Posted: Tuesday December 1, 2009
Kristian Dyer
Stud Georgia RB Abernathy IV doing prominent family name proud
His grandfather, Ralph David Abernathy, was one of MLK's right-hand men
Abernathy IV rushed for over 1,200 yards and 21 touchdowns this season
He is getting strong interest from Alabama, Miami, Ohio State, Texas and others
After a season-ending loss to Callaway in the Georgia state playoffs, junior running back Ralph David Abernathy IV walked off the bus upon arrival at Westminster Academy, ready to meet his parents and get home. Head down and still feeling the sting of the loss, Abernathy was pulled aside by a sophomore teammate who put his arm around him and told him that this was now Abernathy's team.
Such is the life of a young man who has one of the most famous last names in Georgia.
His father is Ralph David Abernathy III, a former Georgia state senator and a preacher who is known for community involvement and championing the causes of the underprivileged. Going back even further, his grandfather is Ralph David Abernathy, a prominent leader in the civil rights movement and one of Martin Luther King's right-hand men. Abernathy traveled with Martin Luther King, sharing the podium at rallies and seeing both his church and home bombed by race agitators. Together, they inspired sit-ins and marches, were imprisoned and had their lives threatened on almost a daily basis. Abernathy was even there when King was assassinated. The name Abernathy now adorns countless streets and buildings across the south, including a hall at his alma mater, Alabama State College.
As the son of one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement, former state senator Ralph Abernathy III was often caught up in the push for equality. At age nine in southern Georgia, Abernathy was arrested as part of a "mule train" march en route to a King rally. He was held in a warehouse used by a local municipality to house cars along with 250 other marchers. The conditions, he said, "were inhuman."
Now, the teenage Ralph David Abernathy IV does his marching on the football field, a sign of the racial progress that his grandfather pushed for in Georgia. His second year as a starter at Westminster, Abernathy IV was the vital cog of the team's offense, rushing for over 1,200 yards and 21 touchdowns this season. He's also a hard hitter on defense in the secondary. "I love to hit people," Abernathy IV said. "I just love the contact."
Already, he has garnered some pretty strong interest from the likes of Alabama, Auburn, Boston College, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn State and Texas, and he expects offers to begin coming in this spring. Heading to San Antonio this January, Abernathy IV will be a participant in the U.S. Army National Combine. Then in March and April, he will attend a variety of combines and events in and around the Atlanta area. The march toward becoming one of the southeast's top players has begun.
