KILLEEN, Texas -- Kendell Jones Sr. must get the question all the time: What are you feeding him?
His son, Killeen Shoemaker defensive tackle Kendell Jones, is 6-foot-4 ½ and a slender 361 pounds, though he says he's down to 346 this week. And yet, there's no gut. Not too much body fat, either. He just turned 17. Looks more like 27. How exactly did the ESPN 300 standout get this big?
"His favorite meal is the next thing that's in front of him," Kendell Sr. joked. "The refrigerator is like a plate to him."
The ESPN 300 standout, who's planning to commit to Alabama, Texas, Texas A&M, LSU or Baylor after Shoemaker's spring scrimmage on Friday night, has always been a giant among his peers growing up, an enigma worthy of extra -- and unwanted -- attention.
Getting bigger has always been easy for Jones. Getting tougher has required time, trials and torment.
The Jones family lost everything in Hurricane Katrina, all their possession gone along with their apartment in New Orleans' Westbank. Kendell, his parents and three sisters, boarded a bus to Texas in early September 2005 with only a small tool bag stuffed with clothing. Kendell was 7 at the time.
"I'm glad they don't remember much," his father said.
He still remembered the sound of helicopters hovering overhead long after they were gone. Their exit was a blessing in some ways, Kendell Sr. said, because he knew the Ninth Ward where Kendell grew up wasn't a good place to raise a family. Too much violence and crime. The family stayed long enough to witness the storms destroy the place they called home.
"I was in the middle of it, so I got to see what damage and terror it caused on Louisiana," Kendell said. "It took me quite a while to get down here. It was a pretty scary experience for me. I was so young."
They got off the bus in Copperas Cove and started over, eventually settling down in Killeen. The transition for Kendell was, at times, brutal.
"It was hard to adapt to the new life of Texas. I was always bullied and made fun of and put down," he said. "I used to get bullied a lot. I didn't know how to defend myself."
Jones was taunted and teased in elementary and middle school for being so big. He never knew why.
"Some kids want to try the biggest kid out and see how tough they are," Kendell Sr. said. "He's a big, gentle, kind kid at heart. But they wanted to try him."
Back then, it took a lot to provoke the big man. His parents taught him to ignore the cruelty. They reminded him all the attention was merely jealousy.
"I guess it stopped when I started being stronger for myself," Jones said. "I started speaking out more. People starting seeing me do the right things and started walking away. Everything got way better in high school."
He found a better solution when he got to Shoemaker: weightlifting, which was new to Jones. As big as he was, head coach Channon Hall said, the Kendell could barely lift a weight. Couldn't bench 225 once, that's for sure. But he was still the biggest kid on the field as a freshman.
"Very quickly we'd say, OK, we better coach this guy and teach him how to play, or he's going to sit around and get us fired," Hall said. "He's so exciting and so imposing. We knew we had to get him going."
As Jones learned to gain muscle, his weight took off. He was around 250 pounds as a sophomore, then up to 310 by his junior season. This March, he weighed in at 361.
Everyone now calls him "Hulk," a nickname Hall gave him. He knows the No. 104-overall ranked recruit hasn't played his best football yet. After Jones faced double-teams most of last season, coaches repeatedly urged him this spring to start attacking with his hands. He needs to leverage his size and speed into becoming unblockable.
"He really doesn't look like he's that heavy, but he is massive," Hall said. "Big legs. Big butt. Everywhere else, he's just big. And he carries it well. But I know he doesn't know how strong he is."
Nick Saban sure does. Alabama is the presumptive favorite for Jones' decision tonight after a report leaked last week that Jones had already picked the Tide. If that holds up, it'll be because of Bo Davis. The Alabama defensive line coach was previously at Texas and remains close with the family.
"Their relationship goes a lot further back than people actually know," Kendell Sr. said. "And whenever Bama comes into play, a kid is going to think about going to Alabama."
Dad is a diehard LSU fan and would've preferred Kendell held off on deciding until next year, but he isn't pushing his son in any direction. Kendell still plans to take official visits this fall regardless of which program he picks Friday.
"I'm looking for a school that treats me like my family would," he said. "My dad is hard on me because he wants me to make it. I don't want a coach to hold anything back. Give it to me straight. Teach me what I need to become."
After all he had to endure, what Jones wants most of all is an opportunity to get even tougher.