Monday, December 26, 2005

Finishing Moves

There was Darnell Autry, above right, carrying the ball and Northwestern to an improbable Big Ten title and berth into the 1996 Rose Bowl. And there was defensive back Hudhaifa Ismaeli, called "the best athlete I have ever been around" by another teammate. But it ended for both, each without a degree. Autry wound up in Las Vegas, working as a doorman in a bar at Treasure Island and as a lifeguard and hotel security agent elsewhere. Ismaeli found work on a production line in a factory that made sewer pipes, or doing construction work. Now, each is poised to take part in graduation ceremonies at Northwestern in June.

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