
Emanuel Sharp and Milton eating popcorn. | Via @emanuelsharp_ on Instagram
When visiting home for Houston men’s basketball holiday break, redshirt junior guard Emanuel Sharp met a new furry friend. It wasn’t another dog or cat; it was Milton the squirrel, seen perched on Sharp’s arm as he nibbled on a piece of popcorn in a video posted to his Instagram story.
“Y’all ain’t never had a pet squirrel that eats popcorn,” Sharp said in the video.
The squirrel took shelter in the family’s garage during Hurricane Milton, which ripped through Tampa, Fla. in October 2024. Sharp’s mother, Justine, took care of the then-baby, and he soon grew big enough to warrant creating a habitat for him in the backyard.
“My mom is very pet-oriented,” Sharp said. “She loves animals.”
Milton isn’t much different from the family’s other more traditional house pets.
“He is domesticated and trained,” Sharp said of the squirrel, who can now chomp down a whole corn cob.
The family cat has taken issue with Milton, but “it’s nothing that isn’t manageable… He’s family now,” Sharp said.