Congratulations to Max Gray for his inspiring Success Story ... He's the winner of a 1% T-shirt. "Sophomore year, my summer was going great. I felt unstoppable! During one of my team scrimmages, I dove for a pas, caught it, and landed weird. I got up and knew I was hurt, but kept going. I was new to varsity and wanted to keep playing, but just couldn't. I took a week off - I couldn't walk, sleep, or do anything without pain. The doctor said I was fine - just a sprained back. I began playing, but it kept hurting. I went back to the same doctor, but he kept saying it was just sprained. I didn't believe it. Was I really THAT weak? A sprained back, and I'm in THIS much pain? I hated everything. I finally went to a different doctor, who looked at the same MRI and said it was FRACTURED! I had been playing for 2 months with a fractured back. I remember being in so much pain, but nothing compared to when he told me I'd never play football again. I was depressed, I cried - it was extremely hard. I was stuck in a back brace for 6 months. I had no motivation until one day I realized I couldn't give up! I watched videos from Giavanni Ruffin, which inspired me a lot. I was finally able to do little things like push ups and sit ups. Every day, I was doing everything I possibly could. It hurt, but I knew the pain wouldn't last forever - I kept pushing myself. I would go early before school every day and just run, work out, and think. It was tough because there was still doubt in me that I couldn't play again. I eventually started track season, and hurt it again on the hurdles. I found a way to fight back and made it to bi-districts. Now, I'm here ... taking no days off, making sure that never happens again! I truly feel blessed to be able to play football and be a State competitor in track. I'm a fighter! I'm striving to be a kick returner and wide receiver at the college level. I'd be humbled to play ANYWHERE!" -Max Gray (@alldaymaxgray)
