Former HBCU football player earns degree from Georgia after catastrophic injury

A former HBCU player is celebrating a milestone achievement at the University of Georgia. Former Southern University wide receiver Devon Gales has received a communications degree from Georgia, ten years following the catastrophic injury that left him paralyzed from the chest down in Southern University’s out-of-conference matchup against the Bulldogs on September 26, 2015.

In the matchup, Gales suffered a spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed. But, throughout his journey, he didn’t give up and set forth on his path to complete his goals. In the decade following the injury, Gales has served his community as a teacher as well as a football coach while completing his studies at UGA. Per Gales, he wants to be a source of inspiration.

“It’s an accomplishment, a blessing to be able to show others: Look what I did,” he said in a statement released by the institution in November. “Going through what I went through, and now being able to say ‘Mama, I did it,’ that’s the biggest thing that runs through my mind. It makes me emotional, just because it’s bigger than me.”

Gales says that he still misses football, despite the incident.

“I miss hitting people.I like running into somebody, like a Marshawn Lynch; putting your helmet in somebody’s face and just, ugh! I miss the contact part of it.”

But, per the feature by the institution, he makes sure to stay active and keep himself in shape.

“It puts me back in the element of an athlete. It puts me back to where, if I’m feeling some type of way, I can get it all out in the gym. … I’m trying to get swole; I’m trying to get this body right,” he said.

Gales was recently honored during Georgia’s game against the University of Charlotte, celebrated for his resilience and service to the community over the past decade.

The post Former HBCU football player earns degree from Georgia after catastrophic injury appeared first on ClutchPoints.