Feb. 21, 2007

Growing up in Springfield, Ohio, no one ever expected much from the skinny, frail boy named Ron Burton. His parents had passed away by the time he was 13 years old and he had moved in with his grandmother, who was a gospel preacher.

"Neighborhood kids teased him relentlessly on being poor and small," said Paul Burton, his youngest son. "They even nicknamed him "Nothing" because in their eyes, he was never going to be anything."

Burton grew up extremely poor, but his grandmother felt the best guidance for the young boy was with the church, so he spent most of his free time singing in the choir. Burton realized that he only liked going to church because no one judged him or minded that he was poor.

With the neighborhood kids teasing him, Burton decided to try out for the football team in middle school, however the administration snickered at the thought and refused to let him because of his frail build. After much pleading, he was given a uniform and two years later, the eighth grader was allowed to come off the bench and play in the final game of the season. It didn't matter that there were only 35 seconds left in a contest that had already been decided, Burton just reveled in the fact that he was given the opportunity.

With high school coaches recruiting for their freshmen teams, no one was interested in Burton. But head coach Jim McDonald saw something in the young man and spent a few generous minutes with him. He told him he needed to have discipline and training to play football, so he would have to run seven miles every day. From that day forward, Burton ran five days a week, beginning at 4 a.m., and never stopped.

"My father was really just tired of all the teasing from the other kids," said Ron Burton Jr., "The fact that here was a man actually giving him some advice, my father just ate it up. And from that day on, my father trained to be the best."
 
Burton's daily run made the undersized kid one of the fastest football players in the state of Ohio. After earning All-State and All-America honors as a high school player, Burton was expected to attend Ohio State. However, the great legendary coach Ara Parseghian from Northwestern changed Burton's mind.

Burton was supposed to be a top recruit at Ohio State, but Northwestern's Ara Parseghian talked him into coming to Evanston.

"Coach Parseghian knew my father was being heavily recruited by Woody Hayes and everyone though he was going to attend Ohio State," said Burton Jr., "But Parseghian said `Look at our schedule - we are going to beat Oklahoma, Ohio State, Michigan and Notre Dame. Come be a part of this program.' My father just loved that this man had all this confidence and wanted him to be a part of it."

Burton also loved that Northwestern prided itself on developing the best student as well as the best athlete it possibly could . As a young boy, Burton never thought he would receive an education, especially from such a renowned university like Northwestern.

"My father looked at Northwestern as sort of his own Camelot," said Paul. "From the coaches to the support staff to the professors, the people were so welcoming to my father. He also loved the gardens, the lakes and the buildings. Everything around him was so beautiful and such a special place. He just enjoyed being at Northwestern because of all the opportunities he was given there."

With Parseghian's mentoring, Burton and the Wildcats went from a winless season in 1957 to a 6-3 record during his senior season, which included triumphs over Ohio State, Oklahoma, Michigan and Notre Dame. Burton established school single-season records for most points (76), while also setting career touchdown and scoring marks. In addition, Burton claimed All-Big Ten and All-America accolades in 1959, and was named a Heisman Trophy finalist.

After college, Burton was the first-ever draft pick by the Boston Patriots. However, he soon realized that he would have to move on from Northwestern and away from the people he loved.

"Here was my father who had just signed to play professional football and he cried -- and not because he was happy," said Paul. "He did not want to leave Northwestern, the university that had given him so much." 

Despite his reservations in leaving Evanston, Boston became Burton's second home, where he would spend six successful seasons with the Patriots and set several records. He was the first player in franchise history to rush for over 100 yards in a game. He also compiled 1,009 combined yards in rushing and receiving in 1962. In addition, his 91-yard touchdown return on a missed field goal in 1962 still stands today as a Patriots record.

After retiring from professional football in 1965, Burton moved into the private sector where he was an executive consultant for the John Hancock Life Insurance Company. Burton also devoted the majority of his spare time as a motivational speaker.

In 2005, Northwestern honored its former standout by applying his name to the Ron Burton Academic Advising Center on campus.

Through those speeches, he realized it was time to give back to the same poor, skinny children he once was and in 1985 Burton created the Ron Burton Training Center. The training center, located in Hubbardston, Mass., allows underprivileged and at-risk children to come to a five-week summer camp where they are taught teamwork, sportsmanship and moral conduct through athletics.

"One day, my father sat us all down and said `I was never given a chance growing up, but Coach McDonald took just a few minutes and spoke to me, and it changed my life','' said Ron Jr. "He then created this camp so kids just like him - the weak and poor - would have a place to go and be loved. He wanted to give them all the opportunities to succeed."

Now in its 22nd year, the Ron Burton Training Center has served over 3,000 students, teaching them the core values that Burton believed in -- peace, patience, love and humility. The camp also has another Burton tradition. Each morning the students run seven miles a day. 

"In my father's eyes, the training center was a mini-Northwestern or another Camelot," Paul said. "It is built on 300 acres with lakes and a large dormitory. We have expanded each year, bringing hope and opportunities to many more young men and women."

In 2003, Burton passed away from a long battle with cancer. However, in recognition of his many accomplishments and contributions to Northwestern, the school dedicated the Ron Burton Academic Advising Center in his honor in 2005. The center provides student-athletes with a state-of-the-art computer lab and large study spaces as well as mentoring services.

"My father found out before he died that Northwestern was honoring him and I don't think words could even describe how excited he was over it," said Ron Jr. "With Northwestern recognizing him, we have found another way of giving more opportunities to students, while also continuing his legacy."

A legacy in which Burton turned his life from a being "Nothing" to a something.

Something, and someone, very special.