Meet 'King AJ', the barber who got a 'sign from God' that Alec Pierce would be a Colt
AJ Khalil starts every day the same — he gets up at 6 a.m. and prays. He reads the Quran. Then he goes back to sleep.
When he woke up Friday, he had to make a phone call to one of his clients.
Khalil, known as "King AJ," has been been a barber for 20 years. In 2007, he opened Aseel Barbershop in what he calls a "hot spot" in the village of Clifton, two minutes from the University of Cincinnati. By 2009, "everybody knew me." He used to cut hair for the Kelce brothers, Travis (Kansas City Chiefs tight end) and Jason Kelce (Philadelphia Eagles center). He used to cut hair for Stacy Andrews, a former offensive tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals. He cuts hair for players on the Bearcats baseball and football team and some players on FC Cincinnati.
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Which brings us to Alec Pierce.
Pierce, a standout wide receiver at the University of Cincinnati, has been getting his hair cut by Khalil for four years. The morning the Colts made their first pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, Khalil got a sign.
"I see Alec in my dream, and God said he wanted to go to the Colts," Khalil said. "When I woke up, I called Alec and told him, ‘You’re going to go to the Colts, because I got a sign from God.’”
Sure enough, Colts general manager Chris Ballard took Pierce with the 53rd pick.
“My barber said he got a message from God,” Pierce told reporters. “He was praying for me to go to the Bengals, but he said God told him I was going to the Colts.”
What was Khalil's reaction when he got the news?
"I was super happy and excited for him," he said. "Alec is like my brother."
And, no, Khalil wasn't the least bit surprised.
"I already knew," he said. "I got the sign from the God."
Khalil was hoping Pierce would get picked by the Bengals, but says "I’ve started to like the Colts for sure. I'll tell my people to follow the Colts."
Khalil is looking to move to a bigger location soon — but he still plans on cutting Pierce's hair now that he's with the Colts.
"I'm the best barber in the state of Ohio," he said. "I'm looking to keep cutting big guys like Alec, football players, soccer players and baseball players."
He says he's the state's best barber because he can cut "all types of hair." He has an Instagram and a YouTube channel. He says Pierce is "a great guy, a quiet guy. He’s talented. He's smart, a genius. I think Alex is a phenom."
Oh, and there's one more thing Colts fans should know.
"He’s gonna be a top-10 player in the league in two years. I promise," Khalil said. "That's what God told me."
Follow IndyStar trending sports reporter Matthew VanTryon on Twitter @MVanTryon and email him story ideas at matthew.vantryon@indystar.com.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts: Meet draft pick Alec Pierce's Cincinnati barber AJ Khalil
