THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 6, 1995 TAG: 9501050166
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JO-ANN CLEGG, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
IT'S NOT SURPRISING that football plays an important part in the life of the Daniels family.
Older son Devon, now a sophomore who plays the game at Lenoir-Rhyne College in Hickory, N.C., was co-captain of the Tallwood High School football team the first year that school opened. Derrick, 17, is a high school junior who hopes to follow in his older brother's footsteps at Tallwood and beyond.
``He's even going to get my old (Tallwood) number,'' Devon said proudly, ``Number 32.''
And James Daniels, a retired Navy man who now works for the government, can hold his own when his sons start moving the ball around in the front yard of the family's Charlestown Lakes home.
Football is far from the most important thing in their lives, however. Faith, family ties and getting an education top their list.
``I've always told my children you can't depend just on athletics, the education has to be there, too,'' the senior Daniels said.
That's one of the reasons the whole family, including younger sister Deidra, was so proud when Devon won a singular honor at Lenoir-Rhyne recently.
He was the student chosen to represent that school on the Southern Athletic Conference Division 2 GTE Academic All-American Football Team. The honor is reserved for those who do well both in athletics and in the classroom.
Daniels, a history and education major, has maintained an average in the 3.2 to 3.4 range while playing linebacker.
And playing well. ``I made 29 tackles this season,'' he said. ``Which I guess is kind of unusual for a special-teams player.''
Modesty about his accomplishments seems to come naturally to Daniels. ``Tallwood was 0-and 10 the year I was co-captain,'' he was quick to explain, ``but it was the first year they had a team.''
Only with a little prodding did he mention having been chosen the high school's most valuable player and making the Beach District second team that season.
If Devon is modest about his honors, other family members are quick to let him know how proud they are of him. For Deidra, part of that pride is in having not one, but two big brothers who have her interest at heart.
``I feel real protected,'' the petite, pretty Brandon Middle School student said as she flashed a big smile at the young men who towered over her.
``We're all very proud of Devon,'' Carolyn Daniels, a child care worker, admitted. ``He's a wonderful son.''
For James Daniels, the pride is mixed with concern for the difficulties teenagers and their parents face today.
``There's so much peer pressure,'' he said, ``it's not always easy (for parents) to keep (their children) on schedule.''
But Devon Daniels did stay ``on schedule'' through his high school years and heeded his parents' advice to put education before athletics.
He was accepted at Lenoir-Rhyne on the basis of his academic record. ``I didn't have an athletic scholarship at first,'' he said. That came later, after he had proven himself both in the classroom and on the football field.
He has never regretted choosing the small Lutheran run college. ``It has a nice school program, a good environment, it's not too far from home and it has a good academic ranking,'' he said.
The feeling is mutual. ``You have brought honor to yourself, to your team and to Lenoir-Rhyne College,'' Robert Spuller, the school's vice president and dean for academic affairs, wrote to Daniels after his selection to the GTE team. ``We are all very proud of you.''
Devon Daniels hopes to put his Lenoir-Rhyne education to work teaching history and coaching. ``That is, if the Lord is willing,'' he added with a seriousness that gave a deep meaning to the commonly used words. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by JO-ANN CLEGG
Athletics and academics have played an important part in the lives
of the Daniels family, which includes Tallwood junior Derrick, left;
Lenoir-Rhyne College honoree Devon, and their father, James
Daniels.
by CNB