COLUMBUS, Ohio — All his life the word "fight" has surrounded Avery Henry. The offensive lineman from St. Clairsville had a dream of playing football for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
“If I'm being honest with you, I think everyone doubted me," Avery said.
He didn’t let the doubters keep him from reaching his dream. The 6-foot, 6-inch lineman earned a scholarship from Ohio State University.
"I'm super excited to you know, I was super excited to come here and get a great education first of all, because I push, they really do push classes.”
His first fall camp came and went with a workout regimen that Avery will admit surprised even him.
“I thought I already put in a lot of work. I changed my diet. I did this, I ran every day, I lifted every day, I did all these things that I thought Ohio State did up here. But it's just a whole it's a whole other level. It's tough love, as many people would call it... It's that yelling at you because they love you," Avery said.
Avery got his chance to do the "Buckeye Walk" and take part in his first game. It was then though, that Avery began feeling pain in his wrist.
He was later evaluated by the team's medical staff and was told what showed up on the X-ray could be either be cancer or a cyst.
"From that moment on, I just prayed and hope for the best,” the Ohio State lineman said.
Avery was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, bone cancer.
“I'm not gonna lie, the first thing I did was I got away from everyone. I shut the door behind me. And I started, I started tearing up crying a little bit, because I was scared that it was going to be the end of my career," Avery said.
It was then in that moment that Avery fell back on a word he’s used for so long.
“I called my mom and she was crying. I was crying too. And the first thing we both said to each other was, no matter what it is, we're going to keep fighting. We're going to keep going. As a lot of people know, Ohio State does have a saying that's hashtag fight...all we know how to do is fight."
The treatment for Avery included wrist surgery and several cycles of chemotherapy.
During his treatment, Avery questioned whether he'd be OK and how he will move.
"A lot went through my mind,” he said.
In those moments of frustration and sadness, it was then that Avery leaned on those around him for support.
"I mean, it just gives me the motivation to keep going, to know these people look up to me, in a sense, and want me to do better, want me to do this and that and I want to do it too," Avery said. "I want to prove to the world that I can do it and prove to the people that know I can do it. So it's been incredible."
In May, Avery announced to the world that after a long fight, he is officially cancer-free.
“I feel good. I feel healthy. So I think that the next step is not letting it keep me from doing things I want to do.”
Avery may be winning his fight, but he is still fighting. Now Avery is hoping to support and inspire those dealing with battles of their own.
“I think they can see that I'm going through all these different things. And, you know, I think it helps," Avery said. "All we know how to do is fight and keep going."