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Original Bull maintains balance between life and football

© St. Petersburg Times,
published November 9, 2001

TAMPA -- There are only six of them, six original South Florida players remaining from the fall of 1997, USF's first year of football.

With just two games left in the season, the six fifth-year seniors and close friends are reaching the end of a rewarding road.

Bernard Brown, Tchecoy Blount, Joe Morgan, Derrick Rackard, Anthony Williams and Alvin Salter were there for the first game and the transition to Division I-A.

What? Don't know who Salter is?

In all likelihood, Salter, a wide receiver, will complete his career with one reception for 15 yards.

But assessing Salter's time at USF by that solitary catch would overlook about 99.9 percent of his story, from the trauma in his past, to the baby son already following in his footsteps, to his future in the military.

Salter grew up in Tallahassee, but his curiosity with the Air Force developed in St. Petersburg.

His uncle, George Waters, was a navigator in the Air Force, and Salter's career path was forged during twice-yearly visits with his uncle.

"He lived close to a golf course, and we would go out to the course and watch planes fly by in the mornings," Salter said. "He would point at the planes and say what kind they were and talk about them."

A management information systems major who graduates in May, Salter joined the Air Force ROTC at USF.

He is targeting a career in intelligence. Salter has balanced school, football and ROTC -- and a fiancee and son -- yet he almost never made it to college because of two family tragedies.

Salter committed to USF after receiving multiple offers at the start of his senior year at Tallahassee Florida A&M, in part to be close to his uncle.

Waters, however, had cancer and died of complications from another illness shortly after Salter's commitment.

Less than five months later, Salter was blindsided again.

A week before signing day in early 1997, his father, Albert, died. "He was walking along the street (in Tallahassee), and a college student fell asleep at the wheel and hit him on the sidewalk," Salter said.

Devastated and distraught, Salter recoiled from the biggest decision of his life -- signing to play college football. His brother, LaWayne Salter, 25, now a minister, convinced him to follow through.

"My brother told me, "You can't change what was going to happen. You've got to move on with your life."'

Salter can recall meaningful dates. Ask him when something happened, and he answers with the specific month, day and year.

His uncle died Aug.10, 1996. His father died Jan.27, 1997.

There are plenty of good dates to remember, too. He met his fiancee, Natasha Neal, in statistics class on May10, 1998. His son, Donte, was born April18, 2000. He became engaged Valentine's Day 2001. He will be married March9, 2002.

How does Salter manage it all?

"A lot of patience from the people around me."

His life is coming full circle. His soon-to-be father-in-law recently retired from the Air Force, for which he was a helicopter flight engineer.

His son already is developing a love of football. When the 18-month-old watches a game on television and others are talking, he'll say, "Shhhhhh."

"If he sees a football, if he sees a football player, if he sees a billboard with football or on PlayStation, he knows," Neal said.

"It's football, football, football."

Nagging hamstring injuries, switches from offense to defense and back to offense and a talented receiving corps, perhaps USF's best and deepest position, have conspired to keep Salter off the field. But it hasn't diminished the value of his experience.

"He's amazing," USF coach Jim Leavitt said. "He does ROTC. He has a family. He's a good student. He's a pleasant person. He'll be very successful after he leaves here."

Which is soon. Just two games remain for Salter and the six Bulls who were there Sept.6, 1997, when it all started with an 80-3 win over Kentucky Wesleyan.

"I've met a lot of people, had a world of different experiences, started my personal family," Salter said. "(The six fifth-year players), we really don't talk about it coming to an end. I think I can speak for all six of us when I say, when we step on the field for these last two games, they're going to be filled with a lot of emotions.

"You only get so many opportunities, and it's best to take advantage of them as they come."

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