Top > Sport > 2005 > August > 2005-08-30

Football player escapes poverty to find riches

Mkristo Bruce has every reason to be bitter. Angry. Resentful. Or so he has heard. To tell you the truth, Bruce is having so darn much fun smiling and laughing and joking his way through life, he hasn`t had time to focus on all that negative stuff.

Bruce, the human "streak" who lines up at defensive end for Washington State, grew up in dire poverty with no father. The three-bedroom, one-bathroom home in Renton he shared with his mother, four sisters, three brothers and a niece was regularly be flooded by May Creek.

Bruce`s rare combination of spirit, determination and talent has been a blessing to the Cougars. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound junior is bigger, stronger and seemingly better than a year ago, when he led WSU with 6 sacks, 12 tackles for losses, six quarterback hurries and three fumble recoveries (tied). He also led Cougar defensive linemen with 60 tackles. Bruce -- his first name is pronounced Em-KRIS-toe, a Swahili word for Christian -- agreed that added strength and experience have helped him and all the Cougar defensive linemen improve this year. WSU`s young defensive line was often overpowered last season.