Ask,
and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be
opened to you. -
MATTHEW 7:7
All
our fret and worry is caused by calculating without God.
- OSWALD CHAMBERS
- OSWALD CHAMBERS
Jesus
Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
- HEBREWS 13:8
- HEBREWS 13:8
Whether or not
you are faced with the decision of having to transfer to another college, you
should at least know the process that is involved. If you are a freshman, next time you’re in a
team meeting, I want you to take a good look at your fellow freshman teammates
that signed to play at the same college.
Over the next four to five years, those faces that you get to know so
well through doubles, football seasons, spring ball, strength and conditioning
programs and college classes will slowly disappear. Some college athletes will not make it
academically, others will simply quit the team, some might get arrested and put
in jail, and there are those who will eventually become unhappy with their
situation and transfer to another college.
It is uncommon these days to have more than 10 to 15 players left your
senior year after starting out with a freshman class of around 25 players.
Deciding to
transfer to another college is nothing short of a huge decision. It is a decision that will alter the course
of your life. You’ll undoubtedly meet
new friends, develop some lifelong relationships with coaches and peers along
the way, either love or hate the old or new state you go to college in and
maybe even meet your future spouse. That
is quite a bit to take in when thinking about making just one decision.
My hope is to
take the fear out of this decision if it is one you are faced with in
college. I want you to be fully equipped
to make an educated decision about continuing your education and collegiate
athletic career if you become unhappy with where you are attending. Life is too short to be miserable during
college. After hearing my story about
the transfer process, perhaps it will shed some light on your situation. There is a lot to cover in regard to the
transfer process, so get something to drink and maybe even a couple of snacks,
and let’s tackle this together.
A NEW COACHING STAFF COMES TO TOWN
The 1996 season for the Wildcats ended in
another dismal record of 4-7 for the second year in a row. After the Wildcats’ first seven games of the
1996 season tallied a record of 1-6, it was announced during the week of the
Georgia game that our head coach, Bill Curry, would be fired at the end of the
season. It was confusing to the players
why the University did not wait until the end of the season to make their
announcement but the news was used as fuel for the Wildcat players. The next three games against Georgia,
Mississippi State and Vanderbilt were hard-fought, emotional victories for our
head coach. After the Tennessee loss at
the end of the season, the University was already well into the recruitment
process of finding a different head coach for our football team.
There were mixed
feelings among the players about the upcoming change in the overall football
coaching staff, but decisions made at that level were beyond our control. All the players could do was hope for the
best. Besides, a different coaching
staff was a fresh start for all the players, and everyone would be working hard
toward earning a starting position on the field for the upcoming 1997
season. It might just prove to be the
competitive spirit this team needed to turns things around in the SEC.
After several
months of recruiting, the decision was made to hire a head coach named Hal
Mumme from a Division II college called Valdosta State. The head coach compiled an impressive record
of 40-17-1 during the five years he spent coaching at Valdosta State, and his
fun and gun offense was something that seemed to be a good fit for our highly
touted sophomore quarterback, Tim Couch.
The news reached the football team that this decision had been made -
not by the former Athletic Director at the University at that time, but by
watching a local news station. It seemed
strange to learn about our next head coach at the same time the greater area of
Lexington did. The players were glad the
search was over, and wanted to focus on preparing for the upcoming season.
When the new
coaches arrived in Lexington, things started to change quickly for some players
before spring ball even started. Our
starting quarterback, Billy Jack Haskins, had already transferred to a Division
I AA college called the University of Rhode Island prior to the start of the
second semester, due to the coaches’ intent of starting Tim Couch, regardless
of the outcome of spring ball. Multiple
linebackers, including myself, were moved from the linebacker position to
defensive end and other players were switched from offense to defense or vice
versa. When a team gets different
coaches, you should expect to be moved around.
After the position changes, I was willing to see how spring ball went
before I made any immediate decisions about what the future would hold.
PRAYING FOR A MUCH NEEDED SIGN
Regardless of how hard I tried to learn and
enjoy playing defensive end for the Wildcats during our spring practices, it
was just not going well. I had been
playing middle linebacker since the 4th grade and when you go from
being the quarterback of the defense to a three-point stand on the defensive
line, it can tend to be a difficult transition.
Spring ball came and went, and I could see myself going from starting
linebacker during the upcoming 1997 season to the 3rd string
defensive end. It was not exactly what I
had in mind for my redshirt junior year.
Although I was still unhappy with football, I continued to pray to my
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for guidance and stayed in Lexington for summer
lifting and conditioning.
It has always
been hard for me to have a bad attitude when the Lord has blessed me with so
much. Even though at that time I was a
defensive end, I was very grateful that I was also a reborn Christian. I spent a great deal of time that summer
reflecting on the more important things in life like eternity in heaven, the
forgiveness of my sins, and being filled with the Holy Spirit. I wanted to be a light in this world and have
other players be drawn to me, so I could share the gospel of Jesus Christ with
them. I wanted to partake in the Great
Commission that Jesus talked about in the New Testament and lead others to
Christ by being a fisher of men. That
summer my relationship with my personal Savior continued to grow as I prayed
about my future at the University of Kentucky.
Doubles started
up once again in the summer of ‘97 and after a week of the usual hustle and
bustle I found myself as the 3rd string defensive end playing on the
scout team against Tim Couch and the 1st team offense. Many of the players on offense were guys that
were in my freshman class four years ago.
I felt embarrassed to be playing against them on scout team. My heart kept telling me I should be starting
at middle linebacker. After much fervent
prayer to my Lord and Savior to give me a sign as to what to do, I made the
decision to ask the linebacker coach/defensive coordinator why I had been moved
from the linebacker position to defensive end.
The linebackers that had been moved the previous spring were never told
why by the coaching staff. You would
think after spending four years of your life playing for a University, they
could have at least told you individually why they decided to change your
position.
It seems like
only yesterday (although it has already been eight years) since my Lord and
Savior gave me the sign I prayed for so earnestly that summer. After being frustrated during doubles for
almost a week, I finally went up to the linebacker coach/defensive coordinator
after the completion of our second practice that day and politely asked him why
my position had been changed. I also
asked him why I was never given the opportunity to compete at the middle
linebacker position. The coach simply
told me that I was too slow and could not flip my hips. I guess the good thing about the explanation
that I got was that it was straight to the point; however, I wasn’t buying it
one bit. I knew from that instant that I
would never again be given the chance to play middle linebacker at
Kentucky. The problem was that I knew I
could do all things through Christ and really felt like I was destined for
great things on the football field. If
it wasn’t meant to be at Kentucky I would just have to go somewhere else.
Later that
evening when the players were eating dinner at the cafeteria, as if I needed
more of a reason to initiate the transfer process, the head coach called me
over to the table he was eating at with some other coaches. He asked me what I asked the linebacker
coach/defensive coordinator as if I had done something that personally insulted
him. I told him that I was just curious
why my position had changed from middle linebacker to defensive end during the
spring. That is when he repeated what
the other coach had said about being too slow and not being able to flip my
hips, as if I had forgotten what the other coach had told me earlier in the
afternoon. He reminded me how lucky I
was to have a full scholarship and that it wasn’t guaranteed for the duration
of my stay at the University of Kentucky.
He proceeded to call me a cry baby like many of the other upper classmen
and said that if I didn’t want to be part of the football team that he would be
happy to allow me to transfer to another school. It was a nice little chat between me and the head
coach that night; however, little did he know that he just answered my prayer.
When you pray to
God for an answer, you should expect him to come through in a big way. After all, He is the one and only Creator of
the Universe. There is not a prayer too
big or too small that God can not answer.
I’m not saying that it is going to be the answer we are always looking
for in life. Jesus knows us better than
anyone, which means He also knows what is best for us. My Heavenly Father made it very clear to me
that it was time to initiate the transfer process. The sign I had prayed for that summer was
signed, sealed and delivered. After
talking to my parents that night, the next day, I went up to the head coach and
told him that I would like to take him up on his offer and allow me to transfer
to another college. I must say that he
was a man of his word, and I really felt like it was God leading me somewhere
else to do his work and play middle linebacker in the process.
THE PATH TO WISDOM & KNOWLEDGE
There is a story in the Old Testament about King
Solomon that reminds me of the most important thing I prayed for during the
transfer process. This goes far beyond
praying for a sign so I knew it was time to transfer or even praying that the
Lord would provide me with a college that wanted to offer me a full football
scholarship. Now after Solomon, the son
of King David, was anointed the King of Israel for the second time, he was
given the opportunity to ask God for anything.
The story takes shape in the second book of Chronicles where Solomon
went up to the high place in Gibeon. He
was making one thousand burnt offerings to the Lord on the tabernacle of
meeting throughout the day. It says in 2
Chronicles 1:7, “On that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him,
Ask! What shall I give you?” Can you imagine what it must have been like
for Solomon to be able to ask God for whatever his heart desired? He could have asked for riches, power,
popularity or anything else under the stars.
In 2 Chronicles 1:9, Solomon says, “Now give me wisdom and knowledge,
that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this great
people of Yours?” Solomon could have had
anything, but he simply asked the Lord for wisdom and knowledge. That is exactly what I was praying for during
the transfer process. I knew if I was
granted that prayer, everything else would fall into place.
The reason I was
so confident that things would be taken care of is because after Solomon asked
for wisdom, the Lord tells him in 2 Chronicles 1:11-12, “Because this was in
your heart, and you have not asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of
your enemies, nor have you asked long life - but have asked wisdom and
knowledge for yourself, that you may judge My people over whom I have made you
King - Wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and I will give you riches and
wealth and honor, such as none of the kings have had who were before you, nor
shall any after you have the like.” You
see, the Lord ended up giving Solomon all the other things anyway because of
his request for wisdom and knowledge.
I’m not saying that I was looking to get rich and powerful. I simply knew the Lord would provide for me
during this time in my life and guide me along the way.
After I decided
to transfer to another college, I picked up my belonging in the UK football
locker room and said goodbye to the players for the last time. It was hard knowing that I had spent over
three years with these players and developed great friendships before having to
say goodbye. They all wished me well and
knew that it was something that I had to do.
I think that some of them even wanted to come with me. I remember as I was walking out of the Nutter
facility that the head coach made a comment to me that I didn’t need to be
hanging around and distracting the players.
I guess it was his strange way of wishing me good luck in my future
endeavors.
Prior to telling
the head coach that I wanted to transfer, there was a little homework that had
to be done. As I was initially thinking
about the transfer process during spring ball and into the summer, there were
questions I wanted answered before I made my final decision. I needed to know whether all my college
credits were going to transfer, whether I would have to sit out of football for
a year and most importantly, who was going to offer me a full scholarship this
late in the season, especially after coming off of a 3rd degree MCL
tear a season ago and having very little college playing experience to my
credit. It worried me that we were
already going on our second week of doubles, and the 1997 season was only two
weeks away.
Besides praying
to God for wisdom and knowledge during this process, I had to meet him half-way
and make some calls. The first person I
called was my head coach, Bob Lake, at Cloverleaf high school and talked to him
about my situation. He was going to make
some calls for me to Villanova University and Boston University to see if they
would be interested in a transfer linebacker this late in the summer. He also told me that if I transferred to a
Division I AA school that I could play right away and would not have to sit out
for a season if I did not transfer to another Division I school.
After calling
Coach Lake, I got the phone number for Billy Jack Haskins at the University of
Rhode Island to discuss the transfer process with him that he had gone through
just a semester ago. He told me about
the colleges he was looking at and that the University of Rhode Island was the
best fit for him. Besides Billy Jack,
they also had a running back transfer from Clemson and a linebacker from West
Point. He proceeded to tell me that all
his credits transferred which was good news for me because at Kentucky, he was
also in the business school. The best
news came when he told me that they might be interested in another transfer
linebacker from a Division I school, and he would talk to the head coach, Floyd
Keith, for me.
I started to feel
like all my questions were getting answered after talking to Billy Jack. Later that day, I had a sit-down discussion
with my mentor, Bob Bradley, and explained my situation to him. I told him that I felt that I could obtain a
quality education at another school similar to UK but what my current college
could not offer was the opportunity to compete at the middle linebacker
position. He understood my situation and
said he would call around and see what he could do. With a G.P.A over 3.4 in Finance, he felt
that Ivy League schools like Harvard or Yale might not be out of the
question.
You can really
see the importance of developing relationships with coaches, peers and players
when you consider the transfer process.
After talking to only three people, I felt very comfortable that
something was going to develop according to God’s plan for me. The same day that I packed up my belongings
in the UK locker room and said my goodbyes, it was time for God to answer
another prayer. That would be providing
me with another college to transfer to for my redshirt junior year. That answered prayer came when Billy Jack
Haskins called me back the day after I decided to leave the UK football
program. He said the head coach at URI
was very interested in talking to me on the phone. I want to be very clear that at this time the
required written permission to transfer from UK had been obtained before I
spoke to the head coach at URI. The NCAA
has very strict rules about contacting another college before written
permission is obtained from your college to transfer. After a long discussion with the URI head
coach on the phone, he wanted to offer me a full scholarship. If that is not an answered prayer in a time
of need I don’t know what is. The
amazing thing is that they offered me a full scholarship without even watching
any game film. They simply took Billy
Jack’s and Coach Uzelac’s word that I was a quality linebacker.
The timing could
not have been any better because they started doubles a week later than
Kentucky. After talking to another one
of the URI coaches regarding my college credits, I found out that every single
one of them would transfer over to URI.
That means I would not be required to retake any college classes. The Lord more than provided for me that
summer as things fell into place during the transfer process. I verbally committed to URI over the phone
and in less than a blink of an eye, I was Rhode Island bound.
JESUS TALKS TO ME IN THE MOUNTAINS OF PA
It is amazing how fast you can pack up and move
when time is of the essence. The sooner
I got out of Lexington and made my trip to Rhode Island, the sooner I could
start practicing with my new teammates during doubles. After I verbally committed to URI over the
phone, it was not more than a couple of days before all my belongings were
packed into a U-haul truck and I started driving towards Cleveland with my car
attached to the U-haul car dolly. My
plan was to make a pit stop at my parent’s house in Cleveland to unload my furniture
and other big items before driving straight to Rhode Island. The trip to Rhode Island from Cleveland was a
good 10 hours and I just wanted to take what I absolutely needed for college.
The drive to
Rhode Island was exciting if you are a fan of traveling on the open road like I
was during college. My trip would take
me through Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and
then Rhode Island. Once I dropped off
the big items at my parent’s house and returned the U-haul truck and car dolly,
it was not long before I was back on the road.
During my long
drive to Rhode Island, I was filled with an inner peace about my decision. At the same time, I was excited about the
opportunity to go to another college to get an education and play
football. That inner peace I was
experiencing came to an abrupt stop when I reached the middle of
Pennsylvania. That is when the weight of
the decision that I had made started to make me think twice about what I had
done. On the one hand, it was very exciting
to be traveling to a different state I had never been to before, to start fresh
with football at the linebacker position.
I would have the opportunity to take new finance classes at a different
business school and make new friends all over again on and off the football
field.
On the other
hand, the farthest I had been east prior to this trip was Philadelphia, during
my recruiting trip to Villanova University.
Rhode Island was well east of Philly and so small that you could exit
the state in any direction in about 45 minutes.
I had received a full football scholarship from the University of Rhode
Island without their even watching any game film, but the fact was I had
accepted the scholarship without even having seen the school. What if the school was not all it was cracked
up to be and I made a mistake? What if
playing football at Rhode Island did not work out as well? It was amazing how fast these thoughts had
rushed into my mind and really made me contemplate the decision I had
made.
Not long after I
started to think these thoughts, I put my faith into practice. I suddenly did what I wish I would do more
often when life seems to get too overwhelming for us to handle. I prayed to Jesus that everything would work
out just fine. It was a simple prayer,
but I knew that one way or another, Jesus would give me an answer. Believe it or not, it was not more than a
second after I had prayed in my car, en route to Rhode Island, that a small
sign nailed to one of the many trees on the side of the road seemed to appear
out of nowhere. The sign only had two
words on it but they were exactly the two words I needed to hear. The sign simply said “Trust Jesus”. To this day, I do not believe that sign was
just a coincidence. It was much more
than that. It was not only an answered
prayer, but it was the Father’s way of talking to me and letting me know that
everything would work out just fine. It was then and there I knew that Jesus
had a specific purpose for my transfer to Rhode Island. I could not wait to find out just what it was
He wanted me to do besides play football and get an education.
NEW LINEBACKER ON THE BLOCK
After a solid 10-hour drive through six states,
I rolled into Kingston, RI, around two o’clock in the morning. There was a football coach waiting for me
under the athletic sign by a sports building called Memorial Coliseum. Once I introduced myself to the coach, he
escorted me to the dorm room I would be staying at during football doubles. Before we even got to my room, I remember him
knocking on one of the doors in the dorm, and two coaches came out in their
boxers to welcome me to the University of Rhode Island. Even though it was two o’clock in the
morning, you could tell they were excited to have me at URI. The next thing I knew I was laying on a bare
mattress in a dark dorm room. I fell
asleep in the clothes that I had worn on my long trip.
The wake-up call
the next morning came from one of the coaches at about 6:30 a.m., so it was not
exactly a good night’s rest. To tell you
the truth, I had a hard time sleeping that night, anyway, because I was excited
to start playing linebacker again. One
of the first players I saw when I went to the early breakfast that morning was
Billy Jack Haskins. It was good to see
at least one familiar face. I can
remember the players asking me what position I played, and when some of the
other linebackers found out I would be competing with them for playing time,
you could tell that things were going to get a little competitive.
It had been over
a year since I had played linebacker due to being moved to defensive end during
the prior spring so there was a little rust that needed to be sanded. I must say that not having to get into a
3-point stance was definitely welcomed with open arms. The Rhode Island Rams had already been in
doubles for a week once I arrived, so I needed to grasp the understanding of
how the defense operated in a relatively short time. There was another week of doubles to go and
then a week of practice before the Maine Bears came to Meade Stadium.
The Rams already
had three starting linebackers when I arrived but they were willing to move one
outside linebacker to defensive end so I could fill that spot. There was definitely some uneasiness about
what had happened with that player’s position, considering he was a senior and
had played outside linebacker the previous three seasons. I could definitely relate to his situation
seeing how I had come from a program that did something similar to me. All in all, he was a great sport about it and
was really a team player that season.
That type of sportsmanship really showed me what kind of players we had
on this team. The Rams football players
were a bunch of guys who worked hard together for the common goal of winning
games. They took me into their team
right away, and to this day I still keep in touch with many of the former Rams
players.
MAKING EVERY TACKLE COUNT FOR JESUS
When the Maine Bears came to town after the
first week of college classes, I finally had the chance I had been waiting for
my whole collegiate career. There was a
starting spot for me at outside linebacker, and I was going to make the most of
my opportunity. The middle linebacker
position at the beginning of the season was being filled by a senior player
considered to have a legitimate shot at the NFL after the season was over, so I
had to be patient for my turn as the quarterback of the defense. The other thing I had to be patient about was
waiting a year to get to wear number 40 on the field again. This number was currently taken by a senior
defensive lineman who had one of the coolest last names I have ever heard on
the football field. When you hear the
last name Konasavage you tend to think of somebody ferocious and violent. Many football players like to keep the same
jersey number throughout their high school and collegiate career. The reason I think this is so important is
because it is like a source of identity.
When you hear “Number 40 on the tackle” over the speaker phones in
stadiums season after season, it just doesn’t have the same ring to it when
they say “Number 46 on the tackle.” The
closest thing I could get to number 40 was number 46, so I went with it.
The first game
against the Maine Bears started out with an explosive effort from our
quarterback Billy Jack Haskins and the URI offense as we went into halftime
leading 14-10. The second half was a
different story as the Bears held our offense scoreless and scored 20
unanswered points to win 30-14. As if
losing the season opener wasn’t bad enough, our all-conference defensive end,
Frank Ferrara, broke his leg on the second play of the game and would end up
missing the rest of the season. This was
my official college day debut as a starting linebacker, and even though we lost
that day, I posted 8 tackles.
There is
something special when you have Jesus in your life and you get the opportunity
to play football or any other high school or collegiate sport. Regardless of what position you play or what
your stats are at the end of the game, you have the opportunity to do it all
for the Lord and give him all the glory and honor. Before each game I played as a Rhode Island
Ram, beneath my shoulder pads was a shirt I wore that said “I will not be
denied”. This shirt was a reminder of
what I had been through to get to start at the linebacker position and how I
had persevered through my early college years. In addition, as I taped my wrists
with athletic tape for extra support, I would write Philippians 4:13 on one
taped wrist and on the other it would say “The Lord is with me; I fear
nothing.” Philippians 4:13 has always
been my favorite verse in the Bible and with the Creator of the Universe on my
side, my heart and soul felt like the sky was the limit. Jesus brought me to Rhode Island for a
reason. As I played each game that
season, I would not only give Him all the glory and honor and play through the
strength of the Holy Spirit, but more importantly, use this opportunity to
witness to other players about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Some people might
look at a linebacker and say that he is just making a tackle in a football
game. The fact is that every tackle I
made during my collegiate career was for the one and only Jesus Christ. This was done out of reverence for His
sacrifice on the cross so that not only my personal sins would be forgiven and
the gift of the Holy Spirit would come upon me but that when I die, I would be
given the opportunity to spend eternity in heaven with Jesus. We are saved by grace and nothing else. There is nothing we can do to earn our way
into heaven. There are some who believe
baptism seals your soul with Christ but it really is just a proclamation of
your faith to other believers. All Jesus
requires is that we surrender our lives to Him and have faith. He lived the perfect life for you and me and
that deserves our whole heart and not just part of it.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SPARK?
During the beginning of every new football
season, teams around the country play the first couple games hoping to
establish continuity with their offense, defense and special teams. The first couple of games are so crucial
because if you can ignite a spark on your team then it has a chance to turn
into a fire and before you know it you’re burning up the opponents on the
scoreboard. There was no reason for the
Rams not to be a quality football team with a transfer quarterback from
Kentucky, a transfer running back from Clemson and a transfer linebacker from
Kentucky. The fact is that when you play
football, the team is only as strong as the weakest link. If ten players are taking care of their
responsibility on the field and one fails to accomplish this, then you end up
having something like a quarterback sack or the opposing quarterback burns your
defensive back for a touchdown. The Rams
just did not seem to work as a team on the field in 1997. One main reason was that we were decimated by
injuries. The other reason was that we
just could not finish games.
Although we won
our second game of the season against Jerry Azumah and the New Hampshire
Wildcats 35-21, we lost the next two games of the season against Northeastern
13-41 and Massachusetts 14-18. In the
Massachusetts game alone we lost our starting quarterback, Billy Jack Haskins,
to a separated shoulder, our second string quarterback to an ankle sprain, and
one of our starting linebackers. The
team was falling apart with a record of 1-3 and when Hostra came to town and
won 28-21 we were faced with a record of 1-4.
We were desperate for a victory to try to gain some momentum as we were
about to approach the second half of the season. We headed to Boston University with a focused
determination to accept nothing less than a victory and in the last minutes of
the game our junior placekicker booted a 29-yard field goal to edge us past the
Terriers by a score of 20-17.
A record of 2-4
was not pretty with only five games left but it was much better than being
1-5. If we could only put together
back-to-back wins, maybe we could create that spark we had been looking for and
ignite it into a flame. The wind must
have really been blowing, figuratively speaking, the last five games of the
season because we did not win one game.
Losses to Brown, Connecticut, Villanova, Richmond and James Madison in
triple overtime resulted in a dismal season record of 2-9 under head coach
Floyd Keith.
There were four
close games that season that were lost by eight or fewer points. If we had won those, we could have finished a
respectable 6-5. It was simply a season
that was not meant to be. There were
some positives that came out of the 1997 Rams football season. I finished the season with 132 tackles, which
led not only the team in tackles, but also the Atlantic 10 conference. During the middle of the season, I was moved
from outside linebacker to middle linebacker and really found myself a home
there. The middle linebacker who was
there prior to me was moved to defensive end where he posted an impressive 10
quarterback sacks that season.
My first season
at URI was about laying a foundation to build on for the upcoming 1998
season. That year I was chosen as
Second-Team All-Atlantic 10 Conference linebacker and honored as the team‘s
outstanding defensive back by the URI coaching staff at the annual Football
Banquet. It was something that I was very
proud of, considering we finished with a record of 2-9 and I had just
transferred from another University less than five months ago. The presence of the Lord was with me, and I
felt like things were going according to His plan. I had developed myself into a leader for the
football team and was positioning myself to start finding out about the
salvation of the players I shared the field with.
That season
showed me that I was being acknowledged as a legitimate threat at the middle
linebacker position - an acknowledgement I had worked hard for since high
school. The best part about it was that
I gave all the glory to God and did not hide it from anyone. At the end of the season, our defensive
coordinator left the team and once again, I had another linebacker coach and
defensive coordinator. It was not even
my fifth year in the college football world and already I had six different
position coaches and five different defensive coordinators. The difference this time was that I had
someone who shared my passion for the game, and he was a coach who respected
his players.
RHODY ROOMMATES NOT EASILY FORGOTTEN
Prior to the start of my first season at Rhode
Island, plans had to be made for my living arrangements during doubles. There were basically two options that I had
for the upcoming fall semester. The
first option was to live on campus in a dorm room which did not seem very
appealing, considering I was going on my fourth year in college. The second option at the time seemed too good
to pass up. Three other football players
were looking for another roommate to live with them in a rented out beach house
that was not more than a couple blocks from Scarborough beach. Living off campus during the fall and spring semester
for full scholarship football players meant that a generous stipend of
approximately $1,600 would be given to each off campus player per semester for
rent, utilities and food.
After getting the
opportunity to see the beach house, I decided to take the players up on their
offer. Our beach house was so close to
the ocean you could hear the waves crashing on the shore from the two-story
deck on the back of the house. We were
about a 20-minute drive from campus, so once I got to the University, I pretty
much stayed there the whole day for classes and football practice. Little did I know what I would be confronted
with at the beach house that fall semester.
If there was a
contest for who could pick the worst roommates that semester, I am pretty sure
that I would have been awarded first place three times. There seemed to be little harm living with
three football players, but what did I know?
The fact was that I was living with a compulsive gambler, who would
constantly borrow money from his friends, a compulsive stealer, who would steal
from everyone but his roommates, and a chronic marijuana smoker, who frequently
invited players and friends over to smoke pot in the basement of the beach
house. This was not exactly the kind of
environment a Christian would like to find himself living in during
college.
How can you take
a situation like this and find the positive?
The answer is quite simple when you look at it through the eyes of
Jesus. I had been given the opportunity
to witness to these three players not only through my words but also through my
actions. It reminded me of the story in
the New Testament when Jesus was sitting down at a table in a house with His
disciples, Matthew the Tax Collector and many other tax collectors and
sinners. In Matthew 9:11 it says, “And
when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher
eat with tax collectors and sinners?”.
Now Jesus had heard what they said to the disciples and He was more than
prepared to answer their question for them.
Jesus says to the Pharisees in Matthew 9:12-13, “Those who are well have
no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not
sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call
the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
The Lord blessed
me with a golden opportunity to witness to players who did not know
Christ. Was it easy when they were
throwing parties at the beach house with six kegs of beer, fights breaking out
and cops having to come over to break up the parties, due to the neighbors
complaining? Of course, not. I was surrounded by temptation at every turn,
but the most important thing was that I had Jesus on my side. I knew that Jesus would not give me more than
I could handle, although at times, I felt overwhelmed by my living
arrangements. Regardless of the
environment you find yourself in, you have to take a stand for what you believe
in. Don’t sell out and give in to peer
pressure just because everyone else is doing it. If you can pass that test, that is when you
start molding yourself into a leader, instead of just another follower.
There are two
things severely affected by peer pressure that I am extremely proud to have
avoided in college. The first is that I
have never been intoxicated and the second is that I have never been in a
fight. That is kind of an oxymoron thing
to say when it is coming from a football player. Many people would think the opposite, and
many football players live up to that public image to give them reason to
believe it is true. When you go against
the norm, you start to really surprise yourself and find what you are made of.
That fall
semester at the beach house was a time that I learned a great deal about
myself. There were quite a few times
that I had to say “No” and there were other times that I felt like I was
connecting on a spiritual level with my roommates. They respected my belief in Christ and that
semester I tried to be a shining light full of optimism amid a disappointing
football season. The most memorable
moment that semester was not on the football field but in my bedroom at the
beach house. It was there that I led our
defensive end to come to know the Lord in a personal relationship. Answering God’s call was fulfilling me in
ways that I thought were not possible. I
just wanted to make the most of every opportunity He gave me.
After the fall
semester, it was time to say goodbye to those three roommates. I made the decision to move on campus into a
dorm room for the spring semester. We
learned a lot about each other living in that beach house. The most important lesson I learned is that
God can use us in any situation to spread the news about His Son, Jesus
Christ. You just have to keep your eyes
open and be willing to meet Him halfway.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1) Have you ever had a coaching
change in the sport you play? If so, how did you handle the transition?
2) When you pray to God, do your
requests take into consideration that He knows what is best for you? Do
you have an example to share of praying with His will in mind?
3) How can personally applying 2
Chronicles 1:9 significantly impact your prayer life and relationship with God?
4) If you have considered
transferring to a different school, have you earnestly prayed to God for
direction and guidance? Does meditating on Proverbs 3:5-6 give you a
comfort and peace about your future?
5) Do you believe in prayers
being answered by God? Would you consider the result of my prayer in the
middle of Pennsylvania an answer from God or a coincidence? Is there an
example of an answered prayer you would like to share?
6) Is there a special pre-game
routine you go through to remind you of who you are playing for? For
example, is there a special shirt you wear or do you write a favorite Bible
verse on your taped wrists?
7) Whether you are making a
tackle, catching a pass or hitting a ball, as you play your sport, do you give
God all the glory and honor and play through the strength of the Holy
Spirit? Have you thought about how this can speak volumes to your
teammates about your personal relationship with Christ?
8) Would you agree that being baptized
is a proclamation of your faith to other believers and does not affect your
salvation? How does Ephesians 2:8-9 support that being baptized does not
affect your salvation?
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