CONWAY, Ark. — For defensive back Deandre Lamont, getting vaccinated against COVID-19 was never something he had plans of doing.
"I was blessed not to get COVID, so, I felt like I didn't need it," he said.
The Junior from Texas said he ate healthily, worked out consistently, and hadn't caught COVID during the first surges.
He was lucky, but his team wasn't. Their last game of the season in 2020 was canceled due to positive cases in their opponent's program.
"You miss a game this year because of [COVID-19], you forfeit," Head Coach Nathan Brown said. "That's not something we want to do as a program."
The team did something about it in order to make sure they wouldn't miss a game.
"We basically had a team meeting with everybody who didn't have a vaccination, and we had a couple guys who already got vaccinated," Cameron Godfrey, a safety on the team, said.
"That really pushed a lot of people to go get it that day or the day after."
The team brought in doctors and other medical experts to talk about the vaccine – not to shame anyone into getting it, but to inform.
"Not as a fear tactic, but also just come together as one," Godfrey said. "We're one team, we're all gonna do this together, we're standing together."
Because of that, 98% of the team has gotten vaccinated against COVID-19 – including Lamont.
"I'm just proud of them," Coach Brown said. "You know, nothing's required. At the end of the day, we're not requiring them to get it."
Getting the shot was personal for many members of the team.
A teammate contracted the virus and is still sidelined because of it.
"He was unvaccinated and got put in this situation, I think it was a wake up call for our players," Coach Brown said.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Jesse and his family, and obviously we want what's best for him. He's in our hearts every single day, but I think our players definitely did respond to that circumstance."
So while it isn't everybody – 98% is a lot.
And even though Lamont was hesitant at first, he said getting his shot is the best way to make sure he and his teammates stay on the field this year.
"I'm excited, I'm very excited. I feel like this is going to be a great season for the Bears," he said. "God bless I don't get injured, but I'm not missing a game cause of COVID!"