I've never been homeless, nor have I ever had to deal with wondering where I would sleep from one day to the next. Today I met Brennan Marion. He's a wide receiver who's trying to make the Miami Dolphins who for a time in his life, moved from Pennsylvania to California to try and play football. When he moved to California he played at two junior colleges because he wasn't good enough to play Division I football. When he lived in California while playing at the junior colleges, Marion had no where to live. He didn't have any money nor could he afford an apartment, so instead Marion and a teammate would spend the night sleeping in the locker room before going to class, or they would nap in the press box on chairs.
Think about that, this was a young man who so badly wanted to play football he was willing to do whatever it took. He was able to scrounge up enough money to go to McDonalds and order from the dollar menu, or a 7-11 clerk who would throw him a cookie or some chips to eat before practice.
Food was hard to come by and it wasn't until he made a speech in a class he was taking about hardships that it reached the dean of the school he was attending. At that point, he was taken in by an assistant football coach who helped him out and he got grants for books. From there the University of Tulsa gave him a scholarship and he was able to shine on the football field.
After setting receiving records at Tulsa, in the final game of his career Marion suffered an ACL injury in Tulsa's bowl game. However, his numbers at Tulsa were enough for the Dolphins to pick him up as a free agent and bring him in with a chance to make the team.
What a story, and as he told me today, he's just writing his first chapter, even if he doesn't make the team he's made amazing strides that most of us wouldn't even be able to to think about happening. Here's hoping he at least gets a shot whether it's with the Dolphins or not.