BOSTON (WHDH) - Boston College walk-on basketball player Chris Herren Jr. received the ultimate Christmas gift from head coach Jim Christian after assuming he got left out of the present exchange.
Christian handed out gift bags to his players following practice, leaving Herren Jr. befuddled after he did not receive one.
“There was no more bags left to give out, so I was just sitting there kind of confused,” he said.
Christian asked if he had forgotten anyone, in which several players yelled out, “Chris!”
That’s when the coach announced Herren Jr.’s gift was a little different than the rest.
Christian handed him an envelope, which contained a full-tuition scholarship.
“Finally when I got to it, I was just like, I don’t know, there were a lot of feelings and when everyone went crazy, that was the best part,” Herren Jr. recalled.
Christian says Herren Jr. earned the scholarship because of how he carries himself on and off the court.
Herren Jr. is not the first in his family to stand out as an Eagle.
His father, Chris Herren Sr., earned the state’s high school player of the year while growing up in Fall River. He went on to play at Boston College, then the Celtics before drug addiction ended those opportunities.
Herren Sr. has made an off-court comeback as a motivational speaker about overcoming drug addiction.
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