Sign In     Register
Gloucestershire Connections

Football Team gives Spotlight to Boy with Down's Syndrome


Author: Beth | Only Positive News
Date: 2009/9/22 14:01
Views: 10

Generosity of spirit is a magical, transformative thing. A little goes a long way. Here’s a story about a two rival football teams who come together to make one boy’s day:


At 5'3 and 110 pounds, 15-year-old Matt Zeisel isn't your typical burly running back. And despite his desire to get in the game, Matt had spent much of the football season sitting on the bench, watching his teammates at St. Joseph Benton High School in Kansas City race across the field. Matt has Down Syndrome, and his doctors have said that it isn't safe for him to get involved in contact sports, so, for his own good, his coach, Dan McCamy, has kept him on the sidelines.


But at the game last Monday, Matt's team was down by 46-0 when Coach McCamy had a bright idea. He called a time-out and went to ask the opposing team a question. "I've got a special situation," he said. "I know you guys want to get a shutout. Most teams would want a shutout, but in this situation I want to know if maybe you can let one of my guys run in for a touchdown."


The team quickly agreed to the coach's request. Then, for the first time all season, Coach McCamy called in the "Matt Play." With Coach McCamy and his teammates' urging, Matt jumped up off the bench and raced out to the field. He took hold of the football, and, as soon as the referee ended the time-out, he ran a full 60 yards from one end of the field to the other, throwing the ball down to score a 6-point touchdown. After cheering on Matt's play, his teammates scooped him up for a big group hug.


Coach McCamy posted a video of Matt's touchdown on YouTube the next morning for his parents to see, and, since then, the heartwarming play has been watched more than 275,000 times. Matt's mother claims that everyone she knows who's seen the clip has broken into tears while watching it.


"It's spread not just to the community of St. Joseph, but now it's spread across the region. How something so simple can impact so many -- to me, that's the amazing part about it."


If this picture doesn’t make your day….



Here’s a video the winning touchdown.


Source: Gimundo


Author: Beth
URL: http://www.gloucestershireconnections.co.uk/modules/planet/view.article.php/1016
Trackback: http://www.gloucestershireconnections.co.uk/modules/planet/trackback.php/1016

The comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for their content.

Recent Members
38nessie38
Joined
May 6
HelenK
Joined
Apr 27
Handy87
Joined
Apr 18
Roxanne
Joined
Apr 17
Rama
Joined
Apr 4
taiyang666
Joined
Mar 19
bjland5
Joined
Mar 16
Janvis
Joined
Mar 11
chrischelt
Joined
Feb 14
chriscosway
Joined
Feb 9
Powered and developed by EVUCAN Web Solutions