With mom's guidance, Grigsby grows up

Nicolas Grigsby was injured, his right shoulder separated to the point where sleeping - much less football - was sheer agony.

More than that, the Arizona Wildcats running back was hurt. Football had been a part of Grigsby's life since he was a peewee star. It earned him a college scholarship at age 18 and became his identity as he corralled a starting job.

Now, football was gone - and Grigsby was miserable.

His grades had slipped, and his mood had soured. Mandatory team meetings were ditched, and his coaches were furious.

"I didn't know what to do anymore," Grigsby said. "I was frustrated with everything."

Bernice Grigsby heard her son's pain over the phone, could sense the tears falling - even when Nicolas said he was fine.

Mothers know.

"I told him, 'You have to pray; you have to believe,'" Bernice said.

The story of Nicolas Grigsby's transformation from team troublemaker to senior-class leader started last fall, with a son questioning his future - and regretting his past - during his nightly phone calls home.

The end will come sometime in December or January, when the Whittier, Calif., native finishes his UA career as one of the most accomplished running backs in program history.

Between now and then, Grigsby said, he's hoping to cement his legacy as a competitor, teammate and, he hopes, champion. Now 21, he has a new attitude on the field and a relocated family cheering him on.

"I grew up," Grigsby said. "Those are the main words, exactly."

It was "all about him"

Ask Grigsby about his first year at the UA, and he's shoots back an answer that's as quick as his well-known "first step."

"I was running for my life," he said. "I didn't know half the plays - it was, 'Go right' or 'Go left'. I was just running."

It was all too much and came all too soon.

Grigsby had been a star at both St. Paul High School in Santa Fe Springs, Calif., and California High School in nearby Whittier before enrolling at the UA in 2007.

He quickly made a name for himself - for better and worse.

Grigsby was involved in an off-campus altercation the weekend he enrolled - the result, he said, "of hanging out with the wrong crowd and being in the wrong situation."

Things got worse when Grigsby beat out incumbent Chris Jennings for the starting job. While he was earning praise for his quickness, "off the field, I was lackadaisical," Grigsby said.

"I was living it up," he said. "When you're the starting running back as a freshman, people think they know you and who you are. I was real complacent. My teammates knew. They'd say, 'The freshman has a big head, but he's putting out (on the field). Let him keep doing his thing.'"

Grigsby kept it up. He was ejected from a scrimmage as a sophomore for punching teammate Devin Ross following a hard tackle. At the time, coach Mike Stoops called the punch "disturbing, and something I've never been a part of in a competitive situation."

Though he finished the 2008 season with 1,153 yards and 13 touchdowns, many viewed him as combustible.

Bernice Grigsby knew that things were, in her words, "all about him."

"We had to get him back to reality, to let him know that family is first," she said. "We'd ask him, 'How are you going to be a captain if you're not going to motivate them? You have to be humble. You have to be an example.' "

An injury last fall put Grigsby's priorities back in place.

An injury and a lesson

The acromioclavicular joint acts as a pivot point for the shoulder, allowing people to, among other things, lift their arms above their heads. AC sprains, commonly known as separated shoulders, make even the most basic movements nearly impossible.

Grigsby had never heard of the joint, or the injury, before Sept. 26. The Wildcats were playing their Pac-10 opener at Oregon State. On their fourth offensive play of the game, new quarterback Nick Foles handed the ball to Grigsby, who ran for seven yards and a first down before getting popped by Beavers safety Cameron Collins.

Grigsby knew something was wrong the second he hit the Reser Stadium turf.

"I knew, 'this isn't a stinger,' " he said. "I ran to the sideline, and it felt like it was separating and re-separating with every step. They said it was an AC sprain. I was like, 'What the heck is that?' "

The injury essentially scuttled Grigsby's season.

It may have also saved his career.

The time away from football allowed Grigsby to consider his legacy as a player - and reputation as a person. He talked and text-messaged with his mother and four siblings almost daily.

A speech from running backs coach Seth Littrell drove the point home.

"He told me, 'When you have the ball in your hands, you're the best player we've seen with the ball, ever. You can do all kinds of things,' " Grigsby said. "He said, 'When the ball's not in your hands, you're lazy. You lounge around. Be an all-around player.' "

Littrell said last week that Grigsby is "slowly, steadily figuring that out."

"Nic has to fight his own, inner self sometimes. He's done a good job of that," Littrell said.

"It's not about putting yourself first. It's about putting the team first."

In Tucson, Grigsby's home team is already seeing a change.

The man of the house

Terris Jones looks like his half-brother, until he opens his mouth. Or, rather, doesn't.

The Wildcats walk-on acts the part of a freshman. He's deferential to older players, quiet - even shy. He works hard, watches film and knows his role.

"He's nothing like me," Grigsby said. "He's a real small, little, quiet dude."

Grigsby was instrumental in getting Jones - they have different fathers - on the roster. Jones will pay his own way as he pursues his college football dream.

"I want to be just like my brother," Jones said, "but he thinks I can be even better."

Jones isn't the only family member to relocate to Tucson.

At Grigsby's urging, Bernice Grigsby transferred from the Veterans Affairs hospital in Long Beach, Calif., to Tucson. She started a job in program support two weeks ago. Grigsby's younger sister, Destiny, is a new student at the UA after transferring from Cal State-Northridge.

For now, all four in the family share Nicolas' house, where - whether he likes it or not - the UA tailback is the center of attention.

Bernice plans on attending all seven home games this season. She's already purchased a foam seat cushion, and has begun making signs. Destiny's "face lights up when people bring up her brother," Bernice said.

Nicolas jokes that Terris will "keep me out of trouble this year."

In reality, the running back's redemption has been a steady, if slow, process.

Grigsby was unfailingly positive in training camp, encouraging his teammates - and protecting his little brother - when times got hard. Those in the football office rave at Grigsby's willingness to talk to high school and Pop Warner football teams, often without prompting.

"I tell them: Listen to your elders," he said.

Grigsby is on pace to graduate next spring with a degree in family studies and human development, though he hopes one day pursue a career in law enforcement.

Bernice Grigsby still talks to her son every night - only now it's in person. She marvels when she sees the man her son has become.

"When I look at him, I say, 'Nic, you've come a long ways,' " she said. "I can't stop hugging him. He's like, 'Mom!' But it's true."