Illini cornerback Tavon Wilson draws inspiration from grandmother

Illinois sophomore cornerback Tavon Wilson could have gone in another direction when both of his parents died before he entered the sixth grade in inner-city Washington, D.C. His father was murdered when Wilson was 1. His mother drowned during a pool party when Wilson was 12. "A lot of guys could have cashed it in, but my grandmother isn't that type of woman,'' Wilson said. "She wouldn't let me give up. She kept me going in a straight line and kept pushing me toward my goals.'' When Illinois begins football practice Thursday at Memorial Stadium, the 6-foot, 195-pound Wilson enters preseason camp as a first-stringer at cornerback in a position vacated by Vontae Davis.

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