Chad Grier with his sons, Will, Nash and Hayes (Photo via moultrienews.com)

This weekend, we celebrate the men who helped us take our first steps into this world – and for some, the first steps onto a football field. There’s no bond between father and son quite like the one that’s built through football.

This type of relationship is exemplified in the story of West Virginia quarterback Will Grier, and his father, Chad.

Will was named the Parade Magazine Player of the Year, named Mr. Football USA, was offered a scholarship to play at the University of Florida, and offered an invitation to the Army All-American game in his senior season at Davidson (North Carolina) Day School.

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Before exiting the field after his last high school game, Will walked over to the sidelines to embrace his coach, his father, the man who helped him get to this point in his football career. This was the moment they both realized all those years through practices, games, triumphs, and defeats had paid off.

“It was an incredible moment, like all of a sudden it was all worth it,” Chad Grier told moultrienews.com. “It’s not lost on me all of the opportunities I’ve had because I’m Will’s dad, because I was his coach. He helped me grow as a coach. He made me a better coach. But he’s made me a better father and he’s made me a better man too.”

So, when things turned South for Will Grier after failing a drug test at Florida, his dad was there for him. The NCAA had recently banned a weight-gaining supplement that Grier regularly used for years. He said he was unaware of its legality.

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The Florida fan base and media turned Will’s athletic stardom into woe, prompting him to go back home to Charlotte. In his limbo, Will joined his father on the sidelines at Davidson Day and helped coach the varsity team. His spirit to play football was revived.

Grier transferred to West Virginia in 2016 and is entering his second season as quarterback for the Mountaineers. Chad Grier attends every game, whether it’s driving nine hours to Morgantown or buying a flight to an away game. Being a father himself, Will understands his dad’s dedication.

“I think it’s ridiculous travel and it’s probably a lot on him,” Will Grier said, “I appreciate it though and as a father I totally get it now. I realize now the sacrifices he makes and I appreciate it all that much more.”

Will Grier is certainly not alone in being a young football player with a child. Temple University’s leading rusher last season, David Hood, also has a 4-year-old son.

Are you the parent of a youth, middle school or high school football player who’s looking for more tips or resources? Check out our Parent Guide, Parents 101 course, nutritious recipes and more.

Before going to Temple in 2014, Hood kept his girlfriend’s pregnancy a secret from the football program, fearing they would no longer want him. Eventually, the coaching staff found out and offered to help.

Juggling college football and being a parent is a stressful life and Geoff Collins, Temple’s coach, knew that. Collins would allow Hood to skip mandatory Sunday training table to spend that time with his family.

“We would make those accommodations,” Collins told The Associated Press. “If their child gets to spend two or three or four extra hours with their dad, that’s very important to us as a coaching staff.”

Sacrifice not only comes with being a father, but also an athlete. Buffalo Bills linebacker Preston Brown understood this at age six when he was watching game tape and taking notes instead of playing outside like others at his age. His father, Mike Brown, sat alongside him, telling him to take notes on his footwork.

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Mike would go on to coach his son throughout his youth, up until college. As a high school coach who lasted nine days with the Denver Broncos, Mike Brown’s own dreams are fulfilled seeing his son play in the NFL.

I’m watching my kid live his fantasy,” Mike Brown told buffalobills.com. “That’s the coolest thing in the world you can have as a dad. He’s in a fantasy world, and for a dad to be able to watch that because I enjoyed every step from Pee Wee to high school to college … I never wanted him to see beyond where he was. Just let him be where he was and get the most he could from that time and that level and I watched him through that. It’s something I get to watch as a former coach and as a dad. It’s great.”

Sometimes, even the smallest gestures from a father are enough to motivate their sons before a game. Chicago Bears quarterback Mitch Tribusky relies on one text from his dad before every game:

Just do what you do.

The mere five-word sentence has carried Tribusky through his football career since he was on the junior varsity team at Mentor High School near Cleveland.

"All I have to do is do what I was born to do: Play this game and have fun," Tribusky told the Chicago Tribune. "Getting that text from him, it means I'm ready to go. As long as I give it my all, I know he's going to be proud of me, which is the best feeling in the world."

Fathers are known to be their son’s biggest fans – except for Stephen Ashford, East Palo Alto (California) Phoenix Academy’s football coach. His son, Keyshawn Ashford, is averaging 5 touchdowns per game on a rival team at Woodside Priory School. The friendly rivalry between the two has been a unique experience.

“Keyshawn is one of a kind. We’ll do the best we can to contain him.” Stephen said jokingly of his son.

The competitive edge is kept alive, but at the end of the day – or a game — they are still father and son.

“Me and my dad grew up really hard on football,” Keyshawn told the San Jose (California) Mercury News. “He taught me everything about it. My dad has become a big impact in my life over football. He let me see that football is not just about hitting someone, it’s about becoming a man and making you a better person than you already are.”

Some of football’s most remarkable players and coaches have a background of a special father-son relationship. Five-time college national champion coach Nick Saban is a testament to this.

Long before his days coaching The University of Alabama, Saban was just a young boy in West Virginia playing football with his father, Nick Saban Sr. Much of what Saban learned about charity and helping others came from his father, who self-funded a Pop Warner team called the Diamonds.

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"The happiest I have ever been playing football," said Kerry Marbury, Nick Saban Jr.’s teammate on the Diamonds, in a Bleacher Report article. "He taught you about life, about the responsibility of becoming a man and doing the right thing.”

At 22 years old, Saban lost his father to a heart attack. Saban’s tribute to his father lies within his philanthropic nature. Aside from winning national titles, Saban has raised over $7 million for the Nick’s Kids Foundation that supports charities across Alabama.

"Not a day goes by where I don't think of him," Saban says of his father, “"Every son wants to fulfill his dad's hopes and dreams. I hope I have.''