I didn't think I could participate in a way where I would really... by Jake Olson

I didn't think I could participate in a way where I would really be benefiting the team.

Jake Olson

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Categorized in : Health News

When I was 8 months old, I was diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer called retinoblastoma, when the doctors found my cancer, it was completely taking over my left eye ... the greatest fear is the cancer spreading through the optic nerve to the brain.

Realizing what I was going to be confronting ... a life without sight, it was difficult, i didn't feel completely hopeless, but there was this sense of 'I don't know how I'm gonna do anything anymore.'.

It kind of clicked in my mind that it is a consistent position in that you're snapping the same distance for every snap, you definitely have the mechanics of what you're supposed to do, but a lot of it is just feel.

They really did not take me too seriously, especially at first because I did not know how to long snap, one coach, however, really did take me seriously, and he practiced with me every day that summer. ... When I came back in August and showed the team and the coaches what I could do that's when they realized, 'OK, this kid is for real ... this kid could actually be a valuable asset to us.'.

I went into playing football with the mentality that I had nothing to lose, either I'm gonna learn how to play this position and participate, or I'm not gonna learn how to play and be back at square one just watching it. I really had no fear.

Going through adversity or challenges in life, it really does make you stronger, life's unfair, football's unfair, things are unfair. But at the same time, it's up to you how far you want to take yourself. ... It's taught me not to give up. It's taught me to keep fighting.

After about eight times of that happening, the doctors finally said, 'Listen, we've pretty much exhausted all treatment options,'.