Adam Taliaferro

Adam Taliaferro (b. January 1, 1982 in Moon Township, Pennsylvania) is a former American football player whose recovery from a paralyzing spinal cord injury sustained while playing cornerback for the Penn State Nittany Lions gained national media attention.

Pound Ball and high school career

Growing up in Voorhees Township, New Jersey, he was a standout running back and cornerback for the Eastern Vikings. In two years of varsity football at Eastern High School, he averaged 9.4 yards per carry, racking up 62 touchdowns, and seven Interceptions. Taliaferro was also a four year varsity starter in basketball, and set his school's record in the high jump at 6' 6".

Penn State career

In 2000, Taliaferro joined the Penn State Football team as one of the top-rated Fact|date=September 2008 freshman of their 2000 recruiting class. Taliaferro earned playing time as a true freshman for Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions, despite Paterno's well-documented policy of redshirting freshman players.

On September 23, 2000, while playing in only the fifth game of his college career, Taliaferro sustained a career-ending spinal cord injury while tackling tailback Jerry Westbrooks during Penn State's game versus Ohio State. Taliaferro's helmet had hit Westbrooks' knee during the tackle, bursting the fifth cervical vertebra in his neck and bruising his spinal cord. Unable to control his fall, the crown of his helmet hit the turf and his body rolled awkwardly over his neck. Taliaferro was paralyzed on the hit, which left him with no movement from the neck down.

Recovery

Taliaferro had surgery at the Ohio State Medical Center to fuse his C-5 vertebrate. After successful surgery, Taliaferro was airlifted back to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to begin his recovery. Although surgery was successful, Taliaferro was only given a 3% chance of ever walking again. Fact|date=September 2008

He began his well-publicized rehab at Magee Rehabilitation in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After eight months of rehab, Taliaferro had learned to walk again.

Return to Penn State

Taliaferro returned to Penn State less than a year after his injury. He led the Penn State Nittany Lions football team onto Beaver Stadium's field for the first game of the 2001 season against the Miami Hurricanes in front of a record crowd of 105,000 fans. Taliaferro skipped, then jogged onto the field in front of an emotional Penn State crowd.

He remained part of the football team as a student-assistant coach under Joe Paterno. Although he only played in five games, Taliaferro became and remains one of the more popular and recognizable football players to come through the Penn State Football program. Fact|date=September 2008 Taliaferro earned a Bachelor of Science in Labor and Industrial Relations from Penn State in 2005.

"Miracle in the Making" & The Adam Taliaferro Foundation

In 2001, a book was written by Sam Carchidi to chronicle Taliaferro's life and recovery, entitled "Miracle in the Making".

Taliaferro created his own foundation to help support others with spinal cord injuries. The foundation was created in 2001, and continues to grow each year. The foundation has been said to raise over $80,000 per year for spinal cord injuries.

Personal

Taliaferro is now enrolled at Rutgers School of Law - Camden in Camden, New Jersey. He is scheduled to earn his J.D. in May 2008. Taliaferro also is a motivational speaker, doing corporate appearances and speaking at schools.

External links

* [http://www.taliaferrofoundation.org Adam Taliaferro Foundation website]
* [http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2006/10/10-21-06cm/10-21-06dsports-column-01.asp "I truly feel blessed"] , "The Daily Collegian", October 21, 2006
* [http://pennstate.scout.com/2/426359.html "Catching Up With Adam Taliaferro"] , Audio interview, August 19, 2005
* [http://cbs.sportsline.com/print/collegefootball/story/8469538 "After neck injury, Taliaferro still dreams about the NFL"] , "Associated Press", May 13, 2005
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D06EED71F30F933A15751C0A9679C8B63&sec=health&spon=&pagewanted=all "Taking Purposeful Strides"] , "The New York Times", February 20, 2001