USF running back Nay'Quan Wright said he knows his life has a purpose. That realization began 12 years ago when he was nearly killed by a stray bullet.
Nearly.
Wright was 11 years old, practicing with the Miami Gardens Cowboys youth football team at Bunche Park, when a dozen drive-by gunshots rang out. "Get down! Get down!'' coaches yelled to the players. Wright hit the ground, but a bullet ricocheted off the sidewalk and through his right shoulder.
While Wright was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center, someone called Wright's mother in the confusing haste and said her son was dead.
It wasn't true and hospital officials quickly cleared that up. But Wright had nerve damage and a year of rehabilitation ahead. As he matured into a blue-chip prospect at Carol City High School and now an invaluable performer for the Bulls, flashing back occasionally to that close call, Wright said he learned his purpose involved much more than football.
"An inch here, an inch there, who knows?'' Wright said. "I'm fortunate it didn't hit my lungs or my heart. I'm definitely thankful and grateful that the Lord kept me here.
"I'm still young, got a whole lot of life ahead of me. Really, I'm still figuring out my purpose. But I know that, so far, I've been able to do some good. I want to keep doing some good.''
Wright, a 5-foot-9, 205-pound fireplug who has posted back-to-back 100-yard rushing performances as the Bulls (4-4, 2-2 AAC) prepare for Saturday afternoon's road game against the Memphis Tigers (6-2, 3-1 AAC), keeps setting good examples.
Before his transfer to USF, he earned his bachelor's degree in sport management at the University of Florida, becoming just the second person in his family (along with older brother Nathan) to finish college. Now, Wright is seeking a master's degree, which Nathan already has achieved.
Wright's focus, experience and work ethic already has influenced the USF locker room, where he's viewed as a team leader and voice of reason.
"Nay'Quan is a great weapon for our team,'' quarterback Byrum Brown said. "When his number is called, he's going to get the yardage. He's a powerful guy.''
"Beyond his own production, Nay'Quan is all about the team,'' associate head coach and run game coordinator Matt Merritt said. "He will motivate. He will encourage. He will light a fire under somebody's butt if that's what it takes. He's just extremely valuable.''
For Wright, his leadership qualities might be more valuable than his team-leading 590 rushing yards, 5.1-yard average and five touchdowns.
"I'm human, I make mistakes and sometimes I fall,'' Wright said. "But what I've come to believe is you define a man by his character, not his statistics. I'm an older guy in the locker room. The young guys might be watching.
"They might see me as quiet. But really, I'm quick to listen and slow to speak. I see what's going on. I want to be the same guy every day with the same work habits, a guy who is there for this team every day, a guy moving at a certain pace.''
The Approach: Slow And Steady
Occasionally, Wright will post a turtle emoji on his social-media timeline. Or he will refer to the "Life of the Turtle.''
It's a puzzle to those who don't know him well and he delights in that mystery.
Most college football players have pop-culture sensibilities, drawing inspiration from entertainers, rappers or maybe other athletes.
Wright said he relates to The Tortoise and the Hare, an ancient fable from the Greek storyteller, Aesop. It's a common-sense classic, known by every young student. But through maturation, it's usually dismissed as a cute child's tale.
Once upon a time, there was a supremely talented speedy rabbit, who bragged about his racing prowess. The slow, steady and honorable tortoise challenged the rabbit to a race. Of course, the rabbit took a huge lead. Full of confidence and bravado, the rabbit stopped to take a nap. It was awakened by cheers for the tortoise, who had maintained the same methodical pace throughout crossing the finish line.
"That's my story, too,'' Wright said. "I'm a very patient guy. I'm not in a rush. When I was considering a new school (after leaving the Gators as a graduate transfer), it was all about being slow and steady, enjoying the process.
"People are always in a hurry, wanting you to make a decision. Even with coaches (who recruited him), some put on the pressure and said they needed to know. Look, if you need to go a different route, I respect that. But you're not going to rush me. Slow and steady wins the race. Trusting in the Lord wins the race. That's who I am. By the grace of God, that's who I'll always be.''
Wright's approach earned him great respect in Gainesville.
"Nay'Quan is one of the players I respect the most on our roster,'' Florida coach Billy Napier said last season. "I think he is real. I think he lives life with integrity. He is who he says he is.''
Sound familiar?
Be Who You Say You Are.
It's perhaps the biggest program mantra for USF coach Alex Golesh. It's no wonder that Wright and the Bulls connected so naturally.
"Nay'Quan keeps getting better and better at all the things we talked about (establishing) in this program,'' offensive coordinator Joel Gordon said. "I don't know if there's anybody who had more good juice and good leadership than what he has been providing.
"He's always trying to motivate people on the practice field. It doesn't matter who you are. He has been that kind of teammate. He has made it personal about doing the right things. And I certainly love Nay'Quan the player because when he's on the field, he really brings it.''
Lowering The Boom
Nowhere was Wright's ability to "bring it'' more evident than Sept. 16 at Raymond James Stadium, when the Bulls faced the Alabama Crimson Tide.
It was a 6-yard run in the first quarter — a play that had no bearing on the game's outcome. But when Wright went up the middle on second-and-3, then lowered his shoulder and trucked Alabama defensive back Caleb Downs, the stadium crowd and millions of ABC-TV viewers gasped in awe.
"WOOOOO!'' said ABC color analyst Robert Griffin III, the former Heisman Trophy winner. And during the replay, hearing the pads popping, Griffin proclaimed: "Listen to this one!''
Even though USF lost the game 17-3, Wright's run was a prominent postgame subject and a popular highlight on social media.
"My mindset is I'm going downhill and if you're in my way, I'm going through you,'' Wright said. "I think that Alabama play just happened and it blew up. I actually think I had a similar play against FAU (Florida Atlantic) and nobody noticed.
"I think I wanted to set a tone, definitely. Give my teammates and the crowd a little juice. I want the defenders to know I'm coming at them and I'm not backing down. If that inspires my teammates, so be it. We're not going to flinch. That's absolutely my mentality and my style of football.''
Those are the qualities that made Wright attractive to the Bulls.
"He does all the things you want him to do as a running back,'' Gordon said. "He can run, he can block, he can catch the ball. He's quick enough to make you miss. He does things every single day to build our confidence in him. He doesn't waste a lot of time at the line of scrimmage. He's decisive.
"You saw what he did against Alabama, the way he played behind his pads. With that low center of gravity and that power, he's a force. When he gets the one-on-one matchup, he's going to lay it on the line. It means something to him. He wants to win a championship. He's a motivated guy.''
Wright calls it "living under the umbrella of integrity.'' Maximum effort — all the time. Accountability. Respecting others. A winning routine. And, of course, a consistent pace.
He said the example was set by his family — a group he describes as "hustlers and grinders.''
The family matriarch is Katie Wright, 97, his great-grandmother on his father's side.
"She started the Wright tradition,'' Wright said. "She's someone to admire. She got me into church. She stands for the proper things. She has lived her life the right way. She inspires me to give it my best, day by day, and live my best life.''
Twelve years ago, when that wayward bullet struck young Nay'Quan Wright, it could've been a tragedy. It wasn't really a wake-up call, but it continues to be a reminder that life is fragile and it's up to everyone to maximize their time.
"What I've learned is that when you take it day by day, when you give it your best and appreciate the blessings you have, then things are going to be fine,'' Wright said. "That's why I go at the pace I do. I'm going to get to where I need to go. I'm going to get there. I'm going to be just fine.''
–#GoBulls–
