His brother’s keeper

  • Scott M. Johnson / Herald Writer
  • Monday, April 19, 2004 9:00pm
  • Sports

He’s always there.

Every step Devard Darling takes on an abandoned football field near his mother’s Houston home, he can feel the presence of another. Devard and his twin brother, Devaughn, promised that one day they would go through this together.

And now here they are, preparing for the NFL draft as one.

“Every day of my life, he’s with me,” Devard Darling said of his twin. “Even when he’s not physically here, he’s with me in spirit. Especially this time of year. We wanted to do this together, so he’s right here with me.”

Devard Darling, a wide receiver from Washington State University, expects to hear his name called this weekend when NFL executives gather for the annual draft. A part of the best crop of wide receivers ever to be in one draft, Darling could go somewhere between the second and fifth round.

While Devard will anxiously await his destination, Devaughn’s name won’t get called. Devaughn Darling died three years ago of unknown causes, leaving Devard to prepare for the draft on his own.

Physically, that is.

“I feel him every day,” Devard Darling said. “He’s a part of me, just like I’m a part of him. That’s how it has always been.”

The Darling twins were born in the Bahamas, moved to Houston with their mother following a divorce and eventually went to Florida State University together as prized recruits. Devard was expected to be the next Peter Warrick, while Devaughn was such a gifted linebacker that he played special teams as a freshman and was supposed to be starting by his sophomore year.

But everything changed on a morning in February 2001, when Devaughn collapsed and later died during a team workout. The cause of death remains a mystery, but it was discovered that Devaughn had a rare sickle cell trait that may have contributed.

Devard also has the trait, so FSU officials told him he would not be allowed to play football there. Devard underwent physicals at several schools, some of which did not want to risk his health.

WSU, under then-coach Mike Price, gave Darling a scholarship in Oct. 2001 after he passed every physical test they could imagine.

Already struggling with the loss of his twin, Devard Darling found himself thousands of miles from anything he knew.

“It was hard at first adjusting to Pullman and being homesick,” he said. “But I got used to it. I grew up a lot.”

The publicity of Devaughn’s death didn’t make the transition any easier.

“It’s tough enough to have to go through it,” said former teammate and current Seahawks cornerback Marcus Trufant, “but to keep having it brought up had to be even harder.”

While the reserved Darling rarely exposed his emotions, those around him could sense his pain.

“That’s got to be one of the most frustrating experiences you could go through,” WSU offensive coordinator Mike Levenseller said, “to have lost your brother, and then the one thing you drastically want to do to carry on his legacy, and you’re told all over the country that you can’t do it, even though you feel like there’s nothing physically wrong with you.

“I can’t even fathom what that would be like.”

Darling became eligible in 2002 and made an immediate impact, catching 54 passes for 800 yards and 11 touchdowns for the 10-3 Cougars. He caught 50 passes for 830 yards and seven touchdowns last season, then opted to enter for the draft a year early.

Darling’s decision to come out after his junior year raised some eyebrows because of the wealth of talent at the position. Levenseller, for one, did not agree with the decision.

“He has speed and a good release, which are things teams look for, so someone will draft him,” Levenseller said. “But the things he needs to work on are the things that will allow him to stay (in the NFL).”

While he could have played his way into a first-round pick in next year’s draft, Darling finds himself lost in the shuffle of a year when the depth of receivers is as deep as it has ever been.

“I’m just as good as all of them,” said Darling, who is ranked as the 11th-best receiver in Pro Football Weekly’s draft guide, 13th in The Sporting News and 20th by Mel Kiper Jr. “It’s a good year, there are a lot of great receivers, and I’m one of them.”

Darling said he never consulted with former teammate Rien Long, a defensive tackle who came out a year early in 2003 and waited until the fourth round of the draft to be selected. Darling could have a similar wait this weekend.

“I’m not going to lie; I’d be a little disappointed if I don’t go on the first day,” Darling said. “But if that’s the Lord’s way, then I’ll live with it.”

Darling said he prayed a lot before making his decision, and chances are that he got consultation from more than one higher power. He still feels Devaughn in his heart, and sometimes hears his twin brother’s voice in his head.

“He’s smiling down on me,” Devard Darling said. “He’s real proud, always, and has the utmost confidence in me. He’s up there giving me encouraging words. If teams are passing me up (this weekend), he’ll be up there watching and keeping me confident.”

While he still holds some bitterness toward FSU for the way everything went down, Devard Darling has come to terms with his own path. From the Bahamas to Houston to Tallahassee to Pullman, Darling’s journey to the NFL draft started with two bodies and now has only one.

But he still feels two heartbeats.

“Life throws curveballs,” he said. “You never know what’s going to happen. You just have to take what life gives you and deal with it.”

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