Story highlights
Football quarterback Max Akin honors friend with homecoming crown
Video of the moment has gone viral
Max Akin, a quarterback at Dallas’ Keller Fossil Ridge High School, didn’t think he ought to be crowned homecoming king.
There was someone else who was more deserving in his eyes.
So during a halftime homecoming ceremony last weekend, Akin did something selfless.
He turned to his friend and team manager K.L. Norwood, knelt on one knee and presented him the crown.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
K.L., who has cerebral palsy, was also a nominee for the title.
“I was lucky enough to acknowledge the fact that K.L. deserved it in the first place,” Max told CNN. “K.L. is the most positive person you’d ever meet.”
“What I did wasn’t as admirable as how K.L. treats everyone,” he said. “Loving everybody and having a heart like K.L. is what really matters in this world.”
Max said K.L.’s response almost moved him to tears.
“He started crying, which made me want to cry,” he said. “But I told him, ‘Hey, I still have to get out there and play in the 3rd quarter.”
Fossil Ridge went on to win 40-12.