There was a skinny young boy who loved football with

all his heart. Practice after practice, he eagerly gave

everything he had. But being half the size of the boys,

he got absolutely nowhere. At all the games this hopeful

athlete sat on the bench and hardly ever played.

This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of

them had a very special relationship. Even though the

son was always on the bench, his father was always in

the stands cheering. He never missed a game.

This young man was still the smallest of the class when

he entered high school. Yet his father continued to

encourage him but also made it very clear that he did not

have to play football if he didn't want to. But the young man

loved football and decided to hang in there. He was

determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps

he'd get to play when he became

a senior.

All through high school he never missed a practice nor a

game but remained a bench-warmer all four years. His

faithful father was always in the stands, always with

words of encouragement for him.

When the young man went to college, he decided to try

out for the football team as a "walk-in." Everyone was

sure he could never make the cut, but he did. The coach

admitted that he kept him on the roster because he always

puts his heart and soul into every practice, and at the same

time, provided the other members with the spirit and hustle

they badly needed.

The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much

that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father.

His father shared his excitement and was sent season

tickets for all the college games.

This persistent young athlete never missed practice during

his four years at college, but he never got to play in a game.

It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted

onto the practice field shortly before the big playoff game,

the coach met him with a telegram.

The young man read the telegram and he became deathly

silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, "My

father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?"

The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said,

"Take the rest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to

come back to the game on Saturday."

Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the

third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent

young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room and

put on his football gear. As he ran onto the sidelines, the

coach and players were astounded to see their faithful

teammate back so soon.

"Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today," said

the young man.

The coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he

wanted his worst player in this close playoff game. But the

young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the

coach gave in.

"All right," he said. "You can go in."

Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the

stands could not believe their eyes. This little unknown who

had never played before was doing everything right. The

opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed,

blocked, and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph.

The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the

game, this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for

the winning touchdown.

The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto

their shoulders. Such cheering you never heard.

Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had

showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that

this young man was sitting quietly in the corner all alone.

The coach came to him and said, "Kid, I can't believe it.

You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did

you do it?"

He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said,

"Well, you knew my Dad died, but did you know that my

Dad was blind?"

The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, "Dad

came to all my games, but today was the first time he