TEXAS – Lockhart head coach Todd Moebes planned a special moment for one of his senior football players.
“To be able to create these opportunities through a game, through a platform,” says Moebes. “This is what it’s about. It’s pretty priceless.”
The plan had been laid out and communicated to both Lockhart and Bastrop, who were playing one another in a preseason scrimmage.
Bastrop would take the field on offense, while Lockhart would come out on defense with senior Desmond Pulliam lining up on the defensive line for the play. Bastrop would fumble the ball on purpose, allowing Desmond to pick it up.
The plan worked to perfection. Pulliam scooped up the loose ball and raced the length of the field for a Lockhart touchdown.
“It was awesome,” says Pulliam. “I was hyped.”
Pulliam says he’s been playing football since he was in the seventh grade and this was his first touchdown.
“I was hearing the crowd cheering and everybody was running behind me,” says Pulliam. “I was running so fast.”
The moment was all set up as a reward for Pulliam’s years of dedication to the team and the school. Pulliam was born with autism but that hasn’t stopped him from being involved in so many different programs at Lockhart. Outside of football, he’s also a member of the Lion band.
“He certainly is one of the most spirited members of our band,” says Lockhart band director James Crowley. “For him to want to be a part of that is the most important thing and really says a lot about who he is.”
“He’s a social butterfly, he doesn’t know a stranger,” says Wendy Pulliam, Desmond Pulliam’s mother. “Children that are diagnosed with autism are normally standoff-ish. Desmond is the opposite of that.”
Outside of band and football, Desmond Pulliam is a big fan of movies and has to stay to watch the credits.
“Marvel and DC, horror movies and Netflix,” he says are his favorites things to watch.
He also enjoys playing video games and has a pretty solid sneaker collection. His ability to fit in with others is something that his mother has always encouraged.
“Continue to make him feel just like any other kid,” says his mom. “I never showed him any different.”
Football has been a big part of helping Desmond Pulliam fit in.
“It gets me pumped up,” he says. “It makes me feel love and joyful.”
Desmond Pulliam started playing in middle school and his dedication to the program led to that moment when he was able to score the touchdown.
“That was my dream since I was 10,” says Desmond Pulliam of the touchdown.
“The most exhilarating feeling a mother could feel for her child,” says Wendy Pulliam.
His mom and a few others members of their family were waiting in the end zone that night when Desmond scored.
“She was happy and crying,” says Desmond Pulliam.
“I was more excited for him than I think he was,” says Wendy Pulliam. “People out there do care, they do love you, they do accept you for who you are and not what you have.”
The video of that touchdown has been shared all over the internet and Desmond has been enjoying the attention that came with it.