David Edwards (football player and motivational speaker)

David Edwards (March 1, 1987 – February 27, 2008) was an American high school football player whose paralysis following an injury suffered during play led to work as a motivational speaker.

Edwards was born in Austin, Texas. As a young child, he showed little interest in sports, but he was the son of a former All-City running back from Austin's Reagan High School and a cousin of former University of Texas running back Shon Mitchell.

When he was ten, his family moved to San Antonio, Texas, and at the encouragement of a new friend he began playing football at the Pop Warner level. After his junior season of varsity high school football in 2003, he was selected a Unanimous First-Team All Area Class 5A defensive back by The San Antonio Express-News. That season would be his first and only season playing varsity football for San Antonio's James Madison High School. ln the final minutes of the first round play-off game in Austin against Westlake High School, he collided face down with the crown of his helmet to the chest of Westlake receiver Coy Aune. The impact of the collision left him paralyzed from the shoulders down after shattering the C-4 and C-5 vertebrae in his neck. Over 9,000 people were on hand to witness his devastating hit resulting in the injury.

His injury profoundly affected many who were in the stadium. One those attendees was filmmaker Peter Berg, who had followed Westlake's season as part of his own research on Texas high school football, prior to filming the movie version of Friday Night Lights. Seeking a way to help Edwards, Berg eventually came up with the idea of having a benefit concert for him and other young men in similar circumstances, and in April 2004 that concert took place in Austin. The concert was produced by Friday Night Lights cast member and country music star Tim McGraw. McGraw and his wife Faith Hill headlined the concert along with Friday Night Lights star and musician Billy Bob Thornton and his friend, rock legend Alice Cooper. The concert raised $28,000, to be divided evenly between the David Edwards Trust and the Gridiron Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Organization.

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