The U. of Miami Players Inspire Local High Schoolers To End Violence ~ Beat By The Nudge- No, You're Dumb!

7/17/09

The U. of Miami Players Inspire Local High Schoolers To End Violence

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My usual off season college football stories almost always involve either a college football player being arrested for some type of violence or a drug offense. When I read this story about a couple of players for the University of Miami Hurricanes football team meeting up with H.S. players from Belle Glade to inspire them away from a life of crime, it actually brought a tear to my eye.

The back story is that a former high school star from the school was shot and killed last Fall a mile away from the school. The Hurricanes, Randy Philips, Javarris James, Sean Spence and Travis Benjamin met with the Belle Glade football team and tried to show the next generation of potential college athletes that there is a way out from the guns and violence.

Some of the things they said were inspirational.

"No guns. No gangs. No fighting. That's what we've got to get into these kids,"Phillips said. "We've got to keep these kids positive and show them, right now, what happens when you make the right decisions. I made the right decisions. Too many guys, they made the wrong ones."

"It's a great feeling to come back to my community and feel like I can
contribute," Benjamin said. "Wasn't too long ago, I was one of them, in the same position they're in, playing football and trying to be like the other guys from here like Fred Taylor and Reidel Anthony. They came back, they did something good, and now we're doing the same."

After playing for a while, the kids gathered in their various groups, took a knee and circled the Hurricanes for a pep talk.

“Stay in school. Read books this summer. Respect your parents and teachers.Respect yourselves. How are you going to play football if you don't do that?"Phillips asked.

"These kids need to see Randy Phillips and Travis Benjamin and follow in their footsteps, not follow the path of violence," said Luke Pierre, the park commissioner. "These kids have to hear it from them."

A big congratulations has to go out to head coach Randy Shannon for creating an atmosphere with his program where the players know that they can inspire others both on the field and off.

If you get a couple of minutes, check out the whole article at CBSSports.com