Texans QB Deshaun Watson pledges college scholarships for reading challenge champs

Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has a penchant for coming through in the clutch and making others around him better.

Just as it is true on the football field, so is it true off of it. On Monday night, the three-time Pro Bowler surprised local children who took part in his summer reading challenge by pledging college scholarships. Initially, the kids were only supposed to win a $5,000 Ashley HomeStore shopping spree, his book “Pass It On, and get to meet Watson.

As always, No. 4 took it to another level.

“Deshaun was blown away by the kids,” Watson’s business manager at Athletes First, Bryan Burney, told Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. “They went to a Foot Locker and he was amazed at how selfless these kids are. They didn’t want shoes for themselves. They wanted to pick out shoes for their siblings. Deshaun, after the shopping spree, he wanted to keep up with those kids. Our foundation is still growing and Deshaun said, ‘Let’s give these kids scholarships and make sure they go to college.'”

According to Burney, Watson also got the contact information for each kid and gave them a scholarship, which was an overwhelmingly emotional moment for the parents that left some parents speechless.

Said Burney: “He made a deal with the kids. He said, ‘As long as you do a good job in school and apply yourselves, I’ll take care of your college.’ They just have to get accepted to college, get good grades and hold up their end of the bargain. It’s a great thing.”

Watson has also donated 300 copies of his book to the Boys & Girls Club of Houston. Through the reading challenge, over 1,000 kids in the Houston area read almost 5,000 books over the summer of 2020.

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