Spring Break
The Daily OrangeInjury can't derail SU recruit
By Pat DiSalvo
Posted: 3/8/05, 11:19 PM EST Section: Sports
Shevelle McPherson was not even done unpacking her son Lamar's bags from her car when it happened. Lamar hopped on a bike when some children from the block asked if he wanted to ride. He fell off and busted his chin open. Lamar had just moved to Michigan to start seventh grade, and quickly became acclimated to the local medical center. When the time came for stitches, there was no crying or screaming coming from the room, at least from Lamar. It was his mother who had to leave the room. She couldn't stand to see her son's chin sewn up.
"He wasn't afraid of the needles or sewing or anything like that," Shevelle said. "He didn't shed a tear. He's tough, he always has been."
Lamar McPherson, a running back and defensive back from Philadelphia, is one of 21 football recruits who will join the Orange next fall. His toughness has aided him in his journey to Syracuse. His mother, now an assistant district attorney in Philadelphia, had McPherson when she was 16 years old. His father passed away when he was young, so his mother raised him by herself. He grew up in a tough neighborhood outside Newark, N.J., with the exception of the one year in Michigan when his mother attended law school.
McPherson grew up playing basketball, yet when he moved back to New Jersey for eighth grade, he wanted to play football. He went over to his grandmother's house, which was next door to his, and had her sign a sheet for him to play football. His mother would not let him play, but his grandmother signed and paid for his entry.
"(It was already done) so I just said, 'oh well'," Shevelle said. "He just started playing football and loved the game."
Lamar was awarded MVP of his South Orange team in just his first year of playing.
McPherson and Shevelle moved to Philadelphia before Lamar enrolled in ninth grade, and he was recruited by Bishop McDevitt High School in Wyncote, Pa., that summer. He decided to attend and started at running back in his sophomore year. Immediately, Penn State, Michigan State and Maryland recruited him.
"He wasn't afraid of the needles or sewing or anything like that," Shevelle said. "He didn't shed a tear. He's tough, he always has been."
Lamar McPherson, a running back and defensive back from Philadelphia, is one of 21 football recruits who will join the Orange next fall. His toughness has aided him in his journey to Syracuse. His mother, now an assistant district attorney in Philadelphia, had McPherson when she was 16 years old. His father passed away when he was young, so his mother raised him by herself. He grew up in a tough neighborhood outside Newark, N.J., with the exception of the one year in Michigan when his mother attended law school.
McPherson grew up playing basketball, yet when he moved back to New Jersey for eighth grade, he wanted to play football. He went over to his grandmother's house, which was next door to his, and had her sign a sheet for him to play football. His mother would not let him play, but his grandmother signed and paid for his entry.
"(It was already done) so I just said, 'oh well'," Shevelle said. "He just started playing football and loved the game."
Lamar was awarded MVP of his South Orange team in just his first year of playing.
McPherson and Shevelle moved to Philadelphia before Lamar enrolled in ninth grade, and he was recruited by Bishop McDevitt High School in Wyncote, Pa., that summer. He decided to attend and started at running back in his sophomore year. Immediately, Penn State, Michigan State and Maryland recruited him.
