It's never easy growing up in the shadow of someone successful. No matter what avenue of life, if someone close to you, a family member for example, has found success in a field. Now, imagine that is a field in which you are also interested in achieving. You will more than likely carry what could be a burden of comparison for your entire career. Some might wilt under the weight of that shadow whereas others thrive.

You can't count Jakhari Gore in the former side of that ledger. In South Florida, particularly the Miami region, the name “Gore” carries with it a tremendous amount of star power. Frank Gore is Jakhari's cousin and he preceded him in football stardom by a few years. However, with a career that first started at LSU and concluded at Marian University in Indiana, Gore has found his own success on the football field.

A great deal of that success came as an inaugural member of the U.S. National Football Team. Gore was truly one of the bluest of blue chips on a roster that romped to victory in the 2009 International Bowl. He is currently preparing to embark on a career with the new Alliance of American Football and took some time away from training to reflect on his time with Team USA.

EM: When did you first start playing organized football and at what point did you know that this was a game that you were really good at?

JG: I started playing football when I was four-years-old in a little league in Coconut Grove in Miami, Florida. If I'm being honest, maybe like in high school. I would say my freshman year because I had my breakout game as a freshman playing on varsity.

I always loved it though. I love running the ball. I love scoring touchdowns. I love my teammates. I love the contact. I love working out. The thing I loved the most, again if I'm being honest, is winning. Everything about football I love.

EM: Florida – especially South Florida where you grew up – is one of those big hot beds for football in the country. What was it like for you growing up in a really football-centric atmosphere?

JG: It's real competitive growing up where I'm from in Miami. Every week, we had a team that wanted to get us. Also, there were times when one week I would be playing with some of my homeboys and another where I was playing against them. That's what really made it fun. Knowing that they were coming with their best and I had to come with my best.

There were games were we knew everybody on our team was really good and everybody on the other team was really good. That made football a lot of fun.

EM: I have to imagine having someone like your cousin go before you and take a path that you wanted to take was helpful, right?

JG: Having the last name Gore and with Frank being a football player was a blessing. There was pressure with that last name, but it always made me bring my best and stand up to it.

EM: How did you first learn about the U.S. National Football Team originally?

JG: I learned about that in high school from my coach, Chris Merritt. He told me about it and he was coaching with Team USA at the time. He was my Head Coach and he was coaching for Team USA, so I was already affiliated with it thanks to him.

EM: What was that week of practice like for you? I have to imagine it was a great experience being around all of this top talent from all across the country, right?

JG: That was fun. That was an experience I still thin about to this day. That whole week we practiced, we still had fun. It really gave me an example of what college was about to be like. You go to practice and get ready for a big game.

One of my closest friends that I met, Tyrann Mathieu, I met him that week before we went to LSU together. I had committed to going there and he had committed to going there. I'll never forget, that week I was walking into the lunch room and Tyrann said 'Hey Gore!' and he introduced himself and we clicked. I met a lot of guys there that week, like Quinton Dunbar, that I'm still close to.

EM: What is your favorite memory from the game itself?

JG: Quinton had a punt return, which was supposed to be my punt return. I said you go ahead and you have that one since I was already tired. I'll never forget, he caught the punt return on the right and came all the way back on the left and there were some major crackback hits on that play. Everybody on the sidelines was going crazy. He got run down at the one-yard line! That was something really fun right there.

EM: Last thing for you Jakhari, what would you say was your favorite part of your experience with Team USA?

JG: My favorite part about being a part of Team USA was really everything. Knowing that now [10 years later], my name will always be a part of that, something really big and a part of history, I will always treasure that. It was really one of the best experiences that I've had [in football] and USA Football showed us all mad love.