Former Buckeye to be at All County Breakfast
COSHOCTON – The Fatherhood Initiative Second annual All County Breakfast on Saturday, Oct. 17 will feature Mr. “Carmen Ohio” Cie Grant a member of The Ohio State University’s 2002 National Football Championship team.
Grant secured the National Championship in the closing seconds by making the final defensive play that prevented Miami from winning the game and National Championship. He will challenge all dads with a short message on the importance of Dads in the lives of their families and children.
This year’s All County Breakfast will be held at Coshocton High School and will feature numerous activities in addition to Grant speaking and signing autographs. A variety of games for all ages will be provided and allow dads and their children not only the opportunity to eat breakfast together but to interact with each other in a friendly and safe environment. Winners will be eligible to win cash or gift cards totaling $1,000, family pizza coupons, movie coupons, photo opportunities, autographed footballs and other games and prizes.
Tickets are currently on sale and may be purchased at any elementary school in the county for $5 each. This includes breakfast, games and all opportunities to participate in any of the games and prizes being offered. A limited number of VIP tickets may be acquired in advance and those wishing to do so may call William Johnson at 740-622-6208 or Tonya Lock at 740-295-7562. Remember that this event will sellout and organizers do not wish for anyone who really wants to attend to be excluded so get your admission tickets early.
Willie “Cie” Grant (born Nov. 27, 1979 in Dover) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the New Orleans Saints. He played college football at The Ohio State University. During the final fourth down play in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, a blitzing Grant applied quick pressure on Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey, forcing an incompletion and clinching the BCS National Championship. He graduated from New Philadelphia High School in 1998. While at NPHS he participated in numerous sports as well as performing with Delphian Chorale, the high school’s select choir.
Those close to Grant also know a man who has endured more than any 36-year-old should.
Grant lost his first child at birth in 2004 and his mother in 2009, then was rocked the next year when doctors diagnosed his wife, Brandi, with sarcoma — a rare form of cancer.
“Although I sound strong now,” he said, “there are weak moments.”
Yet there are moments, too, that fortify a faith passed on by his deacon father and god-fearing mother. After his newborn son died in his arms, Brandi was told she would not be able to have children. A year later, she was pregnant with a soon-to-be healthy baby boy. The couple now has three children, including Marlie, born amid challenging circumstances.
Doctors worried for daughter and mother. Brandi had already underwent two surgeries for her cancer, and the pregnancy would not be routine. She went into pre-term labor at 27 weeks.
“Wow, you’re already high-risk, and your body’s been through a heck of a lot,” Grant recalled thinking.
Sometimes, though, he believes miracles happen. Today, Marlie is healthy and Brandi is doing well.
Grant, a third-round pick by the New Orleans Saints in 2003 who played four seasons in the NFL, looks back at the 2002 season as both the best year of his football life and a starting point for greater things.
He hopes his story can help others.
“Before it’s said and done, I’m going to be working with kids,” Grant said. “I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in my life and I think that creates a genuine voice that people are attracted to.”
Category: People & Places
