Matthew Harris Writing Sample 5

DAVIDSON, N.C. – Whenever the topic of Davidson athletics comes up, the discussion almost inevitably goes to the way that those participating are the true definition of a “student-athlete”. About how many of those who don the black and red not only excel in competition, but also in the classroom, the community, and in their futures after they leave this town. For many, this is because the road to success hasn’t always been smooth, without a hint of a rough patch. But the Davidson student-athlete knows that sometimes the toughest journeys lead to the greatest rewards.

Chad Barnes, a senior running back on the Davidson football team, has seen his life take twists and turns that would derail most people, but has found a way to persevere and is not just surviving, but thriving.

Barnes hails from nearby Mooresville, N.C., but says throughout high school he didn’t know much about Davidson. After becoming a three-time all-county and all-conference performer at South Iredell High School, he had received some recruiting interest from the school, but also had offers from other programs. Then, in his senior year, Barnes broke his ankle mid-way through the season, which caused some of the schools recruiting him to back away.

For some, going through an injury at such a crucial time in their career would be devastating. They would see their future slipping away, and find out how easy it is just to give up. To declare that fate was against them, and any chance they had walked out the door with that ill-fated play.

But sometimes, as the old saying goes, when one door is shut, another is opened. One of the assistant coaches on South Iredell’s football team had played his collegiate baseball at Davidson, and told Barnes he should check out the school. And, as is the case with so many who visit the picturesque campus and experience all that makes Davidson special, Barnes fell in love.

“I loved it here,” he said. “I loved the atmosphere, the coaches, the student body outside the football team. Davidson was the only college I applied to.”

That is when another set of challenges rose up and tried to knock him down. Barnes’ school had only around 800 students, and wasn’t a place where he thought he could get the type of academic resume that a school like Davidson demands. In fact, the valedictorian from the senior class before him had applied to the school, and was denied admission. So to Barnes, it was a situation where he just had to take it one step at a time.

One of the things he had going for him, he found out, was that throughout his high school career, he had taken part in many of the extracurricular aspects that make an application shine, such as being a speaker for the D.A.R.E. program, his time as sports editor of the school newspaper, and, of course, his athletic prowess.

When Barnes was accepted to Davidson during his senior year of high school, he already knew the kind of environment he was getting himself into right away.

“I spoke with my assistant coach and he told me from the beginning that (Davidson) would challenge me,” he said. “He told me, ‘you’ll get challenged both academically and athletically’, and ultimately, that’s what I was looking for. When I was looking for a school, I wanted to go somewhere that I would be challenged every day, and I knew I’d get that at Davidson.”

Then, prior to Barnes’ first year as a Wildcat, former head coach Mike Toop, the man who had recruited Barnes, left the program and was replaced by current head coach Tripp Merritt. To Barnes, this came as an unexpected shock and a new outlook on the upcoming four years at Davidson. He was unsure of how this would affect both the team and his time on the field, because now he was in a situation where every player was working with a blank slate, and each was uncertain about what the future would hold.

Despite the uncertainty going into the season, Barnes had a freshman campaign unlike any he could have dreamed of. While splitting time in the backfield, he amassed 463 yards on 98 carries, while scoring a pair of touchdowns. In his first career start against Valparaiso, he posted his first 100-yard game, recording 122 yards on 23 carries with a touchdown. Things looked as if they were starting to look up for him, until the injury bug hit once again.

In his sophomore season, Barnes was injured but decided to put off surgery until after the year, and went on to rush for 209 yards in eight games, averaging a career-best five yards per carry. In January of 2007, Barnes had reconstructive surgery to repair bone spurs and torn ligaments in his ankle, and turned his focus to coming back even stronger as a junior. Then, mid-way through the season, he broke two bones in his hand, an injury that caused him to miss the rest of the year.

Following his injury, Barnes had to make a decision that would affect rest of his career. He had the opportunity to study abroad for a semester in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a chance that most people would take in a heartbeat. But having been injured for half the previous season, and facing the prospect of missing spring practice while abroad, he was eager to get back on the field. But in the end, he knew that he was looking at a once-in-a-lifetime experience, one that he could turn into a positive in all aspects of his life.

“It was a decision I couldn’t pass up,” he said. “Before coming to Davidson, I had never been outside the country, and I knew that this was a great chance to get a life experience that many don’t have the chance to get. I felt I was at a decent point in my career, I knew the system, I knew the playbook, and in the end, I knew it was on me to prepare myself to help the team win.”

In what seemed to be an uncommon positive twist of fate, Barnes was able to find a gym in which he had a chance to work out with Olympic weightlifters, and put in the work he knew was necessary to get himself back to the point he was before the injuries. And work he did, sometimes up to six times a week, and even getting in some football-related activities with a group of fellow Americans from the University of Minnesota. With the help of his teammates back in Davidson, he was able to stay in the loop with the team, as well. He stayed on the team e-mail list, and they called him many times while he was abroad to keep him updated on everything, making him feel a part of the team even while on a different continent, something that Barnes knows is rare in college football.

“We’re a family,” he said. “It’s one of the reasons I chose to come to Davidson, because when you come here you feel like family. Our coaches don’t make us keep in contact with players while they are studying abroad, but it’s something we do because we are all so close. I think that’s something that is unique to Davidson.”
Coming back to Davidson, Barnes found himself not only changed as a football player, having gained all the weight back from before his injuries and being in the best shape of his career, but he also found himself changed as a person. His eyes were opened to the lives that some people live that are less fortunate than he has been, and gives him a new appreciation all that is in front of him. Going into his senior year, a time that is critical for any student, he vowed to take advantage of all the opportunities that would present themselves.

Now, as he begins his final year at Davidson, with a team he calls “the most talented I’ve ever been on,” Barnes has his eyes fixed squarely on the future, which includes preparing himself to apply to law school, with what he hopes to be an eventual career in the courtroom, using all he has learned in the classroom, on the football field, and in his life.

Because for Chad Barnes, there are no roadblocks. When the path he is traveling seems to be cut off, he sees it not as the end of the line, but as a chance to blaze a new trail, one that he will do all he can to make better than the one he just left.