Post by WVUfanPHILLY on Aug 16, 2007 14:06:33 GMT -5
By Bob Hertzel
For the Times West Virginian
MORGANTOWN — Let’s see, Vaughn Rivers is saying, thinking out loud as the lights from television minicams glare in his face and reporters shove those new-fangled tapeless tape recorders so close his breath fogs the digital display.
“We’ve been playing organized sports together since the seventh grade,” the West Virginia University senior cornerback finally comes up with after thinking awhile.
It’s been a long relationship for Vaughn and his alter-ego, Eric Wicks.
Junior high. High school. Now college.
Teammates, yes. Friends, yes.
More important, brothers.
“We’ve been together so long that we’re close to brothers. Our families are so close. Most of the time back home, if you see Vaughn, you see me.
Everyone knows it. It’s hard to explain. It’s almost like we’ve been born in the same family,” Wicks said.
Across the room, when the media huddle had broken to attend to Pat White, Rivers looked over at Wicks. Rivers hadn’t heard the words Wick had spoken earlier but, as you might guess, he echoed the sentiments almost as if it had been rehearsed.
“That’s my brother over there,” he said.
Teammates and friends are one thing. Brothers are something beyond that.
“We’ve been roommates since we came to school. When I lost my cousin and best friend a year and a half ago, he was there to support me the whole time while I was away from my family,” Rivers said.
Sometimes teammates and friends don’t know what to say at a moment like that.
Brothers do.
“It was real hard for the both of us,” Wicks recalled. “It was hard for me, for one, because I knew him and was close to him. But it was even harder to pick Vaughn up and make him happy and make him feel better about a bad situation.”
And how did Wicks go about that?
“You hug him and you love him. There’s nothing else you can do,” Wicks said.
“It’s easier to share the bad times. We’ve gone through so much together. We’ve shared the struggles. It’s easier for us to help each other in the bad times because we understand each other. When it comes to having problems here, we can relate to what’s happened back home in Pittsburgh,” he said.
There was a time when it appeared the two would finally be separated this year. Wicks had come to WVU as a non-qualifier. To earn a fourth year of eligibility he would have to graduate within four years.
Not many can pull that off.
Wicks did.
“Not many know it but school never came easy to him,” Rivers said. “He had to work hard. He had a lot of support from the school, but he did it himself.”
To most, Wicks is remembered most for tackling Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm on the goal line as he scrambled for a two-point conversion to save a 48-46, three-overtime victory over the Cardinals in 2005, completing the most thrilling come-from-behind triumph in Mountaineer history.
While he cherishes that victory, the huge smile that crosses his face as you simply bring up the fact that he is about to receive his degree in athletic coaching after summer session tells you that comes in second in his best moments at WVU.
“Getting the degree is huge. Coming out of high school I knew, let’s say, that my educational level wasn’t as high as it should be. I knew I had to work extra hard when I came here to improve. I had a lot of extra help from my academic coaches and mentors. It’s helped me a lot and now I’m about to graduate,” he said.
Secondary coach Tony Gibson recruited Wicks and Rivers out of Pittsburgh’s Perry Academy following a 13-1 championship season. He knew of their abilities, Rivers as a corner and kick returner, Wicks as a safety, and also knew of Wicks’ academic situation.
“When I recruited Eric four or five years ago, him and Vaughn out of the same high school, Eric was a non-qualifier who had to sit out a year. He’s done everything right since he’s been here. He’s worked hard academically,” Gibson said.
“Any time you put yourself in that situation and go after that goal and want to graduate, like Eric did, you have to admire it. He wanted to do it and he got it done.”
The degree not only will make an immeasurable difference in Wicks’ future life, but it makes an equally immeasurable difference in the Mountaineers’ bid for a national championship this year.
Had Wicks failed to earn his degree, that would have left a huge void in what already is a questionable secondary, taking away a leader, a ball hawk and a vicious tackler.
E-mail Bob Hertzel at bhertzel@hotmail.com
© 2007, The Times West Virginian
P.O. Box 2530, Fairmont, West Virginia
(304) 367-2500;
For the Times West Virginian
MORGANTOWN — Let’s see, Vaughn Rivers is saying, thinking out loud as the lights from television minicams glare in his face and reporters shove those new-fangled tapeless tape recorders so close his breath fogs the digital display.
“We’ve been playing organized sports together since the seventh grade,” the West Virginia University senior cornerback finally comes up with after thinking awhile.
It’s been a long relationship for Vaughn and his alter-ego, Eric Wicks.
Junior high. High school. Now college.
Teammates, yes. Friends, yes.
More important, brothers.
“We’ve been together so long that we’re close to brothers. Our families are so close. Most of the time back home, if you see Vaughn, you see me.
Everyone knows it. It’s hard to explain. It’s almost like we’ve been born in the same family,” Wicks said.
Across the room, when the media huddle had broken to attend to Pat White, Rivers looked over at Wicks. Rivers hadn’t heard the words Wick had spoken earlier but, as you might guess, he echoed the sentiments almost as if it had been rehearsed.
“That’s my brother over there,” he said.
Teammates and friends are one thing. Brothers are something beyond that.
“We’ve been roommates since we came to school. When I lost my cousin and best friend a year and a half ago, he was there to support me the whole time while I was away from my family,” Rivers said.
Sometimes teammates and friends don’t know what to say at a moment like that.
Brothers do.
“It was real hard for the both of us,” Wicks recalled. “It was hard for me, for one, because I knew him and was close to him. But it was even harder to pick Vaughn up and make him happy and make him feel better about a bad situation.”
And how did Wicks go about that?
“You hug him and you love him. There’s nothing else you can do,” Wicks said.
“It’s easier to share the bad times. We’ve gone through so much together. We’ve shared the struggles. It’s easier for us to help each other in the bad times because we understand each other. When it comes to having problems here, we can relate to what’s happened back home in Pittsburgh,” he said.
There was a time when it appeared the two would finally be separated this year. Wicks had come to WVU as a non-qualifier. To earn a fourth year of eligibility he would have to graduate within four years.
Not many can pull that off.
Wicks did.
“Not many know it but school never came easy to him,” Rivers said. “He had to work hard. He had a lot of support from the school, but he did it himself.”
To most, Wicks is remembered most for tackling Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm on the goal line as he scrambled for a two-point conversion to save a 48-46, three-overtime victory over the Cardinals in 2005, completing the most thrilling come-from-behind triumph in Mountaineer history.
While he cherishes that victory, the huge smile that crosses his face as you simply bring up the fact that he is about to receive his degree in athletic coaching after summer session tells you that comes in second in his best moments at WVU.
“Getting the degree is huge. Coming out of high school I knew, let’s say, that my educational level wasn’t as high as it should be. I knew I had to work extra hard when I came here to improve. I had a lot of extra help from my academic coaches and mentors. It’s helped me a lot and now I’m about to graduate,” he said.
Secondary coach Tony Gibson recruited Wicks and Rivers out of Pittsburgh’s Perry Academy following a 13-1 championship season. He knew of their abilities, Rivers as a corner and kick returner, Wicks as a safety, and also knew of Wicks’ academic situation.
“When I recruited Eric four or five years ago, him and Vaughn out of the same high school, Eric was a non-qualifier who had to sit out a year. He’s done everything right since he’s been here. He’s worked hard academically,” Gibson said.
“Any time you put yourself in that situation and go after that goal and want to graduate, like Eric did, you have to admire it. He wanted to do it and he got it done.”
The degree not only will make an immeasurable difference in Wicks’ future life, but it makes an equally immeasurable difference in the Mountaineers’ bid for a national championship this year.
Had Wicks failed to earn his degree, that would have left a huge void in what already is a questionable secondary, taking away a leader, a ball hawk and a vicious tackler.
E-mail Bob Hertzel at bhertzel@hotmail.com
© 2007, The Times West Virginian
P.O. Box 2530, Fairmont, West Virginia
(304) 367-2500;
