Wolverines Give Ball To Teen With Rare Cancer, Scores First Touchdown In The Big House

ANN ARBOR, MI — The Michigan Wolverines football team ended its Saturday practice by giving the ball to a former top recruit whose life took an unexpected turn.

Dametrius Walker, 18, a former standout high school football player from Muskegon, once had ten offers from Division I schools in his sophomore year. But everything changed in November 2020, when he was first diagnosed with a rare bone cancer called osteosarcoma.

"At that point I thought my life was over, Doctors told me I couldn’t ever get back on the field and enjoy my dreams which made me feel alive and worthy of myself," Walker said, according to a GoFundMe page.

Walker needed a knee replacement to remove the tumor, and eventually fought off the cancer in a series of chemotherapy treatments that lasted nine months. But the cancer quickly returned and spread to his lungs, and now he is in hospice care, according to Michigan Athletics.

Even though doctors told Walker there's nothing they can do for him, he continues to fight the cancer, just like he took the handoff from quarterback Cade McNarama and scored his first touchdown in the Big House (Michigan Stadium).

"Wow absolutely dream come true Appreciate you coach Jim Harbough for the experience and the brotherhood teammates and just the whole staff period they really treated me like family today," Walker said on Twitter.

Watch Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh wheel Walker across the goal line here.

"It was a pleasure to have Dametrius Walker with us today to get a tour of the facilities and to score his first career touchdown! Keep fighting, Meechie, the entire program is with you!" Michigan Football tweeted.

Walker started the GoFundMe account in April to help pay for travel for further medical treatment. As of Monday morning, the account raised $16,402, just short of its $20,000 goal.

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