He sought out goodness even as unsavory elements lurked all around him.
He could've become poisoned by the culture of violence and drugs in Akron, Ohio, a struggling Rust Belt city, but instead embraced life's positive side.
He paid attention to wisdom from his mother, Lashaun Brown, and to successful male influences — the "icons" of his neighborhood, as he calls them. He wanted to know their reasons for success. He asked questions, and paid attention to the answers.
A Nebraska senior defensive lineman, McMullen found similar traits among those icons.
"Whether it was integrity, leadership, communication, honesty, responsibility, punctuality — all those things matched up," he said.