The Haines Middle School Hurricanes might have been up 29-0, but that didn't make this 13-year-old's touchdown any less important.
Jack McGraw, an eighth-grade student and lifelong football fan from St. Charles, Ill., has cerebral palsy, and this touchdown was his shining moment, the Beacon News reports. His mother said that it wasn't until Jake got older that he realized his disability would prevent him from running like his hero, Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte.
Cerebral palsy is a term for a variety of incurable but treatable neurological disorders that appear in infancy or early childhood and permanently affect body movement and muscle coordination, according to the National Institutes of Health.
“Jack had his moments, where he wondered why he couldn’t be like everyone else,” his mother, Jill, told the Beacon News.
Hurricanes coach Sean Masoncup, however, had been planning on this special play for a long time. He even told the opposing team's coach about the plan, according to Fox Chicago. Everyone knew about the plan -- everyone, but Jack.
As his motorized scooter rolled toward the goal posts, the defense for the Rotolo Bulldogs parted to let him through.
“I’ve coached a lot of games,” Masoncup told the Beacon News. “But this was the greatest game I could ever imagine.”
The crowd exploded as Jack crossed over the line, throwing his hands into the air with the referee.
"It was really emotional---cuz you know, he can't walk for the rest of his life and it was just a dream for him to get the ball and score in an actual game," quarterback Zack Mettetal told Fox Chicago.
Haines Middle School even singled out Jack's play in its daily news bulletin on the school website. "The highlight of the game was Jack McGraw’s first career touchdown on the final play of the game. Way to go Jack!"
An honor roll student, Jack heads off to high school next year. His new goal? To play basketball, his mom said.