Tragedy struck Fort Worth Christian’s Jamal Marshall at an early age. His father passed away after being hit by a drunk driver in late May 2011, and his mother succumbed to breast cancer less than a month later.

Marshall and his brother, Jay, then moved from Memphis to Hurst, Texas to live with his grandmother and begin a new life in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Marshall’s grandmother has been a huge source of support for he and his older brother. Marshall explained that his grandmother has gone out of her way and has done everything that she can do to support them.

“My grandma is the strongest person that I know,” Marshall said. “She made sure we had food on the table and made sure we got to school on time. Anything that me and my brother needed, she made sure we had. She is my rock.”

Jay, the older Marshall brother, who currently plays football on the Division II level, has been a big inspiration for Jamal, as the two have been through and overcome so much to get to where they are today. The bond between them has only strengthened over the years through the adversity.

“My brother Jay plays football at Harding and works just as hard as me,” Jamal Marshall stated. “He is a big inspiration to me because he went through the same thing as me and was still able to raise me and be strong for me.”

Now, Jamal has blossomed into a star two-way, three-sport athlete for the Cardinals in North Richland Hills, where he excels at football, basketball, and track. Football, though, is Marshall’s love and where he shines the most.