Howard Roark
Retired Moderator
Veazey fighting back after devastating accident
By David Ching - david.ching@onlineathens.com
Published Saturday, December 26, 2009
Georgia's baseball coach first saw Veazey work out in 2008 as a member of Team Georgia, an all-star team made up of the state's top high school juniors. Despite Veazey's slight 5-foot-9, 175-pound build, Perno immediately noticed that the Tifton native possessed a powerful swing and an uncanny understanding of the game.
He offered Veazey a scholarship to play for the Bulldogs on the spot.
"You just saw real good instincts - a kid that understood it, knew how to slow the game down and just had a real good plan and a real good approach of how to play the game and play it the right way," Perno said. "Very good kid. As good as I've ever recruited."
Once Veazey arrived on campus for fall semester, the Tift County alum was everything Perno expected and more. He won over his coaches and teammates with a magnetic personality and skill level uncommon for a college freshman.
He started slow in fall practice but began to pick it up in the Bulldogs' intrasquad games - earning the starting job at second base by the end of the fall. In Georgia's final fall scrimmage, Veazey belted three hits, including a home run off the scoreboard in his final at-bat.
A bright future in baseball seemed certain.
And then the 19-year-old's life changed forever one late-October night, derailing his college career before it truly started.
About 10:30 p.m. on Oct. 28, shortly after an evening study session at the Miller Learning Center, Veazey flopped his Yamaha Vizio motorscooter onto its side to avoid a car that turned in front of him at South Lumpkin and Baxter streets. He couldn't avoid another car, though, and crashed.
Aside from scrapes, bruises and punctured lung, Veazey immediately knew something was terribly wrong with his lower body. He had no sensation in his legs.
An ambulance took Veasey to St. Mary's Hospital, and Georgia associate athletic director Arthur Johnson called Perno to tell him to get to the hospital.
"When I walked in, it was as life-changing a situation as I've ever encountered in my life," Perno recalled. "I was the only one there at the time and he knew, exactly, there was something seriously wrong.
"Of course, I didn't. All I could go by is what he's telling me. and he just kept saying he couldn't feel his legs, his back was killing him. And I was like, 'Oh gosh.' And I just sat there. You never felt so helpless in your life."
The doctors who examined Veazey didn't need long to confirm his worst fears - he suffered a complete spinal fracture in his lower back and, barring a miracle, will be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life.
Just as his strong personality helped him to overcome his slight stature on the diamond, Veazey's will is just as strong to walk again someday.
"It's not likely that I'll walk again, but I have faith that God will heal me," Veazey said. "They said that there will be a cure sometime in my lifetime, but that's really all that they've told me."
No tragedy
Some young players would be heartbroken to learn they likely would never play baseball again, but Veazey hasn't given in to tragedy.
The willpower he showed in six weeks of grueling rehabilitation at Atlanta's Shepherd Center is nothing short of an inspiration to family, friends and the many supporters who have become members of "Team Veazey."
"It's definitely physically exhausting," Veazey said last Thursday, his final night as a full-time resident at the Shepherd Center. "I go to bed pretty early every night because I'm pretty tired. It's mentally exhausting, too. But the harder you're put to work, the faster you're gonna get better and get out of here."
That attitude is exactly what his family, friends and coaches would have expected. It certainly didn't surprise his grandfather, Tommy Cottle.
"He's always the one that, any trap I fixed for him out here on the farm, any bad horse that had to be ridden, he was always the one to say, 'Let me try first, Poppa,' " Cottle said. "He's always been the one to step up first, so it doesn't surprise me how he's handled this. He's a pretty tough kid and just strong mentally."
And the outpouring of support Veazey has received since the crash has, in turn, inspired him to keep fighting when depression started to set in or when he felt physically overwhelmed relearning simple tasks he once did with little thought or effort.
"I can't imagine having to go through this without the type of support that I've had," he said. "It really can make it a lot easier going though this type of situation when you have that type of support."
But his battle has most certainly not been easy.
Off to Shepherd
Veazey underwent surgery two days after the crash, getting two rods bolted onto his spinal cord, and was fitted for an back brace to help stabilize his spine.
"I'll tell you how amazing the kid was - he had that surgery and that was probably a 10-12-inch incision ... on Friday," recalled Georgia baseball trainer Mike Dillon, who has been by Veazey's side throughout the rehabilitation process. "On Tuesday, he had already transferred to a wheelchair and was rolling up and down the hall already. That's how determined he was to get well."
After a week-long stay at St. Mary's, he moved to the Shepherd Center - the renowned catastrophic care center in Atlanta that specializes in treatment and rehabilitation for people with spinal cord and brain injuries.
The staff there started a rehabilitation regimen focused on making Veazey independent again. Most days from about 8 a.m. until 4 p.m., he set about adapting to a new life in a wheelchair.
There was physical therapy focused on transferring in and out of his chair and developing the upper-body strength he will need to get around.
His occupational treatment focused on learning to dress himself, cook for himself - not one of Chance's favorite pastimes - and practice proper hygiene. His recreational therapy took him into the community - out to eat, to the mall or behind the wheel of a car he learned to drive with hand controls - to learn how to function independently.
"There's a lot of things that you have to adapt to now that I'm in a chair - or at the moment," Veazey said. "You really don't think of a lot of things that people like me have to go through until you're in this position. You just have to learn how to adapt and survive."
Veazey's treatment also included classes to educate him about his injury and his body, and visits to the gym to work out or try his hand at a new sport in his wheelchair.
"It takes maybe not as much concentration as baseball did, but definitely physical ability and work ethic," Veazey said of his treatment. "You can't get frustrated - which it's hard not to. It's definitely the hardest thing I've ever done."
But he did it. And he won over those around him in the process, though he struggled at first.
"He didn't want to talk to the other patients when we first got there," Dillon said. "I can remember that first day talking to three or four other patients that wheeled into his room - all in wheelchairs, with different levels of disability - just to speak and say hello. They look at me and said, 'Don't worry about it. He will, it just takes a week or two for them to open up. We've all been there.'
"And that's kind of exactly what happened. By the time we left, he's in and out of everybody's room himself talking to everybody, encouraging other people."
In the midst of his treatment at Shepherd, Veazey won the ultimate prize among the center's patients. The holder of the center's Superman towel - which for 10 years has been passed down among the patients who are working hardest in treatment - graduated and awarded it to Veazey.
Even in the darkest phase of his young life, Veazey was recognized for the example he set for those around him and he proudly displayed the towel above his hospital bed for the rest of his stay at the center.
"I've been up there most of the time with him and I've seen how he relates to the other patients up there," Cottle said. "He's still giving of himself and signing jerseys and bats and balls and giving them away to patients up there. He's just a very caring kid. It's amazing to see him relate to other people and try to help the people up there. Me, I would probably be feeling sorry for myself."
Veazey's hard work during his stay earned him a day pass to visit Tifton for Thanksgiving. He and his family flew down that morning, but had to return by the end of the day.
He wasn't allowed to stay overnight away from the center until after graduation last Thursday. He is nearing the end of a 10-day stint away from the center, which allowed him to return to Tifton and spend Christmas with approximately 70 extended family members at Cottle's home.
When his 10-day home visit ends Monday, he will return to Atlanta to participate in the Shepherd Center's Day Program. Veazey and his family will live in the Woodruff Family Residence Center next to the Shepherd Center and he will visit each day to continue outpatient therapy for a few weeks.
The most difficult part of his recovery is behind him, but Veazey still has months of physical and emotional work ahead.
"This process is not six months," Dillon said. "From talking to a lot of people in chairs, it's about two years as far as handling it emotionally. So we'll see. Everybody handles things differently. But right now, he is so tough, so focused on returning to his life, that he's doing great."
Celebrity support
Veazey's story has brought him fame, not only within Georgia's fan base, but among people who can't name a single player on the Bulldogs' roster.
The list of celebrities who have called or visited is so long, Veazey can't even name all of them off the top of his head. The support came from the worlds of music - rapper and entertainer Sean "P. Diddy" Combs left an encouraging voice mail message, country music superstars Garth Brooks and Tricia Yearwood called to chat and singer John Berry dedicated a moving song to Chance at a concert with the Veazey family in attendance - and, of course, sports.
Professional baseball players Ryan Klesko and John Smoltz allowed Veazey, an avid outdoorsman, to hunt on a tract of land they own near Macon two Sundays ago. That day, Veazey shot an 11-point buck - the biggest deer he has ever killed.
Atlanta Braves pitcher Tim Hudson called and numerous college sports luminaries from around the state have paid visits - including UGA basketball greats Dominique Wilkins and Teresa Edwards, former Bulldogs football coach Vince Dooley, current UGA coach Mark Richt with his team in tow, and even football and baseball players from rival Georgia Tech.
The Yellow Jackets baseball players went tailgate-to-tailgate on the weekend of the Georgia-Georgia Tech football game to raise money that will help cover Veazey's medical expenses.
The support ranges from the slightly silly - some of his UGA teammates once arrived for a visit with bicep tattoos that read "Second Chance" - to the sizable - Yearwood promised to match the funds raised at a benefit dinner/auction held in Tifton on Nov. 23 up to $100,000.
People in Athens, particularly in Georgia's athletic department, also found ways to help Veazey and his family.
Throughout Veazey's stint at the Shepherd Center, Georgia's athletics Web site, georgiadogs.com, featured a banner ad explaining how fans could donate money to help offset Veazey's medical expenses. Fans responded with thousands of dollars in donations, the athletic department chimed in with contributions of its own, and hundreds of students wore "Team Veazey" T-shirts at football games as a show of solidarity with their injured classmate.
Veazey's sister, Carly, a senior at Georgia in risk management and insurance, mobilized her friends in the Greek system to spread her brother's story. With plenty of help, they printed 60 or 70 "Team Veazey" T-shirts that students wore at the Georgia-Florida game three days after the wreck.
About 800 students and fans wore the shirts at the Georgia-Auburn game, including former Bulldogs star Gordon Beckham, who wore the shirt when he was introduced on the field during the game.
The T-shirt became a hot-ticket item, yet another example of how the family has been touched by the support of strangers.
"This has totally changed my perspective on a lot of things," Carly Veazey said. "The number of people that have reached out to him and our family has been totally overwhelming."
As of this week, Carly said approximately 3,000 shirts have been printed - many of which were sold for $10 apiece to help finance Chance's medical expenses.
The support in Athens turned Veazey's grandfather from a Florida State fan to a Bulldog, he said.
"It's amazing what's been done in Athens," Cottle said. "I'm blown away by how they've turned out - the university and the Bulldog Nation, it's just been unreal and very humbling."
Sports and family
Almost immediately after the crash, Georgia's football program also took up his cause.
Richt visited Veazey at St. Mary's and mentioned him on national TV during his halftime interview at the Georgia-Florida game.
In the Nov. 14 game against Auburn, Richt's team wore helmet stickers featuring a baseball and Veazey's initials.
That night, Georgia receiver Israel Troupe - one of Veazey's childhood friends and high school teammates at Tift County - caught his first career touchdown pass, sparking the Bulldogs to a 31-24 comeback victory.
Troupe dedicated his performance against Auburn to Veazey.
"Not many of us can take it in stride like he's done," Troupe said. "He isn't asking for handouts. He's not coming up with excuses. He's going out and working every day in rehab, and I applaud him for that. I'm proud of him for that, too."
Perno has shown his own form of dedication. The coach has been a regular visitor throughout Veazey's stay at Shepherd, dropping in with an occasional dinner or to show off his surprising video game-playing skills when the two duel at NFL or college football games on Veazey's Play Station 3.
"I'm ahead of him right now, but he's not too bad," said Veazey, who has rallied to take a head-to-head lead against his coach after Perno held the early advantage.
"I think it's part of a competitive outlet. We both play pretty serious and I think he needs that," Perno said. "He's a fierce competitor. He's obviously a doer. Right now, it's something we can do and he can escape. And so it was a good outlet for us together."
Regular people
The celebrity calls and visits lifted Veazey's spirits, but the bulk of his support has come from average people who were moved by his story - and that begins with those from his hometown.
Veazey's homecoming brought a set of tributes that were truly moving to the family.
When the Veazeys returned to Tifton last Friday after his six-week stay at Shepherd, they were greeted by sheriff's patrol cars lining a local overpass with deputies waving and blue lights flashing. Hanging from the overpass was a banner that read, "Welcome Home Chance! #15" (his jersey number).
When the Veazeys finally made it home, they discovered that friends and family had converted their garage into a new apartment for Chance. In only 31 days, they constructed a living quarters with space for Chance to watch TV and play video games, a kitchen, a spacious accessible bathroom and a bedroom - painted Georgia red, of course - with a nine-point buck Veazey shot last year hanging on the wall.
"The decorator didn't like it much that they put the deer head right over his bed," Cottle said with a laugh. "They fussed about that a little bit, but it turned out real nice."
Many who have never even met Veazey also took up his cause.
Thousands of people followed his story at a distance online at Caringbridge.org. As of Wednesday morning, exactly eight weeks after Veazey's wreck, nearly 104,000 people had visited his page on the site, where the family keeps a journal that chronicles his story. Some have donated money. Others have offered kind words and prayers.
The outpouring of support has caught Veazey by surprise.
"He's just so humble and is just not aware of the impact he has on other people," Carly Veazey said. "Sometimes he'll say, 'I just can't believe people are making this big a deal over me.' It's good for him to see, yeah you have made an impact and you do have all these people out there who care about you."
In a matter of weeks, Veazey went from little-known freshman baseball player to a recipient of care and concern from fans across the country who were moved by his fight against adverse circumstances.
"I really think he's gonna have a much greater impact and be much more of an inspiration to so many more people going through this than he could have ever been playing second base for us," Perno said.
By David Ching - david.ching@onlineathens.com
Published Saturday, December 26, 2009
Georgia's baseball coach first saw Veazey work out in 2008 as a member of Team Georgia, an all-star team made up of the state's top high school juniors. Despite Veazey's slight 5-foot-9, 175-pound build, Perno immediately noticed that the Tifton native possessed a powerful swing and an uncanny understanding of the game.
He offered Veazey a scholarship to play for the Bulldogs on the spot.
"You just saw real good instincts - a kid that understood it, knew how to slow the game down and just had a real good plan and a real good approach of how to play the game and play it the right way," Perno said. "Very good kid. As good as I've ever recruited."
Once Veazey arrived on campus for fall semester, the Tift County alum was everything Perno expected and more. He won over his coaches and teammates with a magnetic personality and skill level uncommon for a college freshman.
He started slow in fall practice but began to pick it up in the Bulldogs' intrasquad games - earning the starting job at second base by the end of the fall. In Georgia's final fall scrimmage, Veazey belted three hits, including a home run off the scoreboard in his final at-bat.
A bright future in baseball seemed certain.
And then the 19-year-old's life changed forever one late-October night, derailing his college career before it truly started.
About 10:30 p.m. on Oct. 28, shortly after an evening study session at the Miller Learning Center, Veazey flopped his Yamaha Vizio motorscooter onto its side to avoid a car that turned in front of him at South Lumpkin and Baxter streets. He couldn't avoid another car, though, and crashed.
Aside from scrapes, bruises and punctured lung, Veazey immediately knew something was terribly wrong with his lower body. He had no sensation in his legs.
An ambulance took Veasey to St. Mary's Hospital, and Georgia associate athletic director Arthur Johnson called Perno to tell him to get to the hospital.
"When I walked in, it was as life-changing a situation as I've ever encountered in my life," Perno recalled. "I was the only one there at the time and he knew, exactly, there was something seriously wrong.
"Of course, I didn't. All I could go by is what he's telling me. and he just kept saying he couldn't feel his legs, his back was killing him. And I was like, 'Oh gosh.' And I just sat there. You never felt so helpless in your life."
The doctors who examined Veazey didn't need long to confirm his worst fears - he suffered a complete spinal fracture in his lower back and, barring a miracle, will be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life.
Just as his strong personality helped him to overcome his slight stature on the diamond, Veazey's will is just as strong to walk again someday.
"It's not likely that I'll walk again, but I have faith that God will heal me," Veazey said. "They said that there will be a cure sometime in my lifetime, but that's really all that they've told me."
No tragedy
Some young players would be heartbroken to learn they likely would never play baseball again, but Veazey hasn't given in to tragedy.
The willpower he showed in six weeks of grueling rehabilitation at Atlanta's Shepherd Center is nothing short of an inspiration to family, friends and the many supporters who have become members of "Team Veazey."
"It's definitely physically exhausting," Veazey said last Thursday, his final night as a full-time resident at the Shepherd Center. "I go to bed pretty early every night because I'm pretty tired. It's mentally exhausting, too. But the harder you're put to work, the faster you're gonna get better and get out of here."
That attitude is exactly what his family, friends and coaches would have expected. It certainly didn't surprise his grandfather, Tommy Cottle.
"He's always the one that, any trap I fixed for him out here on the farm, any bad horse that had to be ridden, he was always the one to say, 'Let me try first, Poppa,' " Cottle said. "He's always been the one to step up first, so it doesn't surprise me how he's handled this. He's a pretty tough kid and just strong mentally."
And the outpouring of support Veazey has received since the crash has, in turn, inspired him to keep fighting when depression started to set in or when he felt physically overwhelmed relearning simple tasks he once did with little thought or effort.
"I can't imagine having to go through this without the type of support that I've had," he said. "It really can make it a lot easier going though this type of situation when you have that type of support."
But his battle has most certainly not been easy.
Off to Shepherd
Veazey underwent surgery two days after the crash, getting two rods bolted onto his spinal cord, and was fitted for an back brace to help stabilize his spine.
"I'll tell you how amazing the kid was - he had that surgery and that was probably a 10-12-inch incision ... on Friday," recalled Georgia baseball trainer Mike Dillon, who has been by Veazey's side throughout the rehabilitation process. "On Tuesday, he had already transferred to a wheelchair and was rolling up and down the hall already. That's how determined he was to get well."
After a week-long stay at St. Mary's, he moved to the Shepherd Center - the renowned catastrophic care center in Atlanta that specializes in treatment and rehabilitation for people with spinal cord and brain injuries.
The staff there started a rehabilitation regimen focused on making Veazey independent again. Most days from about 8 a.m. until 4 p.m., he set about adapting to a new life in a wheelchair.
There was physical therapy focused on transferring in and out of his chair and developing the upper-body strength he will need to get around.
His occupational treatment focused on learning to dress himself, cook for himself - not one of Chance's favorite pastimes - and practice proper hygiene. His recreational therapy took him into the community - out to eat, to the mall or behind the wheel of a car he learned to drive with hand controls - to learn how to function independently.
"There's a lot of things that you have to adapt to now that I'm in a chair - or at the moment," Veazey said. "You really don't think of a lot of things that people like me have to go through until you're in this position. You just have to learn how to adapt and survive."
Veazey's treatment also included classes to educate him about his injury and his body, and visits to the gym to work out or try his hand at a new sport in his wheelchair.
"It takes maybe not as much concentration as baseball did, but definitely physical ability and work ethic," Veazey said of his treatment. "You can't get frustrated - which it's hard not to. It's definitely the hardest thing I've ever done."
But he did it. And he won over those around him in the process, though he struggled at first.
"He didn't want to talk to the other patients when we first got there," Dillon said. "I can remember that first day talking to three or four other patients that wheeled into his room - all in wheelchairs, with different levels of disability - just to speak and say hello. They look at me and said, 'Don't worry about it. He will, it just takes a week or two for them to open up. We've all been there.'
"And that's kind of exactly what happened. By the time we left, he's in and out of everybody's room himself talking to everybody, encouraging other people."
In the midst of his treatment at Shepherd, Veazey won the ultimate prize among the center's patients. The holder of the center's Superman towel - which for 10 years has been passed down among the patients who are working hardest in treatment - graduated and awarded it to Veazey.
Even in the darkest phase of his young life, Veazey was recognized for the example he set for those around him and he proudly displayed the towel above his hospital bed for the rest of his stay at the center.
"I've been up there most of the time with him and I've seen how he relates to the other patients up there," Cottle said. "He's still giving of himself and signing jerseys and bats and balls and giving them away to patients up there. He's just a very caring kid. It's amazing to see him relate to other people and try to help the people up there. Me, I would probably be feeling sorry for myself."
Veazey's hard work during his stay earned him a day pass to visit Tifton for Thanksgiving. He and his family flew down that morning, but had to return by the end of the day.
He wasn't allowed to stay overnight away from the center until after graduation last Thursday. He is nearing the end of a 10-day stint away from the center, which allowed him to return to Tifton and spend Christmas with approximately 70 extended family members at Cottle's home.
When his 10-day home visit ends Monday, he will return to Atlanta to participate in the Shepherd Center's Day Program. Veazey and his family will live in the Woodruff Family Residence Center next to the Shepherd Center and he will visit each day to continue outpatient therapy for a few weeks.
The most difficult part of his recovery is behind him, but Veazey still has months of physical and emotional work ahead.
"This process is not six months," Dillon said. "From talking to a lot of people in chairs, it's about two years as far as handling it emotionally. So we'll see. Everybody handles things differently. But right now, he is so tough, so focused on returning to his life, that he's doing great."
Celebrity support
Veazey's story has brought him fame, not only within Georgia's fan base, but among people who can't name a single player on the Bulldogs' roster.
The list of celebrities who have called or visited is so long, Veazey can't even name all of them off the top of his head. The support came from the worlds of music - rapper and entertainer Sean "P. Diddy" Combs left an encouraging voice mail message, country music superstars Garth Brooks and Tricia Yearwood called to chat and singer John Berry dedicated a moving song to Chance at a concert with the Veazey family in attendance - and, of course, sports.
Professional baseball players Ryan Klesko and John Smoltz allowed Veazey, an avid outdoorsman, to hunt on a tract of land they own near Macon two Sundays ago. That day, Veazey shot an 11-point buck - the biggest deer he has ever killed.
Atlanta Braves pitcher Tim Hudson called and numerous college sports luminaries from around the state have paid visits - including UGA basketball greats Dominique Wilkins and Teresa Edwards, former Bulldogs football coach Vince Dooley, current UGA coach Mark Richt with his team in tow, and even football and baseball players from rival Georgia Tech.
The Yellow Jackets baseball players went tailgate-to-tailgate on the weekend of the Georgia-Georgia Tech football game to raise money that will help cover Veazey's medical expenses.
The support ranges from the slightly silly - some of his UGA teammates once arrived for a visit with bicep tattoos that read "Second Chance" - to the sizable - Yearwood promised to match the funds raised at a benefit dinner/auction held in Tifton on Nov. 23 up to $100,000.
People in Athens, particularly in Georgia's athletic department, also found ways to help Veazey and his family.
Throughout Veazey's stint at the Shepherd Center, Georgia's athletics Web site, georgiadogs.com, featured a banner ad explaining how fans could donate money to help offset Veazey's medical expenses. Fans responded with thousands of dollars in donations, the athletic department chimed in with contributions of its own, and hundreds of students wore "Team Veazey" T-shirts at football games as a show of solidarity with their injured classmate.
Veazey's sister, Carly, a senior at Georgia in risk management and insurance, mobilized her friends in the Greek system to spread her brother's story. With plenty of help, they printed 60 or 70 "Team Veazey" T-shirts that students wore at the Georgia-Florida game three days after the wreck.
About 800 students and fans wore the shirts at the Georgia-Auburn game, including former Bulldogs star Gordon Beckham, who wore the shirt when he was introduced on the field during the game.
The T-shirt became a hot-ticket item, yet another example of how the family has been touched by the support of strangers.
"This has totally changed my perspective on a lot of things," Carly Veazey said. "The number of people that have reached out to him and our family has been totally overwhelming."
As of this week, Carly said approximately 3,000 shirts have been printed - many of which were sold for $10 apiece to help finance Chance's medical expenses.
The support in Athens turned Veazey's grandfather from a Florida State fan to a Bulldog, he said.
"It's amazing what's been done in Athens," Cottle said. "I'm blown away by how they've turned out - the university and the Bulldog Nation, it's just been unreal and very humbling."
Sports and family
Almost immediately after the crash, Georgia's football program also took up his cause.
Richt visited Veazey at St. Mary's and mentioned him on national TV during his halftime interview at the Georgia-Florida game.
In the Nov. 14 game against Auburn, Richt's team wore helmet stickers featuring a baseball and Veazey's initials.
That night, Georgia receiver Israel Troupe - one of Veazey's childhood friends and high school teammates at Tift County - caught his first career touchdown pass, sparking the Bulldogs to a 31-24 comeback victory.
Troupe dedicated his performance against Auburn to Veazey.
"Not many of us can take it in stride like he's done," Troupe said. "He isn't asking for handouts. He's not coming up with excuses. He's going out and working every day in rehab, and I applaud him for that. I'm proud of him for that, too."
Perno has shown his own form of dedication. The coach has been a regular visitor throughout Veazey's stay at Shepherd, dropping in with an occasional dinner or to show off his surprising video game-playing skills when the two duel at NFL or college football games on Veazey's Play Station 3.
"I'm ahead of him right now, but he's not too bad," said Veazey, who has rallied to take a head-to-head lead against his coach after Perno held the early advantage.
"I think it's part of a competitive outlet. We both play pretty serious and I think he needs that," Perno said. "He's a fierce competitor. He's obviously a doer. Right now, it's something we can do and he can escape. And so it was a good outlet for us together."
Regular people
The celebrity calls and visits lifted Veazey's spirits, but the bulk of his support has come from average people who were moved by his story - and that begins with those from his hometown.
Veazey's homecoming brought a set of tributes that were truly moving to the family.
When the Veazeys returned to Tifton last Friday after his six-week stay at Shepherd, they were greeted by sheriff's patrol cars lining a local overpass with deputies waving and blue lights flashing. Hanging from the overpass was a banner that read, "Welcome Home Chance! #15" (his jersey number).
When the Veazeys finally made it home, they discovered that friends and family had converted their garage into a new apartment for Chance. In only 31 days, they constructed a living quarters with space for Chance to watch TV and play video games, a kitchen, a spacious accessible bathroom and a bedroom - painted Georgia red, of course - with a nine-point buck Veazey shot last year hanging on the wall.
"The decorator didn't like it much that they put the deer head right over his bed," Cottle said with a laugh. "They fussed about that a little bit, but it turned out real nice."
Many who have never even met Veazey also took up his cause.
Thousands of people followed his story at a distance online at Caringbridge.org. As of Wednesday morning, exactly eight weeks after Veazey's wreck, nearly 104,000 people had visited his page on the site, where the family keeps a journal that chronicles his story. Some have donated money. Others have offered kind words and prayers.
The outpouring of support has caught Veazey by surprise.
"He's just so humble and is just not aware of the impact he has on other people," Carly Veazey said. "Sometimes he'll say, 'I just can't believe people are making this big a deal over me.' It's good for him to see, yeah you have made an impact and you do have all these people out there who care about you."
In a matter of weeks, Veazey went from little-known freshman baseball player to a recipient of care and concern from fans across the country who were moved by his fight against adverse circumstances.
"I really think he's gonna have a much greater impact and be much more of an inspiration to so many more people going through this than he could have ever been playing second base for us," Perno said.
