North Carolina Central holds signing day ceremony for 10-year-old cancer survivor
Howell Brown III is now a member of the North Carolina Central Eagles.
Brown, 10, is recovering from a rare brain tumor and thought he was simply going to the school to meet some football players and play games with them. Instead, he was greeted by a press conference and got to sign a mock scholarship certificate with the team. (Click here to view video from the press conference.)
When he was introduced at the podium, he received a large ovation. Immediately after signing, Brown was asked how it felt to be a member of the football team and he responded without hesitation.
"Good, it's pretty exciting," Brown, who was a natural in front of the camera, said.
The position he signed to play? Quarterback, of course.
In November 2012, Brown was diagnosed with Stage IV Pineoblastoma. He had surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and stem cell treatment for the tumor and completed the treatments in September 2013. In two scans since then, there have been no signs of a tumor. He met NC Central coach Jerry Mack through Team IMPACT, a childhood cancer-focused nonprofit. According to NC Central, Brown will be on the sidelines at home football games this season.
After the press conference, he did get to play the games he was originally expecting to play. And he had one in particular he was looking forward to the most.
"Bowling, I'm really good at bowling. Hopefully I'll beat all these guys."
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
