Purple Heart soldier fulfills vow to buddy to play college football

There's a "Rudy" in the making at Clemson University, with a more heart-tugging back story. Purple Heart winner Daniel Rodriguez survived the bloody attack on Kamdesh in Afghanistan in 2009; squadmate Kevin Thompson wasn't as lucky. Days before he died, though, Thompson made Rodriguez promise to pursue his dream of playing college football. With Clemson's help, Rodriguez cleared some academic hurdles and has been OK’d to walk on when practice starts Friday. Just 5 feet 8 inches tall, Rodriguez knows he's bucking some big odds, but he has one major booster: Clemson coach Dabo Swinney, who was a walk-on receiver himself at Alabama. "His background and story is an inspiration to us all," Swinney says. [Source]

Check out the msnNOW.com homepage to read more trending stories.