NEW BETHLEHEM, Pa. (EYT/D9) — To Emmanuel Marshall these days, everything is a blessing.
He’s back on the bench with his Redbank Valley boys basketball team, coaching the players and the sport that he loves.
For one final season.
(Pictured above, Redbank Valley boys basketball coach Emmanuel Marshall talks with his team during a timeout)
Marshall has a new appreciation for things — big and small — in the aftermath of an automobile accident on Feb. 8 that nearly claimed his life and has left him with limited his mobility.
“I’m happy to be alive,” Marshall said, smile beaming.
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He walks with the use of a cain because of the injuries he suffered.
Marshall doesn’t remember much from that accident when he was returning home from work.
He just recalls knowing instantly that it was serious.
“It was scary. It was scary,” he said. “I was getting off of work and I was at a red light and the next thing you know, ‘Kerplow!’ I got rear ended. They say that impact, being at a full stop, is even more dangerous than when traveling.”
Marshall suffered serious injuries at several points along his neck and spine.
The recovery was long.
“Nerve damage,” Marshall said. “A lot of nerve damage. I ended up getting lifeflighted and I was in a wheelchair in a nursing home from six weeks. They sent me home with a walker and I was on a walker for about five weeks and I have to use a cane because my leg drags and I don’t have feeling in my right quadriceps.”
While Marshall was fighting for his life, his players and the rest of the student body at Redbank Valley found out about the accident at school.
Mason Clouse, now a senior, said when the news came about Marshall’s accident, it was shocking.
“We were worried sick,” Clouse said. “We had a game that day and the next day and we knew we had to play the rest of the season for him.”
Redbank Valley, though, struggled down the stretch, going 1-5 to finish 11-12. Jake Dougherty took over for Marshall.
Marshall did attend one game before the season concluded. At that time, he was still confined to a wheelchair.
It was important for Marshall to be there for his players.
That’s why he decided to return for one more season.
“It’s closure. It was important to get back and also to fulfill my obligations to the families that I started with,” Marshall said. “I started with Owen and Mason Clouse in the second grade. Just to be alive and blessed to be closing out my basketball coaching career with them is just a dream come true.”
It’s the same for his team.
“We were excited we have one more year finishing out with him,” Clouse said. “It’s pretty cool. We came up short two years ago. We’re trying to come out on top this year for him.”
Marshall has plenty of help on the bench with him this season.
Dougherty is back as his main assistant and he has several other volunteers to aid him during practices and games.
“Jake finished the season and took care of the whole offseason for me,” Marshall said. “We have enough staff that I have plenty of support around me to give me the help that I need.”
Marshall said he will still be around in the coming seasons, just not as the head coach.
He said he’s going to enjoy every minute of this season and beyond.
“I’m alive and I’m coaching again,” Marshall said, a wide smile blossoming again. “I have a great staff and they’ve been running these offenses since they were little, so I don’t have to do too much coaching. I’ll volunteer, but I’ll miss it.”
Redbank Valley, Keystone, and Union/A-C Valley sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Heeter Lumber.
