Cody Williams: captain off the field

Danny KarelOwen KneelandStaff WritersImagine life without the ability to use your legs, lacking the strength in your hands to hold a pencil. People take so much in their lives for granted, and don’t realize that in the blink of an eye an entire life can change.If one pays attention to their surroundings at Samo, from time to time one will see senior Cody Williams. Last year, Cody suffered a horrific spinal cord injury during a Samo football game that left him paralyzed from the waist down. As Cody was trying to make a tackle, his head collided with the opposing player, leaving him on the ground while his coaches and teammates rushed out onto the field. All of the game’s attendees sat in silence, awestruck by what they had just witnessed. Medics aided Cody as he was taken away on a stretcher and rushed to the nearest hospital.Fast-forward one year: Cody is again attending Samo after being home-schooled for the remainder of last year. With no feeling in his lower body, he is confined to a wheelchair with multiple personal aides to push him from class to class.“My life is a lot different now that I can’t play football,” Williams said. “Besides not being able to walk right now, not playing football again has been the hardest to deal with since my injury. I miss going to practice every day, getting ready for the games, the plays, and being on the field every Friday night. Football was my biggest passion and I miss it so much.”The news of Cody’s tragic incident wasn’t just confined to SMMUSD communities.  In December 2009 a producer for HBO, Andy Lauer, approached Cody about becoming involved in a documentary he was filming about football players who have sustained spinal cord injuries. The show, “Gridiron Heroes,” was created in 2003 with the goal of providing support for families and individuals who have suffered injuries associated with playing high school football.“He’s still filming me. He was at Senior Night and filmed the team,” Williams said of Lauer. “It should be on soon.”The Gridiron Heroes Foundation not only documents the recovery process and the way the injuries have drastically changed the lives of victims, but also allows for a wider audience to send in donations, helping the affected families with the often expensive hospital bill and other related recovery expenses.While the show is undeniably a huge means of support for the Williams family, Cody has felt the most love directly from his home at Samo. At this year’s sole pep rally, a resounding “Cody” chant could be heard as he made his way onto the stage, where he appealed to students, encouraging them to attend an upcoming football game against Beverly.Even though Cody’s direction for the future has changed, nothing has stopped him from having big dreams and goals for his life. Cody had hoped to earn a football scholarship and play in college. But in order to stay close to home for therapy, Cody will have to attend Santa Monica College.“I am going to go to SMC for a couple of years and then transfer to a university,” Williams said. “I’m not sure what I want to do for a career, but I have a lot of choices to consider.”Cody is considering pursuing  a profession that would allow him to help other individuals who have gone through the same experience he has.“I have had amazing people helping me this last year and I see how rewarding it is for them. They really make a difference,” he said.Cody’s teammate, senior T.J. Sadler, has seemingly infinite respect and admiration for Cody after all he has gone through, and tries his best to make sure that Cody knows that his team has nothing but love for him.“Our season was filled with promises we didn’t fulfill,” Sadler said. “I didn’t know how to deal with Cody’s situation at first because he is like a brother to me. When we didn’t make the playoffs it really affected the team because we felt like we let Cody down. Cody was a play maker. He had the potential to play college football at a high level and to become very successful.”Senior Brandon Taylor, Cody’s teammate and close friend was also personally affected by his injury.“When Cody’s injury happened I was especially worried because he was like my partner in crime,” Taylor said. “When Cody was in the hospital our practices were sluggish because we were still affected by what happened. But we realized that we needed to play harder for Cody because that’s what he would want us to do. Since Cody is my best friend, it definitely had a huge effect on me.”When entering the H-House office it is impossible to miss the encouraging signs and posters adorning the doors, with messages like “H-House loves you Cody” and “Get well soon #14!” The football team has held two separate car wash fundraisers to ease the new financial burdens placed on the Williams family.“Cody’s injury was a very difficult situation to come to terms with. Cody was a ‘next level’ football player with great potential. He is a dedicated, hard working, loyal student athlete, friend, and son,” Samo’s football coach Travis Clark said. “To see how he has attacked this situation head-on has motivated all involved. The injury to Cody changed me as a man, father and coach forever.”But Cody receives the most support from the people that surround him at home. He is endlessly appreciative of all the love and attention he receives from his immediate family.When Cody was in intensive care at the UCLA hospital only weeks after his injury, he received a visit form a very unexpected guest — Pete Carroll, former head football coach at USC and current head coach for the Seattle Seahawks.“It was late in the evening and I was pretty medicated, so I don’t remember a lot of it, just bits and pieces,” Williams said. “He didtell me to fight through this injury, not to give up and to work hard.”Cody took Carroll’s words to heart, and has remained positive and fought hard to counteract the paralysis inflicted by the injury.Physical therapy is a key part of the recovery process, which he attends three to four times a week.When undergoing therapy at UCLA he works on stretches, uses a Nu Step machine and trains on a pedaling machine. When at the Northridge Rehab Center, he uses the pool to work his legs and to help strengthen his arms and upper body. He also works with an occupational therapist to make his hands, arms and fingers stronger. He can now hold a pen without the assistance of a brace, and can work his computer, Blackberry and even his Xbox controller.“If I keep working as hard as I am, my therapists’ hope for me is to be walking short distances on a walker within the next six months or so. Within a year we are hoping I will be walking long distances on a walker,” Williams said. “Eventually we hope to have me walking with a cane. I know I’m going to walk and I’ve never thought any different.”Cody’s story has inspired countless people. His bravery in the face of such a devastating and life-changing injury is a testament to the strength of the human spirit, and will be referenced and exemplified for years to come.“Jersey #14 will never be worn again [as long as I am the head coach],” Clark said. “He will forever be an icon of sorts forthis program. He will be remembered like Norm Lacy, Mel Kaufman and several other great men that have walked the halls of Santa Monica High School.”dkarel@thesamohi.comokneeland@thesamohi.com