Ted Ginn has made a long, productive NFL career out of being one of – he would argue THE – the fastest players in the game.
He recorded a 40-yard dash time at the 2007 Combine while recovering from a sprained foot, according to Pro Football Talk, and claims his fastest is 4.22 — which would tie John Ross as the fastest recorded time ever.
In fact, Ginn is so confident in his abilities, he told Bleacher Report’s Adam Lefkoe that he was willing to race anybody pole to pole for “$10,000 or better.”
He never thought a high schooler who actually stands a chance would take him up on it.
Matthew Boling, a senior at Strake Jesuit (Houston, Texas) who has earned the nickname “White Lightning” as he breaks track and field records, responded to a Pro Football Talk tweet about Ginn’s wager with one word.
— Matthew Boling (@matthew_boling1) May 17, 2019
Looks like Ginn has some competition.
Boling is best known for breaking 10 seconds on the 100-meter dash with a wind-aided time and then breaking the official national high school record for the same race last week, but he’s more than just a short sprinter.
The day after breaking the official record, he anchored the 4×400-meter relay. He started back by about 20 meters but still pulled out the victory.
But Ginn is no slouch either. He was a track phenom in high school, winning the national championship and two state titles on the 110-meter high hurdles, a third state title in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles, and a state title in the 200-meter run, according to Ohio State.
In the Bleacher Report video, Ginn told Lefkoe he missed out on qualifying for the Olympics by one second — which he said was the only loss he took on the track.
Ginn ran a 10.2-second 100-meter dash as a senior, according to Sportscasting.
But Boling beat that time less than a week ago with his 10.13 national record performance.
It’s unlikely this race will happen, but if nobody tells the NCAA, we might have a chance (in the Bleacher Report video, Ginn said he would race people for wagers at 16 or 17 years old, so, maybe we can keep this on quiet too).
Could “White Lightning” beat longtime NFL player Ted Ginn?
Note: An earlier version misidentified the 4×400 relay.
