year of high school, I wore an old lady’s dress to school.
Q: Where did you get it?
A: Actually I just found it in the closet, ”cause we were always wearing crazy things in school. We’d have a competition to see who would wear the silliest thing.
Q: What was so silly about this one?
A: It had shoulder pads in it . . . buttons going all the way down the front, and they button up all from the bottom, and it was just a silly-looking dress (smiles).
Q: Did it belong to one of your sisters? Whose was it?
A: Nobody wanted to own up to the dress because it was so ugly, so actually I don’t know whose it was (smile).
Q: You fell out of a tree when you were about 5?
A: I was climbing the trees and stuff around the house, and I fell out of a tree one time and cut the back of my shoulder up.
Q: Do you know Jermaine Taylor?
A: I’ve met him several times, yes sir.
Q: Are you a fight fan?
A: Any time he fights, I try to catch it.
Q: You worked with gold medalist Michael Johnson preparing for the Combine.
A: I used to just go up there, pop up and run, and he taught me a lot of technique to go along with it.
Q: Your fastest 40 was 4.27?
A: They say it was unofficial. The official was a 4.33, so I’m gonna stick with what they say was official (smiles).
Q: But you really think you ran a 4.27?
A: Yes sir (smiles).
Q: You like to hunt and fish?
A: My dad always took us rabbit hunting, and we also did a lot of coon hunting.
Q: Best piece of advice your mother gave you?
A: Always be a leader, never follow.
Q: Are you proud that she’s fought back from her drug addiction?
A: She’s been clean five or six years now, and it’s something I’m very proud of.
Q: Three dinner guests?
A: Ben Franklin – he’s on the front of the $100 bill (chuckles), gotta have him there; Will Smith; the president.
Q: Favorite movie?
A: Life.
Q: Favorite actor?
A: Will Smith.
Q: Favorite actress?
A: Halle Berry.
Q: Favorite meal?
A: Pretty much anything my mama cooks (chuckles). Her chicken spaghetti.
Q: What is that?
A: It’s like regular spaghetti, just put a lot of chicken and cheese in it. It’s delicious.
Q: You’ve taken responsibility for one-month-old and two-month-old sons.
A: I help support ”em in whatever way that I can.
Q: The most unfair criticism you’ve read about you?
A: People question my character. I feel like as a younger kid, I made mistakes that I moved on from. Anyone who’s met me or knows me from the past, they’re gonna tell you Darren McFadden’s a great guy. He’s not the type of guy who goes around making trouble.

