For Tray Blackmon, the dream still lives, but hope is fading.

He more than anybody else knows this.

Blackmon is the middle linebacker for the Swashbucklers, a job he never envisioned in a career he never expected to take so many turns.

“No, I never thought I would be here,” Blackmon said when asked about playing indoor football in Lake Charles.

When he entered college at Auburn back in 2005 Blackmon had the same hopes as most major college players. He wanted to make a name for himself in the rugged SEC and then take his talents to the NFL.

Despite his 6-foot, 215-pound size, he packed enough of a punch to get noticed.

“Yes, you come out of high school, go to a big college and then to the pros,” Blackmon said. “That was the plan.”

Unfortunately for him, he got noticed for some bad things as well.

After redshirting his first year, Blackmon played well enough in six games the next season to earn Freshmen All-America second team honors.

However, he also failed a drug test before that season began, which cost him a six-game suspension.

“It was a big mistake that really cost me,” Blackmon said.

Thus began a college odyssey that saw off-field issues and injuries cause him to miss half the games in his three stormy years at Auburn.

“I got behind and never could catch back up,” Blackmon said.

His dream turned into a nightmare that ended after Blackmon, who once had to quit school to get a job to help his family out, decided to turn pro.

“I wasn’t ready for Auburn or any big school,” Blackmon said. “I was not ready for it socially, coming from a small town in Georgia. I wasn’t ready for all the ways you could get in trouble.”

Blackmon admits he found trouble more than trouble found him.

“It was all my fault,” Blackmon said. “I made the mistakes and I take full responsibility. Nobody else to blame.

“With all that freedom, my demons found me.”

So much so he resented football.

“If it wasn’t for playing football, nobody would have known who I was,” Blackmon said. “I just wanted to be a regular student, a regular guy. You can’t do that when you play football at a big school. All eyes are on you.”

As things got worse during his junior year, and head coach Tommy Tuberville was fired, Blackmon decided it was time for him to leave town as well. So he went and played a year in Canada for the Calgary Stampeders.

“I really liked it up there,” Blackmon said. “It was great just to be playing football and away from my troubles.”

But after one year family issues forced him to leave football again.

“I had to take care of my family,” Blackmon said, who is married and the father of six.

Two years away from football followed.

“I had really given up on the game and ever playing again,” he said. “Still, I really could not figure out what I wanted to do in the long term. I was searching for a future and a way to provide for my family.

“I kept going back to the game I loved to play. Whether it was coaching, scouting, I just love the game. I wanted to make sure I had given it my all before it was too late.”

Two days after making his decision to play again, the Swashbucklers called the 26-year-old.

“It was fate,” Blackmon said. “Everything set up perfect to come here and start over. I love the game and this is a perfect place for me and my family to get a fresh start.”

His game is still solid, though he is learning the ins and outs of arena football.

“We have been impressed from the start with his skills, the way he works, the way he hits and the way he acts,” said Swashbucklers head coach Darnell Lee. “Tray has been nothing short of the perfect professional since he has gotten here.

“He has that it thing you love to see.”

As for his game, “he is a big-time player who doesn’t have a big-time attitude,” Lee said.

The Bucs’ skipper believes Blackmon can play at the next level, though moving into the NFL won’t be easy. Still, there is hope once again.

“Can he make it all the way I don’t know,” Lee said. “He is just young enough to make one last push. I have no doubt he will play again at a higher level, but I’m not sure if he even is thinking that way. He has come a long way already and who knows, this might just be what he wants for now.

“We have seen him mature just in the time he has been here. The best thing about him is you can’t tell if he came from McNeese State or Auburn. He’s just one of the guys and wants to fit in.”

Blackmon calls the Swashbuckers his “second family.” He claims that it was the way they approached him that made his decision to play for them easy.

“They talked to me about everything including football,” Blackmon said. “They made it clear this was a family-type team that wanted what was best for me and my family in the long run, not just this year playing football. That was very important. I wanted to find a home to call our own.”

That’s not to say Blackmon would not love a shot at the big time. He believes he is better able to handle that stage now; he’s just taking things much slower this time around.

“Sure I would love to play in the NFL,” Blackmon said. “But that’s not what this is about. I am worried about today, about playing for this team and getting myself back into shape. If I do that, everything else will take care of itself.”

Humbled by the past and hopeful for the future, Blackmon no longer seems like a guy desperately in need of the game. Instead, he wants to make the most of this second, or maybe even third chance.

“I have matured and understand this is not about me,” Blackmon said. “I have kids to raise and I want to get them ready to go to college, to learn from my mistakes and missed opportunities. I want to use football and the Swashbucklers as a stepping stone to a better life for all of us, not just me.

“I had no positive male role model growing up. I want to be that for my kids.”

After taking more than a few missteps, Blackmon seems to be back on the right track.

Where that leads him, nobody knows yet. But this time he wants to enjoy the trip.

Swashbucklers middle linebacker Tray Blackmon. (Pankaj Khadka / American Press)

pankaj khadka

Swashbucklers middle linebacker Tray Blackmon. (Pankaj Khadka / American Press)

pankaj khadka