Deion Sanders has created many viral moments over his career. One in particular resonates for a different reason.
On Sept. 28 last year, Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes had just blown out previously undefeated UCF 48-21 in Orlando. Andrew Cherico, a 21-year-old student reporter, showed up at Sanders’ postgame news conference, hoping he could ask a question for his job covering the Knights for a small website, Sons of UCF, that he was interning for.
When Cherico got called on in, his hands were shaking. His heart was racing. He’d been out at UCF since 8 a.m., and it was now close to 8 p.m. That’s a full day for anyone, much less someone who uses a wheelchair, as Cherico has since he was 9 years old.
“It was like 1,000 degrees that day in Florida, and by the time I asked my question, I was exhausted,” Cherico said. He would end up working a 17-hour day before getting back home at 1 a.m. and was so worn down, he vomited on his way out of the stadium that night (and he didn’t want work to know).
Before the conference began, Cherico tried to position himself in the best spot he could to get called on. He had started going over his question in his head before the game ended. He decided he would try to ask Sanders how Colorado was able to shut down R.J. Harvey and the nation’s leading rushing attack.
Sanders began to answer Cherico’s question about the Buffs’ run defense, but then stopped and focused on the reporter.
“I’m proud of you and your resilience and what you go through on a daily basis,” Sanders told Cherico. “I’m so darn proud of you, you have no idea. Because I was in a (wheel) chair at one point with these toes being amputated. And I know what you deal with on a daily basis. I had to change my whole bathroom and put rails in so I could even get on the darn toilet, man. So I understand, and I’m proud of you man, truly.”
Cherico couldn’t believe what he had heard.
“I felt every butterfly in my stomach crawl up to me,” he said. “And that’s when all the people started turning their heads around in the room to me — OK, yeah, he’s really talking about me right now. I’m not going crazy.”
Cherico was born with spinal muscular atrophy. Technically, he has what is known as SMA Type 3, a neuromuscular disability that affects all the muscles in his body. He was able to walk until he was 9, but it’s a progressive disease that first led him to use a manual wheelchair, then a wheelchair with assistants, and then the power wheelchair he relies on now.
Cherico said seeing Sanders reminds him that he belongs here in the media space, pursuing his dreams; that he can do this job, even though he was probably one of the youngest people in the room that day and the only person with a physical disability.
“Even when I’m getting beat down by the world and when I feel like I may not be able to pursue this career, because I can’t be as quick as everybody else pulling out my tripod, that I can’t get my microphone out as fast, or that I have to find adequate space so I can set up my questions,” he said. “But then, I have a situation like that with Deion Sanders, and it reminds me that I can do this. It reminds me that this field, that no matter what, with my mindset, I can make something happen.”
Read more about this story here. An account may be required.
