Adam Taliaferro (b. January 1, 1982, in Moon Township, Pennsylvania), is a former American football player whose recovery from a paralyzing spinal cord injury sustained while playing cornerback for the Penn State Nittany Lions gained national media attention.
Growing up in Voorhees Township, New Jersey,[1] he was a standout running back and cornerback for the Eastern High School Vikings. In two years of varsity football at Eastern High School, he averaged 9.4 yards per carry, racking up 62 touchdowns, and seven Interceptions. Taliaferro was also a four year varsity starter in basketball, and set his school's record in the high jump at 6' 6".
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In 2000, Taliaferro joined the Penn State Nittany Lions football team as one of the top-rated freshman of their 2000 recruiting class. Taliaferro earned playing time as a true freshman for Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions, despite Paterno's well-documented tendency to redshirt freshman players.
On September 23, 2000, while playing in only the fifth game of his college career, Taliaferro sustained a career-ending spinal cord injury while tackling tailback Jerry Westbrooks during Penn State's game versus Ohio State. Taliaferro's helmet had hit Westbrooks' knee during the tackle, bursting the fifth cervical vertebra in his neck and bruising his spinal cord.[2] Unable to control his fall, the crown of his helmet hit the turf and his body rolled awkwardly over his neck. Taliaferro was paralyzed on the hit, which left him with no movement from the neck down.
Taliaferro had surgery at the Ohio State Medical Center to fuse his C-5 vertebrate. After successful surgery, Taliaferro was airlifted back to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to begin his recovery. Although surgery was successful, Taliaferro was only given a 3% chance of ever walking again.[2]
He began his well-publicized rehab at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After eight months of rehab, Taliaferro had learned to walk again.
Taliaferro returned to Penn State less than a year after his injury. He led the Penn State Nittany Lions football team onto Beaver Stadium's field for the first game of the 2001 season against the Miami Hurricanes in front of a record crowd of 109,313. Taliaferro skipped, then jogged onto the field in front of an emotional Penn State crowd.
He remained part of the football team as a student-assistant coach under Joe Paterno. Taliaferro earned a Bachelor of Science in Labor and Industrial Relations from Penn State in 2005.
In 2001, a book was written by Sam Carchidi and Scott Brown to chronicle Taliaferro's life and recovery, entitled Miracle in the Making.
Taliaferro created his own foundation to help support others with spinal cord injuries. The foundation was created in 2001, and continues to grow each year. The foundation has been said to raise over $80,000 per year for spinal cord injuries.
In 2008, he was named the recipient of the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association "Humanitarian Award".
Taliaferro enrolled at Rutgers School of Law - Camden in Camden, New Jersey. He earned his J.D. in May 2008 and is currently a lawyer at Duane Morris in the firm's Cherry Hill office.[3][2] Taliaferro also runs his own foundation which helps student athletes with head or spinal injuries[2] and is a motivational speaker, doing corporate appearances and speaking at schools.
On November 8, 2011 he was elected to serve on the Gloucester County Board of Chosen Freeholders. He will assume office in January, 2012.