UNC Commit Out for 2025 Season Following Tackle on Second Play of Game
After a stunning Thursday morning announcement on his social media account, we learned that Grayson quarterback Travis Burgess will miss the rest of his 2025 season with the Rams following a knee injury sustained on Grayson’s opening series in last week’s game versus Rabun Gap-Nacoochee.
The injury occurred on the second play of the game as Burgess was rolling to his right, trying to throw the ball away out of bounds.
Moments after releasing the ball, Burgess was tackled by a Rabun Gap-Nacoochee defender. He suffered a torn ACL and will be lost for the remainder of the year.
ITG Next spoke to Burgess’ father, Harold, about his son and keeping a positive attitude as he prepares for a long recovery and the next chapter of his career.
The five-star North Carolina commit is already focused on what lies ahead, rather than dwelling on what’s happened.
“Of course, Travis is saddened that he won’t be able to play the remainder of the year, but true to his character, he’s already telling me that this is going to be an amazing comeback story when he helps the University of North Carolina win a national championship,” the father said.
Speaking of North Carolina, the elder Burgess said the Tar Heels program and coaching staff have been in touch with Travis and the Burgess family.
“The UNC coaches and staff have been extremely supportive and helpful throughout this whole process,” Harold Burgess said.
He also commended Travis’ current teammates at Grayson and the Rams coaching staff and administration for the support they have shown, too.
“Everyone at Grayson has been so supportive of Travis,” Harold Burgess said.
Grayson AD Brian DeBerry: “Expectations Do Not change”
Grayson Athletic Director Brian DeBerry spoke to us about the impact of not just losing a great player, but a stellar student-athlete and teammate.
“It was devastating to hear about Travis,” DeBerry said. “Travis is such a tremendous leader and teammate. We hope he has a speedy recovery, and we know he will do great things at UNC.”
DeBerry also addressed the question that’s also on everyone’s mind, which is who takes over the mighty big shoes of running the Rams offense in place of Burgess.
“As devastating as it is for Travis and our team with the loss of Travis as our starting quarterback, our expectations for our team do not change,” DeBerry told us.
“Deuce Smith will take over for us at quarterback, and Deuce will lead us on offense,” the Grayson Athletic Director said. “We look forward to great things from him and our offense each and every Friday night this season.”
The elder Burgess told me that this is but the latest chapter in a series of obstacles that Travis has faced and overcome since starting his high school career, which most people have no idea about.
“Travis is a strong-minded kid who has overcome a lot of obstacles in his life and will certainly overcome this latest challenge and come back even stronger,” Harold Burgess said.
The father shared some of those past struggles and challenges that Travis faced earlier in his career, before finding success with the Rams.
“Three years ago, after I retired, we were looking at schools and which one could be the right fit for Travis,” Harold Burgess explains. “We met with a few schools who turned Travis away because they had not heard of him and were not familiar with him. Instead of getting down and hanging his head, Travis told me and his mom, ‘I’m going to come back and beat them all.’
“Two state championships later, he’s done just that.”
Now, as Travis Burgess faces a period of recovery and rehabilitation, Harold Burgess shared a moment between father and son following Travis’s knee injury.
“As Travis and I discussed after the injury last Friday night, life happens, but it’s how you react and what you do about it that people are going to remember about you,” Harold said.
That time is now for Travis Burgess.
