‘Shep’ shares his story | Laurinburg Exchange

LAURINBURG — Former NFL football player C.L. “Shep” Shepherd was on a bad path until, at the age of 14, he made a life-changing revelation.

In an apartment that he shared with his single mother and 15 siblings, Shepherd held a loaded gun to his mouth and prepared to commit suicide. Shepherd had been betrayed and misguided frequently as a child, and he was tired of it.

“I went to a place in those next few seconds that is literally what brought me on this track in front of y’all here tonight,” Shepherd told the crowd at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes “Fields of Faith” event on Tuesday night at Pate Stadium.

Shepherd, who played for the NFL’s Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers after a hall of fame collegiate career at Florida Atlantic University, spoke in detail about the trials he went through to reach that pinnacle — growing up in poverty without any type of father figure in his life and joining a gang at school. He also spoke about how his life changed once he accepted God into his life.

He spoke about how his mother, who raised her children on a meager income while working overnight shifts at the local Waffle House, broke down in tears when young “Shep” told her that he wanted to attend college. No other man in his family had even graduated high school. Shepherd didn’t know what a scholarship was until a coach told him that he could attend college on someone else’s dime, if he worked hard enough on his athletic abilities.

He certainly knew what a scholarship was by the end of his high school career — Shepherd had to choose between 27 NCAA Division I offers.

That was a triumph in a long process that nearly ended when 14-year-old Shepherd was seconds away from taking his own life. A week before that, Shepherd had watched a close friend collapse and die from a heart condition during a pickup basketball game. Sheperd was in a bad place mentally, and there was nowhere he could turn to for help. Not the church, where Shepherd was a victim sexual abuse years earlier. And there was only so much his mom could do. Shepherd’s father was imprisoned for much of his upbringing, and the father didn’t show much interest in his son upon his release.

“I felt like much of my young life, I didn’t matter,” Shepherd said.

So Shepherd instead decided to give God a chance to change his life.

Years later, Shepherd was given the opportunity to attend an FCA camp in Black Mountain. It was there that he met Shaun Alexander, a future star NFL running back who was attending the University of Alabama at the time. Alexander did what no other figure in Shepherd’s life had done to that point. He offered to be Shepherd’s mentor and help him grow closer to God. He also told Shepherd a phrase that he had never expected to hear.

“He said, ‘Shep, I love you, man.’ My legs locked in place. Tears started streaming from my eyes,” Shepherd said. “That was the first time I ever heard ‘I love you’ before in my entire life.”

With Alexander’s guidance and the support of the FCA, Shepherd began sharing his testimony around the country after his football career was over. He’s spoken to professional, collegiate and high school teams, as well as many non-athletic groups that have requested him.

Near the end of his talk at Pate Stadium, Shepherd encouraged those in attendance to make the same decision he did as a young man, and allow God into their lives.

Shepherd’s story was similar to many young athletes who grow up in similar circumstances in Scotland County and the surrounding region. That helped the speech hit home for those in attendance.

“He literally could have been born and raised here with the story he’s going to tell,” Scotland football coach Richard Bailey said.

Former NFL player preaches at “Fields of Faith” event