Before Shamar Logan (Brooklyn, N.Y./Erasmus Hall High School) stepped onto the field at Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium for Saturday's showdown against the University of New Haven football program's fiercest rival, he took the time to survey the scene in front of the largest home crowd of the season.
The University of New Haven running back wasn't about to start checking out the defensive stalwarts on the visiting Southern Connecticut State squad until he first took care of one piece of business. Logan gazed into the stands until he locked eyes with his mother Luzett who proudly proclaims herself as "his No. 1 fan." It has become the same ritual that Logan practices at every game for the Chargers.
The relationship between Logan, one of five in program history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season, and his mom has always been a precious one but the bond between the two has grown through Luzett's battle with kidney failure and Shamar's unwavering support. She has been receiving treatment pretty much from the time that Shamar has been eluding would-be tacklers on the football field. While he can't make it back to his family's Brooklyn home quite as often as he would like to check up on his mother, he calls home every single day.
"My friends say, 'he is away at school and he calls you every day?," Luzett said. "(He asks), 'Mom, how are you feeling? How is dialysis today?' He was small when I got sick. That was one reason why I tried to get him into some type of sports because he was just so consumed and worried about me being in and out of the hospital that I had to have him not worry and be the child he needs to be."
There has been a lot of loss in Shamar's life. A cousin died when Logan was a freshman at UNH, his beloved grandmother passed away the following year and one of his middle school coaches also lost his life. Through the adversity, Shamar and his mother have helped each other through the tough times.
"I am always there, I just try to make her happy day by day and hopefully take her out of Brooklyn," Shamar said. "I had a car [last] year so I ended up going back and forth to visit her and I make sure somebody is over there when I am not there. It has been a lot, it has been a struggle.
"She doesn't want to worry me too much so will tell me some days when she is coming home that she is not feeling well but [tells him], 'don't worry about it, I am still strong.' I call her every morning, every night after I finish with practice so I just make sure she is good day by day."
Luzett wants Shamar to make the most of his time in college both on and off the field. She is there at every game and also beams with pride each time her oldest son, a sports management major, earns academic honors with the Chargers.
Logan ran for more than 100 yards five times as a redshirt freshman in 2019 including 121 yards in a 23-20 win over Southern Connecticut State as he finished with exactly 1,000 rushing yards. He ran for 54 yards including a 5-yard touchdown as New Haven defeated SCSU 38-9 for the 12th consecutive win over its New Haven area rivals.
Logan displayed his big-play ability in 2019 including a 75-yard run in the 2019 season finale against Stonehill. New Haven coach Chris Pincince has been pushing Logan to become a more complete running back. He caught a career-high four passes in a loss to nationally ranked Bowie State and that is just part of his growth as a running back.
"He has a breakaway type ability but what he needs to clean up a little bit is that not every play has to go 80 yards," Pincince said. "He is a dynamic player who can change the game, one of the better players in our conference and if he continues to improve, we should be in pretty good shape."
Football was not the first sport that Logan played but once he hit the gridiron, he knew he had found the sport he was born to play.
"He's been playing football since he was 4 going on 5 years old," Luzett Logan said. "When he was much younger, I was afraid. He had a fractured toe, he had a sprained finger so we had quite a few ER visits but I knew that he loved it and this is what he wanted to do because prior to that he tried soccer, he tried baseball and he said, 'no mom that is not it.' He never said he wanted to play football. We were driving one day and saw this [football] banner and he said, 'mom, I want to play football.' He had done everything karate, baseball, and I said, 'OK.' As soon as he got on that field, it was like that was where he was meant to be."
Matt Scott, New Haven's defensive coordinator, was the one who did much of the heavy lifting during the recruitment of Logan when he was a star at Erasmus Hall. It didn't take long for Logan to realize that New Haven was the place for him.
"The first day I saw Coach Scott, he came to recruit me, I saw nothing but good energy, positive vibes," Logan said. "I liked how Coach Scott is giving me everything that would make me come to the school. When I came here for a visit and saw Coach P [Pincince], they treated me like a family, it is a place I can call home."
Logan has a chance to become the second UNH player to rush for at least 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons joining the legendary Roger Graham. From the time Logan arrived on campus, reminders of Graham's greatness are hard to miss. There is a plaque commemorating Graham being named the Harlon Hill Award winner as the Division II national player of the year in 1993. Graham was inducted into the UNH Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000.
"It is definitely a motivational tool," Logan said. "It can help me day by day that I can be as good as them or I can get my name up somewhere so it is definitely motivation for me."
His teammates certainly wouldn't be surprised to see his name up on the walls inside the UNH athletic facilities one day.
"Shamar is a really tough runner, he is a great weapon to have next to me in the backfield," New Haven quarterback Connor Degenhardt (Westford, Mass./Westford Academy) said. "He is a smart back, he helps me when I am out there. It is nice being able to hand it to him and know he is going to run as hard as he can.
"Shamar never goes down on first contact, that is what has really impressed me. I think he is back in his rhythm and he is a tough dude to bring down. After I give him the ball, I carry out my fake and it is fun to turn around and see where he is at."
As tough as Logan may be on the football field, in his eyes the person in his family with the most competitive drive is his mother.
"In high school, pop warner, now college she has always been there," Shamar said. "Even if she is not feeling good or not, she will always be there. She is strong. Watching my mom, a single parent providing for me and my sister. She struggled a lot but she maintained and got through it and that is what really helps me because seeing that she is strong, I am strong just like her so that helps me."
