POWDER SPRINGS, Ga. -- In any team sport, it’s important to know that you can lean on your teammates.
Every person has a job. And off the field, when tragedy strikes, you’re never alone. Paris Brown Jr. was just a freshman when his father, Paris Sr., had a sudden heart attack and died.
“Being around my teammates helped me through it," Brown said. "It gave me a positive vibe and kept me going.”
His life teammates showed up in full support.
“I knew that he needed, obviously there was a lot of family around and friends and stuff, but someone with a strong personality," McEachern Head Coach Kyle Hockman said. "Just to know I was here.”
It’s been 2 years; it doesn’t get easier.
“It’s nothing I can do about it, so I just keep working hard and try to make him proud,” Brown said.
That's especially true around football season when McEachern begins the season with a father son breakfast. Luckily, Paris Jr. knew the perfect man to step in - the father of of his teammate, Nate Dent.
“I know his father was there for my son Nate," Nate Dent Sr. said. "They’ve been friends since kindergarten. Me and his father has a special bond. It was fairly easy for me to do. I was honored to do it.”
But nobody can replace dad.
“I pretty much dedicate my whole life [to him]," Brown said. "Like staying focused in school, working hard. Any time it’s hard workout, I just start thinking about him and he pushes me.”
Teammates are important. On the field, you work together toward a common goal. Off of the field, you work to keep each other’s spirits up.
