Fred Gibson was raised by his grandparents in Waycross. The former Georgia Bulldogs receiver and record holder was born when his mother was just 13 years old.
“It was a group effort raising me,’’ Gibson said. “My mother was just a kid when she had me. I owe a lot to my grandmother and my grandfather. I also had a lot of aunts and uncles that helped out. But it was my grandmother that was the one that kept me out of trouble.’’
Gibson, now 33, is recently getting to know his mother better, saying “We are just catching up on old times. The relationship is getting better.’’
He goes on to add, “My mother was incarcerated and went to prison for drugs two different times. She went through a very rough period, and it’s not easy when you are 13 and have a child. But she has really changed her whole life. She is doing great and has a job now.’’
Gibson honored his grandmother's wishes when he went back to UGA and got his degree. After four very productive seasons on the football field in Athens, which led to then trying to make his way in the NFL and also a short stint with the Canadian Football League, he went back to Athens and graduated in late 2010.
“My grandmother sacrificed a lot and I owed her that; it was also something I needed to do for myself,’’ said Gibson, who now works for Coca-Cola.
“It’s all about the degree. You don’t think about that a lot in college while things are going well on the field and you are about to get a chance at the NFL. Football didn’t work out for me long-term. Now I have a foundation for the real world.’’
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