Syracuse Football: Rex Culpepper details his journey battling cancer

Syracuse football quarter Rex Culpepper has survived a lot of ups and downs in his life. His latest battle was with cancer and here’s how he beat it.

It was the moment of the spring for the Syracuse football team. Unexpectedly Rex Culpepper took the field for the final drive of the ‘Spring Football Showcase’.

What was supposed to be a tease for the 2018 football season, ended up being a tease for something even greater. Rex Culpepper beating cancer.

While he didn’t ring the bell at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa prior to his surprising appearance in the spring showcase, it did provide him the final rejuvenation required to push through the final nine weeks of his treatment:

"“Coach Babers said I wasn’t going to play in the spring game. That’s what he said to me, to the media and everybody else when they asked him. I didn’t come in with any expectation to play, either. It was only the second weekend after my first round of chemo. At times I felt completely drained.I still had three more rounds — nine more weeks — of chemo left. But for those few hours after kickoff I wasn’t going to be thinking about that. I was back where I belonged, and I was going to enjoy every second of it while I was out there. I was going to try and remember every little detail of the game, whether I got on the field or not, because for the next few months I knew I’d probably need all the positive thoughts I could get.So you can imagine how I felt when I got in.I know I said I felt run down, but when I ran into the huddle on the last drive and heard everybody cheering for me, I knew it was a moment that I’d hold onto forever. Whatever was about to come my way the next few months — that moment, even more than the touchdown I threw at the end of the game, was going to help me power through it. I have never felt more loved in my life.” (Rex Culpepper’s story via The Players’ Tribune)"

I was there in person at the Carrier Dome when the crowd erupted upon the PA’s announcement that Rex Culpepper was heading into the game. Heck even his parents didn’t know he’d be making an appearance in the game.

He orchestrated a touchdown drive to perfection and is currently the third quarterback on the roster.

From a pure football perspective, it doesn’t seem like a path exists for Rex to get on the field in the quarterback room. Eric Dungey is the established starter. Tommy DeVito is the future. If Culpepper wants to get on the field, it’ll likely have to come with a position change, something the team flirted with last season.

But if anyone can defy the odds, it’s Culpepper. Although it should be noted, Culpepper says he didn’t ‘win the battle’ against cancer, it wasn’t a competition. It took a huge toll on his friends, family and loved ones. You have to credit Rex for his maturity during this process and how he carries himself on a daily basis, truly inspiring.

To read the full story of Culpepper’s journey to beat cancer, check out his piece for The Players’ Tribune here.