Seriously...Who does this...?

Every beginning to Football Season, I can't help but think of my little mans Nick Gavin.  Seriously, I can't.  I mean, I'm a football dude, I am.  But this little guy (he's not little anymore, but to me he will always be my little dude) is the epitome of the "football spirit".  Let me take you on a trip to memory lane...

 

I first met Nick when he was 4, maybe 5.  And if you ever met him, you know he isn't the biggest kid in the world (neither am I though...).  So I go to Tim Gavin's house when I first move to Maryland, because he invited me over and I had NO friends in the area.  I had no idea what was in store.  Made no reservations, I just went to see what was what.

 

So I get to Timmy's crib, his Mom's and Pop's where mad cool (to this day, I feel like they're MY Mom's and Pop's) and his little brother (Nick) was CRAZY cool.

 

We kick it for a minute, and Nick tells me that one day he wants to play football.  Well, anybody who knows me, knows that football is the way in with me (or just about any sport).  So I tell him that I play and that we can run through some drills, so he can see what it feels like to be a REAL football player.

 

I teach Nick the basics of "tackling".  So before we know it, we're basically running two man Oklahoma drills with the two of us.  I don't know where my head is at (this is LITERALLY the FIRST time I'm at Timmy's house) but when when Nick comes to tackle me (I'm on my knees 'running' at him in the drill) I "juked him". This, being a Tail Back, was a natural reaction.

 

What I want you to do is look at the picture below.  This is an estimate of the fireplace that the Gavin's have at their home.  This is the fireplace that will be the focal point of this story....

 

So, Nick Gavin comes to "tackle" me.  I "juke" him.  As a 4 year old kid, he' coming FULL STEAM...He misses (if you see the fireplace above, you can imagine the rest of the story...).  His nugget hits into one of the fireplace bricks...'Till this DAY, I still feel bad...Nick rams his nugget into the fireplace (I STILL can't believe it!).  Seriously, after 2 maybe 3 minutes, he has a nugget the size of a basketball chillen on his forehead.

Me being the "new kid" in the neighborhood and it's my first time in Timmy's house, I'm thinking....,"fuuuuuuuuuccccccckkkkkkkkk".  Seriously, I am.  But, there is something in this kid's eyes that tell me something else.  Don't get me wrong, he's crying because he just took a header into a fricken fireplace. But he has this look like, "I'm gonna tackle your black ass before you go home"...Seriously...that's what I saw.

After about 3-5 minutes of "babying", Nick Gavin put on his "big boy Lancer Pants" and wanted to go again!  This 4 year old had a Watermelon chillen on his forehead and he STILL wanted to tackle ME!

At this point, I KNEW this kid was special.  I knew NOTHING would stop him, even though life would through him many, many curve balls because of his height and size.  Although he may have paused, this kid had NEVER stopped.  His heart and determination are what set him apart from his classmates.

The only 2 dudes I love younger than me, more than anything else are Booshi Bear and Nick Gavin.  I want nothing but the best for BOTH of them.  Nothing....

Nick Gavin

A couple of days ago, one of my Mom's and I were emailing each other back and forth.  She told me about how my little brother had made the Dean's List (I'm not surprised, he's a real smart dude, sometimes he's just a little lazy) and how he planned on playing football again at Stevenson in the Fall.  When I think of Nick Gavin, the first thing that comes to mind is that he is one of the toughness bastards I have ever met...EVER.  Not only is he focused (when he wants to be) but he has this determination that is just relentless.  I mean the kid has one hell of a motor.  To really understand Nick Gavin I have to take you all the way back to 1993...yeah '93.  This was the first time I met Nick.  He was maybe 4 or 5 years old and he wasn't really that big.  Honestly, like me, he's pretty small, but tough...don't forget tough.  After a while he tells me that he wants to play football when he gets older and wants to play for the Lancers (*Blogger Note* Playing for Linganore is a privilege, not a right).  Being that I played football, I run him through some drills in his living room.  This is where I first took notice that this kid was something special.  I put him through the basic 45 degree tackling drill.  I was the ball carrier and he was the tackler.  I don't know what went through my mind, but my instincts kicked in and I juked him...the poor kid went head first into his fireplace...a BRICK fireplace.  Needless to say I almost shat my pants because this was the first time I had ever been to Tim Gavin's house...uh oh.  Well, Nick cried for about 3 maybe 4 minutes.  And the kid had the nerve to say, "Ok, I'm good, let's keep going!".  I was completely shocked.  A four year old kid just took a header into a fireplace, has the lump the size of Saturn on his nugget and he STILL wants to tackle.  If that's not H.E.A.R.T then I don't know what is.  Let's fast forward to the now.  Being that Nick took a couple of vicious hits, he suffered a few concussions.  He went through a down time like most football players do when their career is over.  But Nick, being the resilient and tough guy that he is wouldn't take that for an answer.  He worked hard not only in the classroom, but in the weight room and also in his personal life with his relationships.  Nick took the bad that was thrown his way and never gave up.  Even if he doesn't play a single down at Stevenson this Fall, it doesn't matter.  It shouldn't matter.  The only thing that truly matters is that he took his lumps, dusted himself off and got back up into the fight.  I can't even express how proud I am of this little guy because I always knew he had it in him.  Even when he didn't believe (and I can tell when someone doubts themselves), I believed in him and now he's proving me right...even though I knew I was right.  Lol.  Nick, I love you man, I'm very proud of you and I'm so happy that you MADE your own second chance.  Just remember where you were and how you never want to go back.  You have the biggest H.E.A.R.T I've ever seen.

P.S.  You're without a doubt my favorite Lancer...ever