Wall of Honor Spotlight: Kyle Woods
10/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 28, 2004
By JERRY HILL
Even 25 years later, Kyle Woods still doesn't think about giving up.
In August 1979, during a Baylor preseason football practice, Woods suffered a neck injury that left him as a quadriplegic. But even now, he holds out hope that he will one day walk again.
"I've always held out hope," said the 44-year-old Woods, who will be added to Baylor's Wall of Honor in a ceremony at 7 p.m. this Friday in the banquet room of the Cashion Building. "To this day, I still hope. If I didn't, that would be like giving up. And if they were to come up with a cure, I might not be first in line, but I would definitely be in the top 10."
That unflappable hope and drive is what makes Woods such a deserving addition to the "B" Association's Wall of Honor, which recognizes former Baylor lettermen who have brought positive public recognition, credit and honor to the university and athletic department.
Woods has worked for the last nine years as an adviser in special services at Mountainview College in Dallas, where he helps physically disabled students.
"I love it," he said. "The things that I do, they should be expected of anyone. I expect that of myself to move on with my life."
"To be stricken down with that kind of injury, so devastating physically," said former Baylor coach Grant Teaff, now executive director of the American Football Coaches Association, "and for him to remain so consistently positive and so caring about his coaches and teammates, that's unbelievable. It's just a huge inspiration for me to know that every day he wakes up and faces life in that wheelchair, and he's never let it get him down."
This was a guy who came to Baylor in the fall of 1978 with all the promise and hope in the world. A defensive back from Dallas W.T. White High School, where he was an all-idstrict and all-greater Metro player, Woods was listed as the backup at right corner behind senior Howard Fields.
"To be honest with you, when you're a freshman, you don't really have any expectations," Woods said. "The main thing was just to go to class and get my degree."
Just weeks before the season opener against Lamar, Woods came up and made a tackle on freshman running back Ken Matthews with help from sophomore safety Scott Smith. Woods' Baylor teammates immediately knew something was wrong when he remained on the turf, unable to move his limp body.
"Standing on the field that night, I remember thinking this could not be happening," said Walter Abercrombie, a sophomore tailback on that '79 Baylor team who now serves as director of the "B" Association."We thought the worst, but we were hoping for a different turnout."
Like his teammates, Woods said he knew immediately.
"I didn't know to what degree," he said, "but I knew there were some serioius issues."
On the hit, Woods had a disc in his neck that slipped and pinched his spinal cord, and "apparently, that's all it takes"
"When you're a teenager, you pretty much think you're invincible," Woods said. "I was depressed (at the first), because things weren't happening fast enough for me. But once I started to get up to speed with everything that was going on, I accepted the fate that had been dealt to me."
"He's been such an encouragement for those of us who played the game," Abercrombie said. "He makes you realize how fortunate you are. When things are not going well, we can look at things in such a pessimistic way. And then you look at Kyle, who lost the use of his arms and legs, and he has not let this detour him emotionally, in the least."
In one of the most inspirational moments in the history of Baylor football, Woods returned a few months later to address the team on the eve of a a 24-18 Peach Bowl victory over Clemson.
"If I could have, I probably would have gotten on the field with somebody else's jersey," Woods said. "I was just speaking from my heart when I spoke to those guys. I basically told them what my grandma told me when I first got hurt. She said there's a difference between your body giving out and you giving up on life. To this day, that's me."
After the emotional speech, Woods somehow pushed himself out of his wheel chair and stood up on his own power -- the first and only time he's done that since his injury.
"Oh man," Abercrombie said. "We were on Cloud Nine when we saw him. And then when he stood up . . . there was no way Clemson had a chance that day. It was a done deal. That's one of the most inspirational times in my life."
Woods' coaches and teammates have stuck by him, helping make adjustments to his Dallas home and then buying him a specially equipped van several years ago. A $250,000 fundraising project was started last October that will eventually help build a new house for Woods.
Teaff said the group is still about $70,000 short of its goal, which will also take care of taxes and maintenance on the house.
"I'm really pleased that we're honoring him, for many reasons," Teaff said. "Hopefully it will spur those who forgot about it or didn't know about it. We want to do something positive for Kyle, who has done so much for all of us."
"There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about what happened to Kyle and the situation that he's in," said former teammate Robert "Radar" Holt. "What happened to him could happen to any one of us. And if I was in his situation, I know I would not have the strength to go on like (Woods). He has no idea how much I love him and respect him for who he is and what all he's done for us."
Woods said he was humbled by the Wall of Honor recognition, which "really speaks volumes about those guys."
"It's pretty amazing that somebody could remember you after such a long time," he said. "I'm not going to gloat on myself. I feel like (my life achievements) are for other people to judge."
While legendary track coach Clyde Hart will join Woods on the Wall of Honor, this year's Hall of Fame class includes former basketball standouts Richard Tinsley and Lynnell Pyron Pilgrim, football all-American Santana Dotson and Baylor Bear Insider editor-in-chief Dave Cambpell.
Tickets for the banquet are $25 for Baylor letterwinners or $35 for the general public. Table reservations for 10 are also available for $350. To request tickets, call Donna Perry at 254-710-1266 or send your e-mail response to donna_perry@baylor.edu.
