( CNN ) -- Richard Sherman made several things very evident last Sunday night : . He 's confident . Brash . Competitive . A `` dogged mentality '' helps , too , when it comes to lining up against the other guy . That other guy in the NFC Championship Game was Michael Crabtree , the object of the cornerback 's rant after the Seattle Seahawks earned their way to the Super Bowl by beating the San Francisco 49ers . `` Do n't you open your mouth about the best , '' Sherman barked on national TV , `` or I 'm going to shut it for you real quick . '' In the days since the outburst stirred controversy , Sherman has become something akin to the upcoming Super Bowl 's unofficial provocateur-in-chief . But in an in-depth interview with CNN 's Rachel Nichols -- which aired Friday night -- Sherman expressed some regret about the rant while showing a far more gentler side when he 's off the field . `` I 've always been a square , a nerd . Kind of odd , kind of awkward , '' he said . `` I still am to this day . People just think I 'm a lot cooler 'cause I play football . '' Sherman said he likes the History Channel and `` Animal Planet '' on TV . The Stanford University grad lauded his parents , saying they set an example of going to work every day and not complaining . With his can-do attitude and philosophy `` you got ta be who you are , '' it 's fitting that one of his heroes is one of sport 's most outspoken athletes -- Muhammad Ali . Like Ali in his day , Sherman may now be the biggest newsmaker in sports following the Seahawks ' playoff victory . When he was about 7 or 8 years old , Sherman saw Ali for the first time on the screen . Ali struck him as `` so much different than everybody else in the world , '' Sherman said . `` It was one of his interviews , '' Sherman said . `` And he was just so clever , so well-spoken , so articulate -- so off-the-cuff . `` He kind of went against the grain . ... and that takes a lot of courage to go against the grain , to say what you really want to say . '' Cornerback stunned by rant reaction . As the Seahawks and Denver Broncos prepare for the Super Bowl on February 2 , Sherman took a break from practice to speak with Nichols . He spoke of defying all odds by growing up in a Los Angeles neighborhood -- Compton -- where violence is documented in rap songs , and working in school so hard and successfully that he later attended and played football at Stanford . 5 things you should know about Richard Sherman . `` How almost oxymoronic does it sound that a kid from Compton is going to Stanford ? '' Sherman said . `` I was just trying to show 'em anything 's possible . '' Sherman has been publicly excoriated , particularly on social media , for his postgame comments . He told Nichols he probably should not have attacked Crabtree . `` And that was immature and I probably should n't have done that . I regret doing that . '' Still , he was shocked by some of the racists responses he received . `` It was really mind-boggling the way the world reacted , '' Sherman told Nichols . The NFL All-Pro defensive back told Nichols he still feels the sting of not going in the 2011 NFL draft until the fifth round -- the 24th cornerback chosen . `` You do n't know what to expect . You do n't know if your phone 's supposed to ring or if somebody 's supposed to text ... '' he said . `` When your phone just does n't ring , does n't have any activity , it 's really disheartening. `` In the days since his rant , the phone is ringing for Sherman . His agent said the incident has ended up being more positive than negative for Sherman 's image . `` I think that he 's more likeable , '' said Jamie Fritz . Fritz told CNNMoney that interest in his client for endorsements has boomed since the remarks . `` We have some new ( corporate ) players who have come to the table who are starting the conversation , '' Fritz said . Sherman told CNN he is concentrating on moving forward , preparing for Denver superstar quarterback Peyton Manning . For now , he has one objective . `` On the football field , you 're still going out to there to win . And if you 're not going out there to win , what are you going out there for ? '' CNN 's Chris Isidore contributed to this report .
Richard Sherman talks with CNN about his NFL career , growing up . `` I 've always been a square , a nerd , '' athlete says . Score: 6 Agent says his image is now more positive than negative .