Everyone has probably seen or heard about Derrick Coleman and his path to the Big Game with the Seattle Seahawks. You may have seen his inspirational Duracell Commercial about how difficult his road has been to get to where he is. So you may know – Derrick Coleman, professional running back for the Seahawks, is deaf. Possibly the first deaf offensive NFL player in history.

“They told me it couldn’t be done. That I was a lost cause. I was picked on. And picked last. They gave up on me. Told me I should just quit.” But oddly enough, Coleman didn’t listen.

Coleman lost his hearing at 3 and has spent his life struggling to be better and pushing back against stigmatism.

“Everyone is impressed by him,” said Seattle quarter back Russell Wilson, to reporter Mike Freeman. “Not just as a player, but as a person.”

This hard-working man again inspired when he wrote back to a hearing-impaired fan who reached out to him.

Riley Kovalicik and her twin sister are also hearing impaired and also wear hearing aids. They saw Coleman’s commercial, identified with it and Riley wrote her gratitude. This star of the gridiron wrote back!

The girls sent their story of motivation from their hero online and it went viral; showing everyone that Coleman is not just a dedicated sportsman, but a hero and extraordinary example as well. If only all celebrities were this way!

There is one more week until the Big Game, but I know who I will be rooting for.

~Content provided by BleacherReport, and KOMO News~