Si, Nov. 13, 2000 Update

IN A SENSE, Adam Taliaferro died on the 17-yard line at Ohio State on that Saturday afternoon in 2000. His figurative, and almost literal, demise occurred when he attempted a helmet-first tackle of Buckeyes running back Jerry Westbrooks. Taliaferro, then a freshman defensive back at Penn State, was left with a shattered fifth cervical vertebra, a bruised spine and no feeling in his arms or legs. His life had been defined by football, but by the time night fell and he had discovered he'd never play football, and probably never walk, again, Taliaferro says, "I was a completely different person."

Eight autumns into his second life, Taliaferro, 26, is not only walking—he took his first steps three months after the accident and returned to classes in May 2001—he's also in his third week as an associate at the Philadelphia law firm Montgomery McCracken. He graduated from the Rutgers School of Law--Camden in May and hopes to become a sports agent. "If you saw me, you probably wouldn't know I had the injury," he says, "but my right side's weaker than my left, and if I try to run, it feels like my legs weigh 100 pounds. I'm working on getting stronger each day. I'll do that the rest of my life."