She was his high school girlfriend. I guess if you’re going to get married at 21, better to marry the girl who was with you before the fame and money.
A lot of quarterbacks are much bigger nerds than most fans think. They’re usually the guys who stay home on weekend nights while their teammates are at the club meeting girls. The settled down, homebody life often appeals to their personalities more than the wild, party life. I was watching some show on ESPNU with a bunch of high school kids at a camp and Lawrence was one of the instructors. One of the kids asked him about the chicks at Clemson and he was all “well, I have a girlfriend back home so it’s not really my thing. All colleges have girls”.