Oct. 21, 2006

Adversity is defined by Webster's dictionary as "an unfortunate event or circumstance." True winners show their strength when faced with adversity and JCSU student James Heatley is a true winner.

A 2003 graduate of C.A. Johnson High School in Columbia, S.C., Heatley was recruited by both JCSU and Newberry College, choosing to accept an athletic scholarship to Newberry. He began at Newberry as a fourth-string safety, working his way up to the second team and the travel squad. Unfortunately, his final scores on both the SAT and ACT (he missed the SAT by 10 points and the ACT by 1 point) deemed him a partial qualifier.

His misfortunes continued. Nursing a torn thigh muscle from a spring football injury and facing a major reduction in his scholarship, Heatley reached out his life-long friend Donja' Goodson, who had enrolled at JCSU. It wasn't long before Heatley joined the JCSU team, coached by Tim Harkness.

At JCSU, Heatley's freshman season saw stellar performances, recording 59 tackles. By the spring, though, another series of setbacks hit. The staff that recruited him departed; he underwent foot surgery, and had to sit out the second half of spring drills, all while dealing with being moved to the linebacker position.

Though not thrilled about moving to linebacker, Heatley adapted. "I wanted to do whatever it took to win," remarked Heatley. Unfortunately for him, his foot did not completely heal until the middle of the summer, limiting what he could do in camp. By the time the season started, Heatley backed up Omar Bizzell at weak line-backer, playing in nine games, and recording 21 tackles (one for a loss of six yards) ...a far stretch from what he accomplished just the year before.

Heatley has seen action in all seven games in 2006. His most impressive performance of the season came -without surprise - against Virginia Union University. Heatley registered 10 tackles, two for a loss of 12 yards, and half a sack for a loss of six yards. To many, it was obvious that Heatley was playing with a chip on his shoulder. "I knew that Coach Richardson knew I could play, but I wanted to really show him," said Heatley. "We also had two weeks to prepare for the game so I watched a lot of film and knew all of their offensive plays."

"I am so proud of him as a student," remarked head coach Daryl C. McNeill. "He is a great young man that has perservered through the past three seasons to work his way into a starting role. He is going to graduate this spring and has will be successful in life."

"He's quiet but is like a ticking time bomb on the field, waiting to explode. "I have grown to know Heatley to be a well-respected teammate that has high expectations for life after college," remarked team captain Ed Wilson.

Heatley said, "Regardless of how much time you get to play, take advantage of every opportunity. When you get the light, you need to shine."

As of press time, Heatley's season record is 37 tackles, five for a loss of 21 yards and a sack for a loss of seven yards.

Though a junior on the field, Heatley will graduate in May 2007 with a degree in computer information systems from JCSU, then pursue a graduate degree from the University of South Carolina, Columbia. He is the son of Rosa Lee Heatley. He and his girlfriend (Ashley Elkins) are expecting their first child in May.