My path to the University of Kentucky was different to say the least. Growing up, I pretty much had the idea that I had no choice but to go to a school close to home due to major health challenges I had been experiencing all my life. So, if you asked a then, rising junior, what college he was thinking about attending, you probably would've guessed one of two schools: Oakland or Michigan State... that is, until I met head coach John Calipari from the University of Kentucky. 
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I met Coach Calipari in Royal Oak, Michigan at Beaumont Hospital. I had been admitted there due to an asthma attack and reoccuring medical issues, Coach Calipari was there for a fundraising event put on by Coach Greg Kampe from Oakland University. The nurses at the hospital knew about my love for basketball. I've been to Beaumont so many times that I have developed life long relationships with some of the doctors and nurses. They actually surprised me when they told me about the event. I absolutely had no idea what coaches were going to be there so I was on my toes with anticipation. 
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When I got to the room I was a little intimidated until I saw a familiar face in Tom Izzo, head basketball coach at Michigan State University. I knew Coach Izzo because he used to come to my high school games at U of D Jesuit often to recruit his former point guard, Cassius Winston. After making my rounds and saying hello and taking a few pictures with some of the coaches, a reporter encouraged me to go back and speak with Coach Cal about my aspirations to work for a Division 1 basketball program. I wanted to introduce myself but my anxious mind almost convinced me to not even pursue that desire. Even so, I approached him. 

In the conversation with coach Cal I told him about these aspirations and he insited that  "we're gonna get this done” and proceeded to ask what school I was attending and my grades.  From that moment, we exchanged phone numbers and kept in touch. 
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During my junior year my family and I went on a visit to the University of Kentucky. We had a private tour of the campus and attended a practice at the teams practice facility to get a feel of the school. The experience was surreal. I was in awe of the facility and was honored to have the opportunity to go behind the scenes and watch a private practice. The following day we went to the LSU vs Kentucky game. The anticipation in the gym was suffocating. This was 2016, the year the LSU Tigers had Ben Simmons who was at that point projected to be the number one pick in the draft. That day, I knew I wanted to attend college at UK. The way a packed Rupp Arena shook as the fans cheered and the team took the floor. Seeing the cheerleaders run the W-I-L-D-C-A-T flag leading the team out of the tunnel to the fight song. It was something I could see myself being a part of from that day forward. The tradition was unmatched and I could not wait to be apart of it. 
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I officially applied to UK my senior year of high school. Little did I know I would get waitlisted. I was numb. Something I began looking forward to had just been wiped away in an email, at least for the time being. I had no idea what to do but at this point I felt like this was the place God wanted me to be. So, I reached out to coach Calipari to let him know that I would like to attend the school. He then kindly wrote me a letter of recommendation that was sent to the admissions office. A few weeks passed and I received an acceptance email letting me know I had been accepted. I was ecstatic. Not only had I been accepted but the acceptance letter came during one of the worst hospitalizations of my life. I had just come off ECMO and this astounding moment lifted all the pressure from my shoulders. 
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As a few years have passed, I am now a senior in my final year of managing for the basketball team. I anticipate graduating in May 2021 with a degree in Sports Communication.