Dreams die hard, and, when reality hits, it can crush a person.
But if you are a champion such as 21-year-old Maurice Alexander, you stand tall. You don’t crumble. You don’t collapse, mentally or physically. Instead, you re-create yourself and march forward with steely-eyed determination.
Alexander had played quarterback since he was 4 years old — that’s 81 percent of his life — but he gave up the position this spring knowing his chances of becoming FIU’s starter had greatly diminished.
Despite winning two state titles as Booker T. Washington’s starting quarterback — leading the Tornadoes to a 15-0 season as a senior in 2014 — the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Alexander was never going to be the prototype at the position.