DeAndre Hopkins Continues Lovely Game Tradition With Blind Mother, Shares Survival Story

DeAndre Hopkins and his mother, Sabrina Greenlee

DeAndre Hopkins and his Family Shared A Tragic Life Story

Mother Sabrina Greenlee attends every match Deandre Hopkins is involved in and sits in the same seat in the end-zone. Having lost her vision in an acid attack 17 years ago, Greenlee’s daughter whispers every action of the play that he is involved in. Hopkins, on his part, is adamant that he hands Sabrina every touchdown pass on her end of the field, claiming that both mother and son share the success equally. Whenever he catches a touchdown in her end-zone, Sabrina Greenlee beams with pride as her son hands her the ball on national television, which has become a symbol of their unbreakable bond over the years.

As a kid, DeAndre Hopkins couldn’t have been dealt a harder hand — and this was before his mother was blinded in a horrific attack. But these things didn’t stop him from making his dreams come true. Hopkins grew stronger because of them. He continues to show the power of perseverance every time he steps on the field.

The drug trade and America’s response to the industry framed a large part of Hopkins’ childhood, mostly for the worse. His father, Steve, was facing decades behind bars for drug trafficking when Hopkins was a baby. He was out on bail when he died in a car accident after hydroplaning during a storm. His mother, Sabrina Greenlee, escaped with a concussion. Hopkins learned what happened to his father when he was six, and the news pierced his soul. “I’m pretty sure I started crying, even though I didn’t know who my daddy was but I just knew people have fathers.”

When Hopkins and his three siblings were young Greenlee worked at an automotive plant and as an exotic dancer to make ends meet. While she was at work, the kids would often spend their time outside playing tackle football in the street, regularly witnessing drug deals and shootings.

Greenlee was dealing with plenty of other issues that weren’t directly related to her kids. Most of the men she dated began to abuse her, and she fell back into that routine after Steve died. Hopkins was protected from the violence, but he knew what was going on. “He saw the screams and [heard] the noise behind the door that he wasn’t allowed to touch or come in as a young boy,” Greenlee says.

The violence surrounding their lives culminated in Greenlee being blinded in an acid attack by a woman who was also dating her boyfriend at the time. The incident left her disfigured and unemployed, so she had to sell drugs and worked odd jobs to bring money in.

Even though so many events Hopkins had to get through, his skills on the field were incredible. When he was a senior in high school, colleges knew about him and wanted him. He was widely recruited but chose to stay close to home at Clemson. “He told his mother it wasn’t because of her, but everyone knew that was a lie.” Greenlee would sit in the stands when Clemson played at home, “shuddering with awe whenever DeAndre’s name reverberated around the stadium.”

The Tuesday before Clemson played in the 2012 Orange Bowl in Miami Gardens, Florida, Hopkins, driving on a wet road, crashed his car into a tree. He walked away with only a concussion. But the similarities of the accident to the one that killed his dad startled his mother. It made Hopkins realize he had to be more mature.

“He knew he definitely could have lost his life right there, and I think it had something to do with his progression over the next year,” said Clemson assistant coach Jeff Scott, who was the first person on the scene to help Hopkins. “It showed him how easily his life can be taken away from him. I saw a lot of maturity from that point on to where it is now. That was a major turning point in his life.”

It’s remarkable Hopkins made it this far. Circumstances like this can easily break someone. Instead, he took used it as fuel to give his family a better life. Hopkins credits much of his success to his faith. “It all makes me so much stronger,” he said. “I feel like I’ve got so many angels around me, it’s like I’m going to be protected no matter what. Little obstacles, if they don’t go my way, I really don’t even get down. I’ve been through so much.”

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