"Sports' influence"

When the name Troy Smith is mentioned in a sports bar today, a riveting conversation about Ohio State's star QB is sure to follow. His three wins over Michigan, his Heisman Trophy candidacy, his chance at being an effective NFL quarterback are sure to be mentioned.

But the fodder won't likely include how Smith got to the pedestal he stands on today, on top of the college football world, about to win the Heisman Trophy on Saturday and play for the national championship on Jan. 8.

No one mentions how Smith was the last player to be given a scholarship in 2003.

When the name Dwyane Wade is brought up in a sports bar today, there is plenty to talk about. Wade's heroic performance in the playoffs last year, as he led Miami to its first NBA title; Wade being compared to Michael Jordan; Wade being compared to LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.

But no one mentions Wade's road to South Beach, how he escaped the projects of Chicago's South Side, how he dealt with having a drug addict mother - who was arrested more than once - to make it to the NBA.

Today these athletes' stories, rightly so, are being told. "Sports Illustrated" named Wade its "Sportsman of the Year," dedicating a substantial article to Wade and his upbringing. As Smith prepares to accept the Heisman, the media is telling his story.

Both are inspiring, both are "feel-good" and both show what sports can do for boys who need direction.

Both Smith and Wade grew up without a father (until Wade moved in with his father while his mother was struggling with drug problems - but he would later leave his father's home for his girlfriend’s house during high school). Both players' mothers were drug addicts. Both players grew up in tough neighbourhoods, where nothing came easy for them.

They were confused young boys with no direction in life - no one pushing them to where they needed to go.

Sports saved them.

Smith found football at a young age, playing for Irvin White, who also took the young boy in as a foster child. Wade didn't discover his love for basketball until he moved in with his father. He would eventually push himself harder and harder because he wanted to send a message to his mother that she could overcome her problems.

Life was never easy for either of the boys, but non-parental figures helped them get college scholarships. Without the scholarships, there's no way they could have afforded college. Smith got Ohio State's last scholarship. Wade, pushed by his girlfriend and her mother, elevated his test scores enough to receive a scholarship to Marquette.

It is common for people to criticize universities for pampering athletes, for ignoring failed exams in the classroom. And, to a certain extent, this is true. Athletes at major universities do get preferential treatment.

But on the flip side, the scholarships handed out are the only way a lot of these young men and women can afford college. And while they may not have academic aspirations when first enrolling in school, they often discover that football or basketball isn't everything.

Smith plans on graduating with a communications degree in the spring. As a quarterback, it's needless to say communication is a huge part of the job.

Both of these athletes are on top of the world, but, at the same time, they remain humble, realizing that where they come from, nothing should be taken for granted. Just look at Maurice Clarett, the last Buckeyes' star to lead them to a national title. Now he's in jail.

That's how quickly things can change for the worst.

But for so many young kids in broken-down households, with no one to grasp onto, sports is an escape from the abyss they are in danger of being swept into.

Hopefully youngsters across the country will get a chance to read the articles on Smith and Wade. Because although a very, very small percentage of young men and women go on to become professional athletes, a great number of adolescents are touched by the grace of sports, finding motivation to do things with their lives they never would have thought possible.

And they inspire others at the same time. Smith's and Wade's mothers are clean now, not only celebrating their sons' improbable accomplishments, but doing positive things for themselves.

It's remarkable, if you think about it. As Pat Forde wrote about Troy Smith's story: it's "Bordering on Fiction."