Morgan finding path through tough times

Devontae Morgan came into the world without a lot of things going his way. And for a time, he kept getting dealt a bad hand.

Born prematurely, he weighed just 1 pound, 6 ounces and nearly died in the neonatal intensive care unit. At age five, his mother passed away from illness. She was only 29.

And while still in middle school, 13-year-old Morgan witnessed the arrest of his father on drug-related charges. He was sentenced to 20 years in a Florida prison, leaving Devontae without parents to care for him.

However, Morgan has triumphed. Tonight, the 6-foot-3, 175-pound Morgan will take the court for Tampa Prep's boys basketball team playing in the Class 3A region finals. And no matter how many times she sees her nephew do something like dunk a basketball or soar for a rebound, Alicia Morgan will watch from the stands in amazement.

"He is our miracle,'' said Alicia Morgan, who took legal custody of Devontae following his father's incarceration. "He truly is our miracle baby.''

After his premature birth, Morgan spent the first six months of his life with tubes and needles sticking into his tiny body. Once during that time, a delicate procedure went wrong and pierced a lung and nearly killed him.

The death of his mother, Angela Goodman, also meant tragedy for his three brothers and a sister. At the time, Morgan's parents were separated and he was living with his father, Earnest Morgan, Jr. Even at the age of five, he says he has a vivid memory of the day his father received a phone call with the sad news.

"I was young but I knew something was wrong from the look on my dad's face,'' Devontae said. "I just remember him looking at me in the eyes and saying, 'Your mom has passed away.'"

Goodman's death meant he and his siblings would now be raised with the help of his aunt and grandparents, Earnest, Sr., and Linda Morgan.

"It's a tough thing growing up without your mother, especially when you see other kids with their moms,'' Morgan said. "But I was fortunate to have my aunt, my grandparents and all my friends and extended family to help me out.''

As his father experienced run-ins with the law and went in and out of jail, Morgan was forced to live with various family members and attended "five or six'' different elementary schools. Despite his father's troubles, Morgan said his dad always told him to avoid his type of life and "make the most of what God has given you.''

He eventually learned his gift was basketball. He discovered it playing at a city park in Carrollwood. Heading into middle school, Morgan would play all hours of the day.

By the time he landed at Pierce Middle School in West Tampa, Morgan had shown plenty of promise in the sport but had never played organized basketball. Once he met longtime Pierce boys coach Dave Ford -- a man whom Morgan still considers one of his greatest influences -- all that changed.

"(Ford) recognized my potential and was on me every day to get better,'' Morgan said. "He was like my father at school.''

Morgan was so good as a sixth grader at Pierce, he earned a starting spot with the eighth graders and MVP honors. But it was later in his sixth grade year that Morgan said he first started hanging out with "the wrong people,'' including gangs.

Ford said he saw the warning signs. He had seen them before with one of his best players at Pierce, Herb Manago, who is currently serving a life sentence for first degree murder. Ford said he didn't want to see Devontae take a similar path.

"I tried to tell Devontae, 'Look, you're basically in the same point of your life as (Herb) was when he started making bad choices,''' Ford said. "I said, 'I really want you to go the opposite way as him.'''

Devontae said the talk with Ford was an important crossroads in his life. But what really made it sink in was seeing his dad arrested and taken to jail. Like the death of his mom, the day his father left his life is burned in his memory.

That day came just before the start of his seventh grade year. Devontae and his father were driving to buy school supplies when, after making a U-turn at a traffic light, they found themselves surrounded by police cars, vans and a helicopter. Devontae said his father jumped out of the car and yelled, "My son's in the car, my son's in the car! Don't hurt him!" But police still had guns drawn on Devontae until they were certain he was a child.

As police cuffed his father, Morgan still remembers his father's last words to him.

"He said, 'Remember everything I told you about doing the right thing,''' Morgan said. "Don't make my mistakes.''

Apart from his father's sentencing more than a year after the arrest, Morgan didn't see his dad face-to-face until last year. His father is incarcerated at a facility just north of Ocala and until Morgan turned 18 and was able to drive, it was difficult to travel there. The two have since tried reconnecting, but the situation makes it difficult. The family is hoping an appeal will result in an earlier release date. For now, it's set for 2026.

Morgan said the experience was a life changer. His work ethic and drive reached new levels. He went on to have his jersey retired at Pierce, a first at the school. He also began playing AAU club basketball with the Southeast Basketball Academy (SEBA).

That's where he met coach Mike McManamey, as well as teammates and eventual friends Nelson Agholor (Berkeley Prep), Quincy Mitchell (Blake) and current Tampa Prep teammate Greg Berlin. When it came time to choose a high school following his eighth grade season, he says the exposure to Ford and the level of play at SEBA made him realize he wanted to his next coach to be Joe Fenlon, now in his 29th year at Tampa Prep.

Landing a financial aid package that allowed him to attend the private school, Morgan started slowly as a freshman. But playing with guards Jay Bowie (Marist) and Jamal Cherry (Cornell) took a lot of the pressure off Morgan and allowed him to "develop naturally,'' Fenlon said. With his work ethic, it was only a matter of time before Morgan became a starter.

"Since the day he walked in here, nobody outworks him.'' Fenlon said. "He'll come in here on the weekends and shoot hundreds of jump shots. We start (school) at 9 a.m. on Friday morning and he's in here at 7:30 shooting an hour before school."

Combining his training with coaching and a talent that's always been there, Morgan blossomed into one of the state's top recruits. Averaging 17.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game as a junior, he committed to 2010 and 2011 NCAA finalist Butler University last year. This season, he's putting up similar numbers on an even more balanced team, one that's aiming to win Fenlon's first state title.

"I know how a lot of kids feel and how hard it is sometimes,'' Morgan said. "But if you want something bad enough, you'll find a way -- the right way.''