Proving The Doubters Wrong – Shaquem Griffin and Nick Newell

Proving The Doubters Wrong – Shaquem Griffin and Nick Newell

By Dan McConnell

The world of sport in the eyes of some is primarily seen for able bodied people, however this past week those doubters might have to look elsewhere.

University of Central Florida Linebacker Shaquem Griffin made history Saturday night as the first one-handed player to be drafted in the NFL. He was selected as a fifth-round pick by the Seattle Seahawks and will play alongside his twin brother Shaquill, who was drafted by the team last year.

Griffin explained how football played a critical role in the brothers’ lives since they were young. He also admitted that his journey to success had not always been easy and at times he wanted to quit.

At 4 years old, Griffin had his left hand amputated due to a condition that prevented his fingers from developing. Despite his missing hand, he says his family never allowed him to make excuses for why he couldn’t do something.

As a student-athlete at the University of Central Florida, Griffin was named the 2016 American Athletic Conference defensive player of the year. He also served as a captain of the team during its 13-0 season last year.

In the NFL combine in February, Griffin impressed scouts by running a 4.38-second 40-yard dash. His time was the best of any linebacker since 2003 and it tied him for the ninth best performance of any player in attendance.

Also this past weekend in the sport of MMA, Nick Newell a congenial amputee also proved certain doubters wrong.

There was a time when UFC president Dana White said women would never fight in the Octagon. Then he met a singular individual talent named Ronda Rousey which changed his mind which earned the company a fortune and a new, fresh face for the sport. Maybe this is one of those kinds of crossroads moments for White and the UFC organisation.

Nick Newell slugged it out on the MMA circuit for more than six years before he retired in 2015. At the time Newell, a congenital amputee whose left arm ends below just below his elbow had an impressive record of 13-1. His only loss came to current UFC fighter and then World Series of Fighting lightweight champion Justin Gaethje.

UFC President Dana White has offered Newell a fight on a June edition of Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. Fighters on the cards compete at the UFC Gym in Las Vegas. Fighters who catch White’s eye with their performance are then offered official UFC contracts. He is not in the UFC yet, but this is a major foot in the door for Newell.

On its surface, that record is about as good as it gets, but it’s a failure to look past Newell’s physical surface level that has led MMA’s major organizations to shy away from him. If he had any appearance other than his own he was born with one hand, he would have been contracted to compete in the UFC or Bellator a long time ago.

Griffen and Newell have proved a light at the end of the tunnel and inspired many others who are able-bodied or have faced adversity. For sure we know that these are two watershed moments in both sports.