The Florida A&M University Rattlers football team have recently named Trayvon Martin’s father, Tracy Martin, as its honorary captain following an emotional speech he gave the team on Sunday; it was reported to the Orlando Sentinel by the team’s coach, Earl Holmes.

Martin will perform the pregame coin toss for FAMU’s season opener against Mississippi Valley State on September 1, as part of the honors, the Orlando newspaper reported.

“[We] talked and I told him I’d love him to talk to the team,” Holmes said. “He came out and he was very, very encouraging. … “[He] got a standing ovation from our guys. He talked about just persevering and told the guys to keep on pushing through the hard times. The message he shared with the kids was very positive and they were very responsive.”

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