Natrona Heights, Pa. — Every time Anton Clayborn, 6, suits up for the football field, it’s usually for practice, to run a couple laps with teammates or for the coin flip before a game as the captain of the Highland Singers pee wee football team.
Despite all of the work he puts into being a football player, he never gets to actually play in the games.
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Clayborn, or “Tubby” as his teammates call him, suffers from duralaArteriovenous malformation, or AVM. AVM is a rare condition where extra arteries grow inside of his brain. As he grows, so does the mass of arteries. To combat AVM, Clayborn undergoes a yearly surgery to get rid of the extra arteries.
Each week, Clayborn knows that due to his medical condition, he isn’t going to actually make it into the game, but being unable to play football hasn’t stopped Clayborn from being able to enjoy his role on the Stingers.
“It’s great coaching him,” said Stingers coach Jason Thies. “He pushes all of our kids and he just simply loves the game.”
Every practice, every week and through every game, Tubby is there without fail, cheering from the sidelines and willing the 6-and 7-year-old Stingers to victory. To Tubby, not being on the field isn’t keeping him away from it.
Finally, Clayborn’s patience and dedication finally paid off one Saturday afternoon when his Stingers took on the Butler Knights. Coach Thies looked over to call Clayborn’s number 11. Tubby was about to score his first touchdown.
“I reached out to the Butler coach and we thought it would be cool to get Tubby in there,” Thies said.
From there, Tubby put on his helmet, got into the formation he practiced over and over and took the handoff.
He wasn’t in any danger. All 22 kids on the field knew Tubby was bound for the end zone and he would go there untouched.
After breaking through the defense, Clayborn made it into the end zone, threw his helmet off, clenched his fists and gave a big shout after his score. He knew at that moment that his hours of practicing had finally paid off.
After the play, Clayborn was hugged by his coach, and then his mother Kerri Febinger, who had once seen her son struggle to walk, finally reach paydirt on the gridiron.
“When he was born, they said maybe he had a year to live,” said Febinger. “He’s proved them wrong, over and over again. He just continues to inspire everyone that he meets.”
Febinger said she is forever grateful for the coaches allowing her son to be apart os something he loves.
“I’ve thanks the coaches numerous times because they don’t have to take the time out to let Anton be a part of the team,” said Febinger. “They really didn’t have to make Saturday’s game all about him.”
Moving forward, Clayborn understands that he won’t get too many, if any, carries this season because of the artery growth in his brain. But now, there is now also one great thing on his mind; that invaluable memory that he will never forget as a touchdown-scoring running back for the Highland Stingers.