https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j85Bg4Ecoo
I was born on May 10, 1991 in Shreveport, a city in the northwest corner of Louisiana, close to where Arkansas, Texas, and Louisiana meet. I was blessed with three strong brothers, LaCourtney, Tobias, and Tomarious.
Loss is something I became familiar with at a young age. When I was 5 years old, my father was murdered, leaving my mother to raise the four of us on her own. Ten years later, my best friend was murdered. That same year, when I was 15 years old, my mother was in the stands at my high school basketball game when she had a stroke and passed away.
From that point on, all four of us had to grow up in a hurry. We refused to live apart from each other or be split up between family members, so LaCourtney—who was 19 at the time with a newborn daughter to care for—stepped up to run the household. It was never easy, but he worked tirelessly to keep the lights on, to put food on the table, to make sure we were going to school, and to keep us out of trouble.
I started playing football in Shreveport at the age of 9. My older brother Tobias, who was 11 at the time, also played football, so instead of going back and forth to two different practices, I played two age groups up with Tobias.
At Green Oaks High School, I played both wide receiver and defensive back. I came into my own during my senior year, when I caught 53 passes for 1,064 yards and 12 touchdowns on offense and recorded four interceptions on defense.
That year, I took my first-ever plane ride to visit Nebraska and Missouri to explore my future in football. Missouri had a different feel than any campus I’d ever set foot on—the coaches, the weather, the atmosphere, it all stuck with me.
I was devoted to my brothers and to keeping our family together, so I committed to Louisiana Tech in order to stay close by. I was set on Louisiana Tech until a day or so before National Signing Day, but I couldn’t seem to get Missouri off my mind. Missouri had just come off a great year, led by Chase Daniel, and it was an exciting place to continue my football career. The incredible support from my brothers finally led me to the University of Missouri, where they knew I could truly make something of myself.
I redshirted for the 2009 season to keep developing physically and mentally as an athlete. During the 2010 season, I got my feet wet in the receiving corps, grabbing my first college catch against Illinois.
In 2011, I caught my first three college touchdowns and recorded 20 catches in all—and I even got the chance to play at home. At the end of the 2011 season, I made a return to Shreveport to play in the Independence Bowl with my teammates.
The 2012 football season was Mizzou’s first foray into the SEC. I was proud to contribute 443 yards and 2 touchdowns in 2012, before putting up career-best performances my senior year in receptions (50), receiving yards (893) and touchdowns (10).
Mizzou opened up doors for me that I never expected the chance to walk through. By the time I started my senior season, I had graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. While at Mizzou, I also got the chance to volunteer with the Boys and Girls Club, the Food Bank of Central and Northeast Missouri, and I was able to tell my story to youth organizations, juvenile detention centers, and schools in the Columbia area.
Since graduation, my desire to play professional football has taken me all over the country—Cleveland, Dallas, San Francisco, Miami, and beyond. Until I have the chance to prove myself on Sundays, I continue to practice hard, learn new things, and stay true to myself.