Nov. 13, 2008

In an effort to highlight good sportsmanship around the conference, every two weeks, theACC.com will highlight a specific example of sportsmanship from a different school. This week, the spotlight is on the University of Virginia footbal team and how they rally around their teammates.

Cedric is an exceptional student-athlete, having graduated a semester early,and continued into grad school. He is an active community servant in our ACE Program which takes student-athletes into area elementary schools to meet with and teach their students.
Virginia's SAAC Web Site Sportsmanship comes in many flavors. In some sports it's a hallmark. For example, the UVa women's rowing team traveled to Chicago recently for a regatta. But the distance prohibited them from taking their own boats. So the host team lent them a boat to race in. Of course, if you're a rower anywhere you've probably experienced this gracious behavior. It seems standard in the sport. We like to think that the opportunity to compete is bigger and better than winning -- even though we know that winning is the goal of competing. Our football team has witnessed a different, internal example of superior sportsmanship in the person of Cedric Peerman. Cedric returned this year for his final season with high hopes and expectations. But he started the season at less than full-strength and played intermittently through our first four games. His contributions were necessarily inhibited -- ON the field. There are , of course, lots of ways players can respond to losing their contributing role on their teams. And we've all seen it when a student-athlete doesn't rise to the occasion. But Cedric did. Indeed, he made himself available to his teammates as a supporter, a teacher, a cheerleader, and a stabilizing presence through some rough times as the year got under way. Finally he was ready to hit the field again when Maryland came to town. General expectations weren't high. But Cedric's were. And Coach Groh knew it. So in the pre-game, Coach acknowledged Cedric's off-the-field efforts in front of the entire team and exhorted it to lift its vision and unify themselves into the kind of team that Cedric had been demonstrating throughout the season. They got it. And together with a healthy Cedric, they hit the field with confidence and a sense of team that few had expected -- few beyond Cedric. It was a very successful game. But the story doesn't end there, even though Cedric probably wishes otherwise. Playing against Miami, Cedric had his first fumble of the season at an inopportune time. Some times, some places some folks might have blamed the game's outcome on the fumble. But the team knew otherwise. They knew it because of what Cedric had taught them thus far about how it's always about the team and never about the individual. So after the game -- which we did not win -- when they gathered in the locker room, the team turned to Cedric. But not with recriminations. Exactly the opposite. They gathered around his locker and encouraged and applauded and supported Cedric. Because they understood how he had carried the team at other times and understood Eugene Monroe consoles Cedric Peerman after the Miami game he needed to know how they feel about him. Cedric is an exceptional student-athlete, having graduated a semester early,and continued into grad school. He is an active community servant in our ACE Program which takes student-athletes into area elementary schools to meet with and teach their students. Cedric is also a pastor and is known as one of the great listeners around. Above all Cedric is a winner -- on the field, off the field and in how he inspires others to do their best. Cedric is always ready to compete and finds ways to do so at his best, even when it's not physical. What Cedric knows is that bringing your best sometimes means sharing your best with others. UVA has been lucky to have had Cedric share his "boat" with us. Those who know Cedric know that he shares his "boat" where ever he goes -- even with on-the-field competitors. Cedric knows that making others better makes his world better. We know it makes him better. Sportsmanship comes in many flavors. Inside and outside the house. Cedric Peerman is a terrific sportsman. And we're grateful that he has been the giver he is. We hope we're learning from his example.