MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Fern McDonald thought she had more time with her son Tamarion before he left for college.
"I honestly thought because of this whole pandemic, I had my baby here until August or September," she said.
But as we have seen a lot over the last two months; plans change. The Whitehaven alum and Tennessee football commit will report to Knoxville sooner than expected, with the SEC allowing voluntary on-campus workouts to begin June 8.
"You can't be telling me the man of my house would be leaving in two weeks," Fern said.
She wanted to give her son a proper send-off.
"I wanted to give him that celebration to let him know that I'm proud of him," she said."
So Fern planned a drive-thru celebration.
"It made me happy seeing my family members," Tamarion said. "It put a smile on my face knowing that all of them wanted to see me before I go off so it just makes me feel loved."
McDonald will not be going alone. Fellow Whitehaven linebackers Bryson Eason and Martavius French are joining McDonald in Knoxville.
"It feels good knowing I got the same guys beside me playing and motivating me," he said. "It makes me feel comfortable too, knowing that I'm up there with people I've been close to all my life."
"He doesn't have to make new friends because the guys that he's been playing with since he was six years old are going with him," Fern said. "So I'm very comfortable with that."