Nothing's gonna stop Zachery Herrin

Ormond Beach Observer
Sports

Zachery Herrin isn't the strongest or the fastest player on his Ormond Beach PRIDE football team. But he has heart. And sometimes, that's all you need.

BY ANDREW O'BRIEN | SPORTS EDITOR

Zachery Herrin is a lot like all his teammates on the Ormond Beach PRIDE football squad. Although he’s a bit undersized compared to some of the bigger kids, he has the heart of a lion. His coach, Brian Colubiale, can attest to that.

But Herrin has something his other teammates don’t have: he’s autistic. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t one of them.

Herrin, 9, is in his second year of playing football with Ormond Beach PRIDE. He started as a Mighty Mite last year and is on the Pee Wee team this year. Herrin was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), sensory processing disorder and other behavioral disorders.

Herrin was non-verbal until he was 3 years old, when he was placed in Tomoka Elementary School’s preschool for children with disabilities, delays in speech or other developmental delays. He improved with speech therapy and occupational therapy.

But Herrin couldn’t stand the feeling of certain materials. He had to have tag-less T-shirts and seamless socks, said his mother, Sonia Herrin.

“It was a very difficult time for him and our family,” Sonia Herrin said.

When Herrin turned 5, his speech began to improve. He was able to attend standard kindergarten with a partial individualized education program. Still easily aggravated and extremely aggressive, Herrin continued to attend occupational therapy and see a psychologist.

But through a lot of hard work and treatment, Herrin has overcome many of the disabilities he faced as a younger child. When he began playing football, Sonia Herrin said, he couldn’t stand the feeling of the helmet and the pads. But, like many other things, he overcame the adversity.

And, thanks to the help of Colubiale and other PRIDE coaches, Herrin is now playing football just like anyone else.

“He is probably 70 pounds soaking wet on a team with kids as high as 170 pounds, but Zachery’s big heart and effort drives him to mix it up with the rest of them,” Colubiale said. “Sometimes kids with autism (or any other disabilities) just need a chance and a little patience, and good things can happen.”