In the Huddle: Purdue safety Sanoussi Kane

Purdue talented safety Sanoussi Kane is the first member from his immediate family to earn a college degree, and the native of Harlem, New York, reached the achievement in 3 ½ years.

Kane, one of five team captains for the 2023 season, is also an avid reader and was called ‘cornbread’ when he first started playing football.

You graduated in 3 ½ years and you’re the first college graduate from your immediate family. How does that make you feel and how does it make your family feel?

It makes me feel great. My parents worked tireless hours to get me to the spot where I am now. It’s good for them. I knew I was going to graduate but it’s an accomplishment for them to have their first kid graduate from college. They immigrated from Mali, West Africa, and all they wanted was what was best for me and my little brother (Moussa). It’s good to have me as a college graduate and now that my little brother is in college, it’s a great thing for them.

Where is he at?

He’s at Duke.

Is he playing?

Yes, he plays football.

They’re having a really good year.

Exactly. College GameDay is going there.

What position does he play?

Corner.

Playing the secondary runs in the family.

Yes, but he’s taller.

At one point was a college education emphasized growing up?

All the time. One thing about African households – they’re going to emphasize education more than anything. A fun fact about me – my mom didn’t want me to play football. We had a whole family meeting and had to convince her to allow me to play football. That was never priority No. 1. Getting a college education and getting a college degree was always priority No. 1.

What was that family meeting like?

I think I was in seventh grade. One of my cousins played football; he was from Philly and I always wanted to play football because of that. He was on the youth team called the Harlem Jets. My mom didn’t want me to play because it was too violent. I had a couple of my aunts and my cousin come to talk to her as well, and she finally allowed me to play football going into my eighth-grade year.

Was there a vote?

There wasn’t a vote. Everybody wanted me to play but one thing about mom is she’s stubborn. Everybody else was cool with me playing football; she was the only one that wasn’t. We were just trying to convince her.

Sounds like your mom has a lot of influence in the family and if she didn’t want it to happen, it probably wouldn’t have happened, right?

I don’t know. My dad probably would’ve convinced her.

You’re in the School of Business and 20-25 years from now, where do you see yourself and how will you use the business degree?

I see myself building a school back home. I was fortunate to have the opportunities, obviously, since I play football to go to Purdue and get a higher education but also go to Blair Academy. That was an opportunity that was one in a million. There were probably two of us from Harlem out of 400 kids and the school costs $65,000 but I couldn’t afford it. Because of playing football, I was able to attend. That was an opportunity that a lot of kids where I came from never had. A lot of kids would’ve thrived in that opportunity in that space. Hopefully, I can go back home and create a school like Blair where those kids can have those same opportunities.

What’s your game day routine?

I have a playlist, I listen to music, go out on the field, stretch, catch the football and come back and chill. I don’t do too much.

What’s your nickname?

Nousski. It’s like a shortened version of Sanoussi.  I do have a lot of nicknames.

How many?

A lot. The funniest one I got was ‘cornbread.’ On my first team, my coach – coach Tyson – didn’t know how to pronounce my name. He said, ‘I’m going to call you ‘cornbread.’ But when I started making plays that’s when everyone started calling me by my name. There’s a lady back home – she’s the president’s wife – she still calls me ‘cornbread.’ That’s why I remember that nickname.

Do you actually like ‘cornbread’?

Nah. Nobody calls me ‘cornbread’ anymore. They call me by my actual name.

What is your favorite food?

Whatever my mom is cooking. She’s African and one thing about her is she’s going to cook. The favorite thing I want from her is some plantain and some lamb. That’s the one thing I want from her every day.

How often does she cook that?

Every Friday.

Any superstitions?

You can’t cross the pole around me. Don’t open any umbrellas inside around me. Don’t walk under any ladders. I don’t like any of that.

Your name Sanoussi, what does it mean?

I’m named after my grandfather – my dad’s dad – which is traditional in African culture. It really has no meaning, but there was a tribe in Libya that was named Sanoussi. You almost associate Sanoussi with being a leader.

Is that who you are?

I guess so. It’s fitting that is my name.

One thing your teammates don’t know about you, or do they know everything about you?

They do know a lot.

But do they know everything?

They don’t know everything. That’s what I’m trying to figure out. I read a lot. A lot of people don’t know that about me. There are people in my inner circle that know that, but I read a lot.

Books?

Yes.

Last book you read?

“The 50^th Law” by Robert Greene and 50 cent. That’s the book I’m on. After that, I’ll be ready for more Robert Greene. I’ve already read “The 48 Laws of Power.”

What’s your favorite book during your time at Purdue or before that?

“Atomic Habits”. That’s my favorite. It helped me get a routine and understand how to create a routine and how to eliminate bad routines that I had. It just helped me out. This year alone, it’s helped me tremendously. I consistently go back to that book and brush up on a lot of things.

If you wrote a book about yourself, the title would be …

Underdog. I’ll say that. Coming from Harlem, truth be told, I know people who have made it to college and stuff like that but to come this far where me, Khordae (Sydnor), Salim (Turner-Muhammad), and where we’re at right now is special. In my memory, I don’t know anyone from Harlem that’s been able to do what we’re doing. I feel like I’ve been an underdog my whole life.