“It’s not about you, it’s about learning to trust the guy next to you.”
Captain, U.S. Marine Corps
In 2013, Luke Boyd was an active-duty U.S. Marine, a husband and father, a full-time LSU student and a walk-on defensive back for the LSU Tiger football team.
At the time, Boyd was 27 years old with a great love for football and his country. He played a year at Fairleigh Dickenson University, but his girlfriend (now wife) Tina was on the track team at LSU and that brought him south. He could not afford to go to LSU at the time, so he joined the Marines in 2008. He went to Afghanistan in 2010 and was a player in the Marine football league, earning an MVP award. His goal was to become an officer and to play football at LSU.
In 2013, Boyd was back at LSU, this time trying out for the opportunity to become a walk-on for the LSU football team. Coach Les Miles recognized Boyd’s potential value to the team and Boyd won his walk-on position as a defensive back. Although he did not have a starring role for the team that season, Boyd proved to be an invaluable advisor and mentor for his teammates, somewhat like a“father figure.”He also shared with them the mental toughness and leadership he gained as a Marine. “I give all my respect to him,” linebacker Kwon Alexander said. Boyd said that the main thing he taught his teammates was, “…it’s not about the individual.”
Luke Boyd graduated in 2016 with a degree in construction engineering and fulfilled his other goal of becoming an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. Today, he proudly serves on active duty and continues to support his LSU Fighting Tigers and The Corps at LSU.