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Christian COnde LSU May Graduate - Overcoming Adversity By Any Means

9/9/2017

Christian Conde played his high school football in Shreveport, Louisiaina at Northwood High School. Growing up, Christian's main goal was to suit up for the illustrious LSU Tigers football team and through constant resiliency his goal was achieved. Christian suffered a brutal wreck and had to completely learn how to walk again, let alone play foobtall. The season after the wreck in high school, Christian was able to attain All-District Honorable Mention honors, as his play spoke for itself. Christian sent me his stroy a few nights back and I would like to share it from his view point below.

I bleed football , It is my passion and I truly will buy into any program willing to take me as I came from nothing. Im the kid that if I missed the school bus, I was getting up and walking 3 miles to school. When I was in High school it was my only way out, which makes for a dynamic story. My Junior year I was #3 in the state in tackles, unfortunately my season was cut short. The Saturday after the third game of the season, I ran a stop sign onto a highway and God spared my life. In a matter of seconds I watched my dreams crumble , I open compound fractured both my right arm and leg I didn't think about football until I woke up to my linebacker coach talking to me the next day. No one knows the pain I felt laying in that hospital bed when the doctor told me I couldnt play the game I love, I was emotionally destroyed. Football is truly the love of my life , I remember watching college football pump up videos crying, while laying in the hospital bed and focusing my mind on the road I had ahead of me. Months of physical therapy and learning how to walk again, I would go in the weight room and my teammates , especially Quincy Armstrong (all city Guard looking to play football ) and Brandon Spikes currently air force reserve) spotted me on squats and bench with a cast and boot on( never had to wear a leg cast ) . After 8 long months of visioning myself playing again and rehab, I got released to play the following spring ( the coaches let me practice) but told me I was too much of an asset to risk hurting again for one game. It made me more hungry, I still led my team out with the HUSKER Prayer , I came back and played my senior year and the first game back I cried and thanked God for blessing me to play again , coach ended up benching me later after the 8th game of the season ( I had a few D3 offers ) but since 4 years old I wanted to be an LSU tiger a dream I protected and always believed in since I could remember and at the end of the season ,made me sit out and watch my team lose the second game of the playoffs. My coach began telling me I wasn't on the radar to be recruited but this didn't cloud my vision , as much work as I put in there I knew my capabilities. So I went to My dream school ,and even though it took 2 years I finally made it , LSU let me Walk on and actually played in Death Valley, I went through the LSU 4th quarter program , passed my conditioning test 100 % with the defensive backs (15 seconds ) and I was eager to be there every morning at 5 , I was thrilled to be a part of so much history and I learned alot , Unfortunatley the week before fall camp I was released because the team needed more lineman , coach told me it had nothing to do with my effort in my 8 months as I only missed one workout because I was 1 minute late , I was never late again , I mean business. I am willing to give my all to contribute to a team that needs me. Coach told me I couldnt play college , guess he didnt know I was thinking about the NFL ( I am a dangerous blitzer off the edge , I can play in the box , I can learn your playbook. I will confess that in that time that I was cut I was depressed to the point that I had no drive to do anything , it felt like I was laying in that hospital bed again. I couldnt go to class anymore , Started smoking pot more and more and I started looking for other ways out of my living situation , I saw a therapist and so I took up music ( rap ) for my depression , even though its out there , I dont want the streets, I dont want drugs, I want to turn my life around , I want football , I want to change my life for the better and I wont rest until someone realizes im fighting for more then a dream , i'm fighting for my life . After I took off the semester I lost my Tops Scholarship, and the counselor told me If I came back I had to pass all my classes or I would fail out of LSU. While I was home my family woke me up to who I really am (When you're down the real ones come out) and im 1st generation college so All the younger ones look up to me ( I came back this past semester and passed evey class even an econ class that I failed twice before) I truly believe if I put my mind to something nothing can stop me. I want to be that factor on someones team , no matter what happens I have faith in GOD and I walk by faith, not by sight.