For your average college football player, scoring a touchdown in a spring game is something that might easily be forgotten.
For 8-year-old Noah Roberts, achieving the feat was one of the highlights of his young life.
Noah, who suffers from a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis, has been around the East Carolina Pirates for two years. He's formed a special bond with the team and helped the coaches and players more than he may ever know.
So for head coach Ruffin McNeill and the rest of the team, letting the youngster run for a score on the last play of practice was the least they could do for Noah.
"Noah is special to us," McNeill said. "I think of Noah, I forget any kind of hurt or complaint or pain that I may have."
In a move reminiscent of a heartwarming gesture by the Nebraska Cornhuskers several weeks ago, the Pirates ended their scrimmage by watching Noah sprint into the endzone.
"If you didn't have goosebumps or a tear in your eye," offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley said later, "you may want to check your pulse after that one."
For Noah, who has had tumors removed from his brain and spinal cord during the past few years, the touchdown was a welcome reprieve from his grueling daily routine.
“When he found out about this it just lifted his spirits," Noah's mother, Lisa, told WCTI12, "he was so happy it’s given him something to look forward to the past few days."
