Homeless former IU football star gets second chance after Austin backpack sighting
Jasper Steinmetz was walking a path in Austin, Texas, this January when he spotted an Indiana University athletic backpack. The recent IU graduate stopped the man carrying it. That man was Sampson James, homeless for eight months. James had been a four-star recruit out of Avon High School who joined IU as a freshman running back in 2019. He transferred to Purdue in 2021, then came back to Indiana as a walk-on in 2023. A knee injury and a bipolar disorder diagnosis ended his career. He dropped out without graduating and lost everything but that red backpack. "He was able to grasp and understand me," James said of Steinmetz.
A former athlete who had lost everything met someone on a walk. They had gone to the same school. That conversation changed his life.
Source: A former Indiana football star had fallen on hard times. A chance encounter with a fellow Hoosier gave him a new lease on life. (cbsnews.com). Spotted via Good News Network.
Written by the HappyGood desk from the primary source linked above and checked against it. Every story links its source. Corrections: [email protected].
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