( CNN ) -- In this dark and dismal year for college sports , when each scandal seems worse than the next , inspiration arrives in a motorized wheelchair . In a month when Penn State is dealing with child sex abuse charges against former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky , the fallout bringing down longtime head coach Joe Paterno and the university president , a reason to still believe in what 's good about college football will never play another down again . His name is Eric LeGrand , and you 'll find him Saturday on the field at Rutgers Stadium in New Jersey . He will be honored at the team 's annual Senior Day before a game against Cincinnati , and the expected crowd of more than 50,000 will no doubt save the loudest cheers for him . On October 16 , 2010 , he collided with Army kick returner Malcolm Brown while making a tackle . The collision left him paralyzed from the neck down , and when he awoke in the hospital , he was connected to a respirator that doctors said he would need for the rest of his life . `` I could barely turn my head , '' LeGrand said . `` They had to roll me to change my position . It felt like I was going to die . That 's what it felt like . '' But now , 13 months later , he can move his head and shoulders when he talks , his long braids moving as he does . He has attacked therapy the way he once went after weight-lifting records in the gym , and believes it is only a matter of time before he is walking back on the field at Rutgers . SI : Why LeGrand thinks he will walk again . No one can say for sure if that will happen . But his belief that it someday will not only fuels him , but also has become a rallying cry that has spread from the Piscataway , New Jersey , campus across the country . LeGrand , 21 , has a way of touching people he 's met , from professional athletes to his teammates to the more than 26,000 fans who follow him on Twitter . `` Just right away , he had this positive energy and positive outlook on life , '' said Alex Morgan , the breakout star for the U.S. women 's soccer team who became friends with him at a professional game in July . `` That 's what inspired me . I feel I 'm lucky to get to know him because he 's such an inspiring person . '' He has inspired Bart Scott , the New York Jets linebacker , to support his `` Believe Fund '' with T-shirt sales . He has spent time with nearly all the professional teams in the New York area , including Yankees stars Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez . Erin Andrews , the ESPN sideline reporter , reached out to LeGrand a few weeks after the accident . He caught her on a bad day when he called . `` Here I am , feeling sorry for myself and this sweet kid calls me , '' Andrews said . `` It really put a new perspective on my life . I get emotional just thinking about it now . I thank him for that . '' But he has n't just met celebrities . LeGrand has made inspiring others a goal for his life , regularly speaking to youth and school groups around New Jersey . Last month at a Jersey City middle school , students cheered from classroom windows as his wheelchair motored up to the entrance , waving signs with his name and No . 52 , his uniform number . He told the kids that he believes this is only the beginning of his journey , how any time life gets him down , he remembers there is always someone who has it worse than he does . `` I take this as a responsibility to get better , '' he said . `` I do n't want to let everybody down who 's been behind my back . That 's what keeps me going every day . Even though I ca n't control when I 'm going to get up , but what I can control I take as a responsibility to do what I 've got to do to get better . '' Near the end of the question and answer period that followed his speech , one shy girl walked to the front of the stage and asked him a blunt question : `` Did you ever ask God why this happened to you ? '' `` I do n't ask God why , because I truly believe this happened for a reason , '' he told her . `` I believe I 've been called upon to help other people out . I do n't ask God why this happened to me , because I know that question will be answered down the road when I am walking again , and I 've helped a lot more people believe in themselves . '' That word -- believe -- has become his rallying cry . Spend time with him , and it 's easy to see how frustration could take over . LeGrand has no movement below his shoulders . It takes two hours , with his mother , Karen , and a physical therapist , to get him out of bed and dressed in the morning . His rehab sessions at Kessler Institute in West Orange are grueling . His occupational therapist places LeGrand 's left arm in a harness that suspends it . The therapist then uses electrodes to stimulate LeGrand 's pectoral muscles to move the arm toward his body , then LeGrand must hold it there for 30 seconds . His face will strain from the effort . `` This is my workout now , '' he said . `` It 's crazy . I go from squatting 605 pounds to just trying to hold my arm up . '' But LeGrand is smiling even when he makes that observation . The smile is almost always present . He calls 2011 `` the fastest year of my life , '' and he keeps himself as busy as possible . He is back taking two classes at Rutgers , sports labor relations and criminal procedure , and is part of the school 's radio broadcast team at home games . LeGrand always thought he would try to get into broadcast after a career in the NFL . Now , he has accelerated that timetable , doing spots on both ESPN and CBS Sports recently in addition to his regular work during the pregame and halftime shows at Rutgers . Exactly one expert picked Rutgers to win the Big East title this year : LeGrand . If the Scarlet Knights , pegged to finish last in the preseason poll , win their final two games against Cincinnati and Connecticut , they 'll do just that . If they do , LeGrand will find himself in the national spotlight again . Rutgers finished 4-8 last season , and the devastating injury to LeGrand cast a pall over the entire campus . Now , his presence does the opposite . When he motors around the stadium on game days , fans call out his name and cheer , or stop him to explain how he 's touched their lives without knowing it . He is , in a dark time with scandal after scandal in college sports , a ray of light . `` It 's crazy , '' said his sister Nicole . `` He ca n't even lift a finger but he 's touched an entire world . ''
Football collision left Rutgers player Eric LeGrand paralyzed . 13 months later , LeGrand can move his head and shoulders somewhat . He maintains a positive outlook and believes he will walk again . LeGrand : ` I am going to be able to play football again.