Brain tumor surgery hasn’t deterred Haughton’s Luke Spinney from football
HAUGHTON — Standing on the sidelines not far from the bulk of the Haughton coaching staff Friday night, junior wide receiver Luke Spinney smiled a lot at the successes of his teammates against Many while his mind occasionally wandered to a more serious matter.
While most Louisiana football players measure their happiness in yards gained, touchdowns made or tackles accumulated, Spinney measures his happiness in breathing, not having headaches and being a part of the football team where his father, Barry, once played center.
“I had always wanted to play football here and being able to do that is one of the greatest things to happen to me,” Spinney said. “My mom, Laura Webb, is always telling the coaches to give me extra padding. But I don’t want that.”
Spinney had brain surgery a couple of years ago and Willis Knighton doctors removed a golf ball-sized tumor that was causing him all kinds of issues. He had been throwing up at random times and not holding down his food. After the chemo and radiation treatments at St. Jude’s hospital, he dropped to 70 pounds.
“Now, I’m at 120 pounds and I feel like Fat Albert,” Spinney joked. “At St. Jude, they had to put in a feeding tube just to get me some nutrition.”
Spinney didn’t get into the game against Many on Friday. He watched as his teammates fell 45-42 win in double overtime to the defending LHSAA Division III state champs. What he saw was one of the best, albeit ugliest, games in Haughton history. The Bucs (2-1) had plenty of chances to win despite three lost fumbles, three missed or blocked field goals, several key unsportsmanlike penalties, an ejected player and coach and an injured quarterback in the final minutes.
But Many (2-1) got a 33-yard field goal from Deacon Lafollette in the second overtime, along with an incredible game by LSU commitment Tylen Singleton and running back Jeremiah James, to secure the road victory.
“The fact that Luke is with us is amazing,” Haughton coach Jason Brotherton said.
Once the game ended, Spinney thoughts turned to Monday when he and his family will head to St. Jude for a scheduled checkup. He’ll have his blood drawn and an MRI on his brain, which happens on each visit. Sometimes he endures a spine MRI and lumbar puncture on his visits. The family’s prayers are that nothing new shows up.
“The current cure rate for Luke’s particular type of brain cancer is 60-65%,” Barry Spinney said. “His St. Jude visits will eventually move from every three months to every six months, then every year or so. Once he hits his five-year mark, he’s considered cured.”
The lead-up to Spinney’s surgery was tough for the family to endure. They were told not to expect to get the same kid back after the surgery.
“Because it was in his brain, we were well prepared for him to be cognitively, mentally and physically impaired to some degree,” Barry said.
Spinney said he understood the surgery had the potential of leaving him blind, unable to walk or unable to talk.
“My dad was crying signing the papers," he said.
But there was good news from his doctor.
“Luke came away from brain surgery and brain cancer virtually unscathed,” Barry said. “He’s been blessed. God had him from the beginning of this and everyone at St. Jude was amazing.”
Currently, Spinney has no restrictions and no hinderances, mentally or physically involving his athletic participation, a miracle in itself. He said he feels blessed to participate in football. And his dad wouldn’t let him feel sorry for himself.
“He could be mad, sad, whatever, but not sorry for himself,” Barry said. “Every kid at St Jude was fighting the same thing. Luke wasn’t special. God knew he would get cancer before he was born — this is his journey — so let’s get up and go to work, so we can go home.”
Nothing was kept from the teenager in dealing with his treatments and future. The St. Jude doctors pulled no punches and sugarcoated nothing for him. He knows his survival rate is 85-90%.
Fighting the challenges of the world is something sports teaches young men and women as they learn to compete against setbacks. Spinney said he knows that fact all too well, but he isn’t slowing down, according to his dad.
“When he struggled, I told Luke that today is Monday. Let’s not talk or worry about Tuesday until it gets here. One day at a time and the end will get here soon enough,” Barry said. “I also told him that the enemy isn’t at the front door anymore, it’s in the house. You can choose to fight it in the house, or run out the back, and running out the back isn’t an option.”
Jimmy covers Louisiana sports for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at jwatson@shreveporttimes.com and follow him on Twitter @JimmyWatson6.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Brain tumor survivor Luke Spinney watches as Many tops Haughton in 2OT
