Story Links
Peerman Retains Small Town Values
By Raj Sagar, Athletics Media Relations
Most college kids spent their childhood Saturday mornings blissful and care-free. After waking up early, still in their pajamas, they run downstairs and grab a bowl of their favorite cereal before they set up camp on the couch in front of the television to watch hours of their favorite cartoons. For Cedric Peerman, Saturday mornings in Gladys, Va., entailed something else: hard work and responsibility.
In Gladys (population 4,000), a small, rural town in southern Virginia, Peerman worked on his father’s tobacco farm from a very young age. Peerman’s Saturdays would start early not to get to his cartoons to beat the heat.
“I started helping out around six years old,” Peerman said. “We would get out there around 5:30 a.m. and get to work. I wanted to do everything my father and grandfather did, but I was just too small for some things. Instead I took advantage of my size and did things the grown-ups couldn’t get to. I always helped with harvest, getting the tobacco sacked up and taking it to market. I really took pride in being able to contribute.”
By the time he was eight, Peerman was pleading to do the work the adults did. He started riding the tractor, and although he wasn’t big enough yet, he still took on jobs that might have been too big for him. Perhaps overly ambitious, Peerman would tug and yank the 150-pound sacks of tobacco as hard as he could to try and get them into the bed of the family’s Ford pickup.
“I remember how excited I was when they let me start doing some of the bigger jobs,” Peerman said. “I got tired of gathering the leaves that they couldn’t reach. I wanted to help with the things that took two or three people to do, like lifting and moving the wagons.”
Once Peerman entered William Campbell High School, he was big enough to help out with all jobs. In addition to lifting countless heavy pieces of equipment around the farm, Peerman also constantly built his lower body strength by walking up and down the rows of tobacco. Comparable to walking through sand, Peerman did this every day after school until it was too dark to work any longer. This undoubtedly helped Peerman build his rock solid legs which never seem to stop churning now on the football field.
In the fall, Peerman did get one day a week off after school: Friday Night. Peerman’s natural athleticism and his newly-developed strength helped produce one of the greatest running backs in the history of the state of Virginia.
His numbers were staggering. His 708 career points scored are a state record, and his 112 touchdowns are second all time. His senior season, he was state player of the year as he rushed 222 times for 2,016 yards and 43 touchdowns. He also had two receiving touchdowns and a kickoff return for a score that season. His junior season he scored 50 total touchdowns en route to a state championship. His numbers in the state championship game were an eye-popping 317 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.
In between work on the farm and running over and around would-be tacklers at William Campbell, Peerman always found time for his school work. He graduated with a 3.5 GPA, and when it was time to make his college decision, Peerman knew where he wanted to go from the start. Virginia was always the ultimate goal for Peerman, and when an offer came in May of his junior year, he accepted immediately.
Growing up, Peerman was taught to value two things over all else: his family and God. Now, even upon leaving Gladys, Peerman still has had strong ties to his hometown in those regards.
“All the matriarchs and patriarchs of the Peerman family were still in Gladys until a few years back,” Peerman said. “Everyone has branched out, but they would always come back to Gladys for family reunions and holidays.”
Thanksgiving or Christmas at the Peermans is a little larger than most households. In the last couple of years, they finally have outgrown their house in Gladys and instead everyone gathers at Peerman’s aunt’s house in Lynchburg.
“Our family has gotten so big, we had to relocate our get-togethers,” Peerman said. “Thanksgiving at my aunt’s house normally involves 50 or 60 people. It’s nice having the whole family under one roof. Aunts, uncles, cousins and in-laws all come together a few times a year. It’s a great feeling to have that many people around that love and support you.”
This past July, Peerman further strengthened his ties to Gladys when he became a licensed minister at Hills Creek Baptist Church in his hometown. For Minister Ced,’ as his teammates often call him, religion has always been a big part of his life.
“It was something God called me to do,” Peerman said. “It has been a big part of my life since I was born and is something that is very important to me.”
When he arrived and the redshirted in 2004, Peerman had some great Virginia running backs he played behind. As Wali Lundy was the featured back, Peerman was relegated to mostly kickoff returns and spot duty at tailback his first two seasons. In 2007, Peerman broke out in the first five games of the season before he was hit with an unfortunate foot injury. He had rushed for 585 yards and was the ACC’s leading rusher when he went down. This season, Peerman has worked his way back to being completely healthy, and it seems he has gotten there as he rushed for 110 yards on 17 carries in a week five 31-0 rout of Maryland.
Anyone who talks to Cedric Peerman will agree that there is virtually no distinction between who he was, and who he is. The values and work ethic he learned growing up fuel his humility and dedication.
Peerman is still a workhorse on Saturdays toonow it’s on the football field, in a Cavalier jersey.