Guess what? Pine Bluff Zebras legend Basil Shabazz made it after all

Ever since Basil Shabazz played his final down of football at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff he’s been healing.

Indeed, he was nearly paralyzed in 1997 on a play that ended any chances of a football career, but I am not referring to healing physically.

Shabazz has had to live with the fact that he may have been the most talented prep athlete ever while starring in four sports at Pine Bluff High School and wasn’t able to parlay that talent into a long professional career that would have earned him millions of dollars.

Like his neighbor and close friend, Torii Hunter, who earned five Major League Baseball all-star game appearances on his way to one becoming one of the elite center fielders of his era.

But it didn’t happen for Shabazz, and he knew he’d be forever labeled as the kid who “never made it.” That’s why he hopped on a bus to join his girlfriend Reca, now his wife, in her native Texas and live a reclusive life and never return to Pine Bluff.

Some of his high school teammates knew he lived in Texas but had no idea where or how to reach him.

He wanted to be alone. He didn’t want to think about what could have been or what once was. Cutting ties was even easier knowing his two brothers did at early ages as well as his mother. Going back to Pine Bluff would only increase that pain. And there was the chance he could become a statistic like other friends who were victims of the pitfalls of the streets — dead or in prison.

So, he worked odd jobs to provide for a family that started with one daughter shortly before he married and then two sons after. For many years, Shabazz’s joy hasn’t come on the field or the court but by the simple pleasures that you and I enjoy.

Enjoying the company of a loving wife and seeing your kids grow up. Spending time with them and putting your energy into raising them right and enjoying the good times.

Finding Christianity helped wash away the disappointment and sadness he experienced from the death of his closest family members and friends and teammates. He could breathe again, started making a living teaching baseball lessons at an academy.

He felt better about himself and almost six years ago he felt more comfortable sharing his story. I visited him for two days during the hot Texas summer and chronicled his journey.

The most painful part of that trip was realizing that Shabazz’s timing was off. A player with his kind of talent wouldn’t have been allowed to fail today. Shabazz scored five touchdowns in the 1990 state championship game against a Texarkana defense that had dominated all season.

It was easy to see that he not only was destined for college stardom but a long NFL career. A 6-foot-1, 200-pound frame with 4.2 speed provides the kind of explosion that isn’t seen often, even in the NFL.

I couldn’t think of any of the major prospects I’d covered who just simply didn’t qualify and that was that. Like if Darren McFadden just couldn’t make the grade and gave up on football.

No, in this day talent is identified early, and if there is a potential stumbling block it is dealt with. Learning disabilities, unstable home lives, there are proactive ways that school districts and coaching staffs deal with those situations now.

“There is no doubt in my mind if the same situation happened now, it would be way different,” said Shabazz’s friend Theron “Pearl” Eckwood, who starred on Pine Bluff’s 1990 state basketball championship team with Shabazz and has seen four of his five sons play intercollegiate athletics. “Back then, they would just pass you through. It is more about academics. You have to have the academics. We weren’t really prepared for that next education level.

“He still could have been a Prop 48 and sat out a year and if he graduated in four years, get that year back or go to junior college. But things were moving fast, and he wanted to provide for his family. If he had been eligible to play college football, he might have made the decision to go to college. But since, it wasn’t going to be eligible he didn’t want to wait. In 2019, things would have been different.”

Shabazz knows that, too, and probably only made it tougher to deal with. However, he has and life has gone on, and he has healed.

I witnessed another milestone in his healing process last Friday night. Shabazz returned home to be honored by the Z’s Dynasty Basketball Network, an organization Eckwood heads to honor past Pine Bluff High School standouts and give back to the community. The group handed out two scholarships over the weekend. There was also an alumni basketball game fundraiser.

The town Shabazz shunned for decades welcomed him back with open arms, and witnessing the hugs and laughs he shared with former teammates, including a long embrace with Hunter, and coaches was priceless.

“I buried my whole family and that is painful within itself,” he said. “But to see so many guys I’ve known since I was eight makes it much smoother. Those guys are like family as well. That was the most relieving part of it all. To have that selected group I’ve known my whole life, that’s why you saw so many smile and so many hugs.”

Shabazz described the event “as a relief.” The relief was apparent on the other attendees’ faces, too. Everyone was glad to see Shabazz at home happy and content. This homecoming weekend seemed to be another step in the healing process.

“I was just happy for him that he came back home and people got a chance to see his new look and how successful he has been in life being a husband and father,” Eckwood said. “I am proud of the man he has become and the maturity he has shown now as a man. He can make a big impact on a bunch of different kids’ lives with how he has dealt with the walk he has had go through to get to this point.”

Things haven’t changed much while Shabazz was away. Pine Bluff is still depressed and kids growing up there are still struggling with poverty and being raised in single-parent homes like he was. He wants to help and make more return trips teaching youth sports skills like he has in the Dallas Metroplex.

“The most important thing is for the youth,” Shabazz said. “So many young kids from the ages of 8-14 could use the advice to help them move forward. We can help them and be role models and show them how we did things at a high level. It’s great to see what the city still has.

“It’s disturbing that the young people don’t know the history of Pine Bluff, and that’s why I think there is so much crime. You need someone to help lead those guys. Nobody wants to see a 13 or 14-year-old life taken away. I want to do anything I can to help the youth [of Pine Bluff]. You need one guy for them to look up to, but you need more than one guy to help make that change.”

Shabazz never played major college football or made millions of dollars playing pro sports, but he made it. He made it out of Pine Bluff.

And now, he’s glad to return and see if he can make a difference.