Rashaun Sligh, Am I Good Enough? (Philadelphia Eagles)

It’s not every day that I get a message telling me I need to write a particular story, but in this case, it was worth it. The message was from a friend who had seen the news story on Rashaun Sligh and wanted me to interview him.

I read the news article about a young Philly man who was standing outside of the Philadelphia Eagles practice facility with a sign that said that he wanted to be an Eagle.

This isn’t the first time I’ve seen such a story, but it is the first time I’ve seen this happen in Philadelphia.

I immediately got in contact with Sligh, I was also preparing to go live with an internet radio show that I work with, so it was a no-brainer to get this man on the air with our hosts. We had Sligh on for a bit and our hosts talked to him and we got to pick his brain and hear his story, I was transfixed by his determination, I had to help him in any way I could. I tweeted several writers I knew about the Sligh story and our radio interview, hoping to get him more media coverage, This was Friday, by Saturday afternoon, several other news agencies, both major Philadelphia-area radio stations and a handful of writers were covering Sligh’s story.

Sunday morning I had a phone interview with Sligh, I’d read the news articles and coverage from other sports writers, but I wanted to dig deeper, ask questions no one else has. I wanted to get to know Sligh on a personal level.

When I asked Sligh what wakes him up every morning, he told me he doesn’t just have dreams of being an NFL player, he wants to ability to help people, not just any particular group, he wants to help everyone and anyone, he calls it his life journey, not just a goal, but it’s his life. Sligh founded a company called Invigorate US to help athletes such as himself who don’t have the funds for expensive world class sports trainers and facilities, he wants to help others live their dream as well, not just himself.

Sligh tells me he wants to break down barriers, he wants to show other athletes that not everyone has a successful college football career, not everyone gets drafted, but sometimes, you just need that one shot, one chance to prove to everyone, that you can do it.

I know some of the articles written about Sligh say he is a former Temple player, and he is,  But due to transfer rules, he never got to play for the team because he lost eligibility his junior and senior years, He left Temple his senior year to focus all his time training for football, he told me that eventually he plans on going back, it’s something he left unfinished and it bugs him, He has to finish.

Sligh visited the draft in Philadelphia and as you might think, he thought, it should be me. He was excited that a fan did recognize him at the draft and he was very happy about that, But he told me of somewhere else he went before the draft that had more of an impact on him that the draft did.

Lebron James and Jay-Z were only two of the celebrities at the Sports Men Of the Year ceremony, but they left a lasting impact on Sligh, Lebron in particular. When I asked if he was a Cavs fan, he said yes, then he said he was a Lebron fan. Cavs in 7 he told me in reference to the current NBA finals championship taking place now. We talked basketball for a bit and I could tell he believed in his team wholeheartedly.

We talked a bit about his favorite athletes and he tells me that like every other kid growing up around him in Philly, he wanted to be 5, yes, he wanted to be the one and only Donovan McNabb. He tells me that Philly fans were too hard on 5 and he doesn’t think he gets the respect he deserves.

Philadelphia can be a rough town and Sligh knew this before he started standing outside of the NovaCare facility, he said he took into account that some fans weren’t going to be nice to him and some of them might take shots at him. He said he was prepared for it, but overall the city has embraced Sligh and his journey and he tells me to amount of support is overwhelming.

Mike Groh, the Eagles WR coach, walked over to Sligh and listened to his story, he didn’t promise anything, but he listened, that in itself was a win. Sligh said he has an immense amount of respect for Groh and he doesn’t fault any of the other coaches for not stopping, many of the players, coaches, and staff, waved at him and gave him thumbs up as they drove by on their way home from practice.

Zach Ertz and Rodney Mcleod added Sligh and Instagram and Mcleod used the hashtag #howbaddoyouwant it and it continues to fuel Sligh. The fact that players and some coaches have heard his story and are recognizing him gives Sligh the fuel he needs to keep going, Monday morning Sligh will be out there again, through minicamp and at the start of training camp, Sligh will keep trying.

He told me he doesn’t want to just be practice player either, he wants to contribute, he wants to be that guy that catches the game-winning touchdown,

The former QB turned WR wants to play ball no matter what it takes, he even started taking reps at safety and cornerback to utilize his long body in an effort to maybe get on as a defensive back.

When I asked Sligh who his biggest inspiration was, I expected him to give me a celebrity or athlete, I honestly thought he’d say Lebron, but he didn’t. He told me his biggest inspiration was a kid named Miles Scarfo, Miles is sort of an adopted younger brother to Sligh. He met the Scarfo family in Connecticut at a camp drive, the family and Sligh started talking and eventually became very close friends. Miles looks up to Sligh and he believes in him even when he doesn’t believe in himself sometimes. He said Miles is the one to push him, Miles won/t let him quit, Sligh said he’s a big brother to Miles and that’s something that means a lot to him.

I asked Sligh one more question before I let him go, I asked, What is something no one has asked you yet? He laughed and said, am I good enough? He said he expected that here in Philadelphia, it would have been the first thing he’d be asked, but no, no one has asked him if he was good enough.

I think the fact that he’s standing outside the Eagles practice facility with a giant cardboard sign is a testament in itself, if he didn’t think he was good enough, he wouldn’t  be standing there, Not only is he standing there, day after day, he stands there for hours, seven hours a day or more, he is there when the players and coaches show up and he is there when they all go home.

If you happen to drive by NovaCare this week and see Rashaun, go shake his hand, go say hi, go tell him you respect his determination. If you don’t see him, and I hope you don’t, it means he’s inside the practice facility.

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