High school can be a battleground for teenagers.
For a freshman at MLK Prep in Memphis, Tennesee, it was an absolute nightmare until a couple of football players stepped in to support him.
According to Fox 13, Freshman Michael Todd was bullied from the moment he stepped on campus the first week of freshmen year. He did not have a lot of clothing at home and wore the same outfits day-in and day-out which made him a target for school bullies.
After three weeks of non-stop bullying, two football players, Kristopher Graham and Antwan Garrett, stepped in to help their fellow classmate.
After watching Todd get bullied for his lack of clothing, Graham and Garrett decided to do something about it. They went home, went through their own closets, and decided to donate some clothing to Todd.
They brought shirts, pants, socks, and Garrett even brought a pair of New Balance sneakers that he had just bought for himself.
They approached Todd during school and gave him the bags of clothing.
“He wasn’t smiling or anything, and I was like ‘I think this is going to make you smile.’ We’re in the same third period and I apologize for laughing at you, and I want to give you something to make it up,” Graham said.
“When I saw people laughing at him, and bullying him, I felt like I needed to do something,” Graham explained.
Since coming to the school, Todd had faced endless bullying, but it wasn’t the first time he had had to deal with it.
“I’ve been bullied my entire life,” Todd explained. From a young age he faced criticism and mockery for wearing the same clothes every day, other children not understanding that he didn’t have a choice.
“I really don’t have clothes at home. My mom can’t buy clothes for me because I’m growing too fast,” Todd explained.
“I was very happy, I was shocked completely,” Todd said in response to the gift.
It was one of the only gifts Todd had ever received in his life, Graham explained, which made the high school football player get a little emotional.
“You guys are the best guys in my entire life,” Todd said to the two football players.