April 8, 2010

By Leni Depoister, Illinois Sports Information

Your mom, your dad, a sibling, maybe a best friend - that is who most people turn to when the going gets rough. Illinois' defensive back Tavon Wilson didn't have those options. Wilson lost his father when he was just a baby and was left with his mother, grandmother and grandfather. When Wilson was in the sixth grade, his mother drowned at a pool party, leaving him to his grandmother.

"I don't remember my dad being murdered because I was too young," Wilson said. "I found out my Mom died when I was at football practice. We had a game the next day, and my grandmother talked me into playing."

Wilson had always been close to his grandmother because of the time spent with her. Her advice of playing in the football game the day after his mother's death was just the beginning of raising her grandson.

"Growing up, I spent most of the time with my grandmother," Wilson said. "She would pick me up after practice and school because my mom would be at work. She was the one that would make sure I got my homework done. It was an easy transition because I was used to being at her house anyways."

Even though Wilson lost his mother at a young age, she was a driving force in his life, encouraging him to play sports and get involved in the school.

"I was really close to my mom, she inspired me to play all sports," Wilson said. "She was more like a best friend I could talk to about everything."

Growing up in Washington D.C., it is easy to see why his mother was encouraging him to get involved in sports. Like most kids in big cities, the temptations are there -- either get into trouble or focus your time and energy into sports.

"It was rough growing up in Washington because there were a lot of other things you could be doing besides playing sports," Wilson said. "It takes a lot of commitment to go out there everyday and be different. Some of my friends became drug dealers, and I walked away to play football.

"Sports help kids stay out of trouble," Wilson continued. "It's a way out from where I'm from. Too many people don't have money to send their kids to school so they use sports as a way to get to college."

Teammate Joelil Thrash grew up in the same neighborhood attended H.D. Woodson High School with Wilson and experienced the same pressures.

"It was hard everyday, the environment was tough," Thrash said. "Outside of football, was football. Everything was football. Everyday was football. Football was our life. Football and our parents are what helped keep us out of trouble. Everyday was a competition and we would workout, whether we had practice or not."

Along with playing football, Wilson played baseball up until his freshman year and participated in track and basketball until his junior year when he decided to give football a shot. He found the support he needed with his football family and attended Nike Camps to improve his skills. Those camps and practices paid off as he was recruited by Illinois his senior year.

Three years later, Wilson is penciled in as a starter at defensive back and is continuing to improve. With his grandmother in the stands, Wilson played the game of his life against Michigan State in 2010 when he led the team with a career-best 13 tackles, including a tackle for a loss and an interception that set up Illinois' first touchdown that game.

While Wilson received support from his grandmother, his friends continue to be a solid support system.

"Most of my friends I played little league with in junior high and high school," Wilson said. "They were around then and they gave me the help and support I needed, and kept pushing me to do my best. Being here at Illinois, it's nice to have my old teammates Eddie (McGee) and Evan (Frierson) here. It made the transition a lot easier as a freshman. We tried to make it a good transition for Joelil, too."

Even after losing both parents and growing up in inner-city D.C., Wilson found support in his grandmother, friends, and teammates and was able to put the past behind him to become an outstanding athlete here at the University of Illinois.

"I use my mom's passing as motivation to keep going and working hard," Wilson said.

Spring Practice Update
The Illini completed Spring practice #6 on Thursday evening on the east practice fields. Practice #7 will take place on Saturday afternoon in Memorial Stadium at 1:45 p.m. The team will scrimmage at about 2:30 p.m. and is open to the public.

The Illinois coaches are hosting the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Clinic this weekend on campus.