Andrea Adelson of ESPN wrote a great story on Miami safeties coach Ephraim Banda, largely because Banda has a great story to tell.
Born to a family of immigrants, Banda worked his way through college as a bartender, founded his own amateur football team to stay in game shape, joined a start-up college football program at age 25 and now, five years later, he's a full-time assistant at one of the sport's legacy programs.
It's a classic American success story, and an inspiration to every dreamer without connections or high-level football talent that a career can be forged out of nothing but determination and Red Bull.
"He is such a hard worker. He'd do anything,"Miami defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, Banda's sherpa on his career climb, said. "He was willing to go the extra mile to do anything it took to help the players with their learning and understanding."
Added Stanford defensive backs coach Duane Akina: "It's very hard as a defensive backs coach at a young age to move as quickly as he's moved because it's such a critical position. If you make a mistake back there, it's points. People have to trust you. Mark Richt hired Ephraim on Manny Diaz's recommendation, and that says a lot for Ephraim and his perseverance and staying with it. He's got a bright future. I think his career is going to absolutely take off. I may be asking him for a job down the road."
Said Banda, of himself: "You learn your body doesn't need a lot of sleep to function, like the military. When you're determined and you have an end goal and you're locked in, you're going to do whatever it takes."