Content provided in partnership with

Providence guard is making his own noise

Sporting News, The, Dec 6, 2004 by Mike DeCourcy

Dwight Brewington does not know how much of the applause he cannot hear. He knows what he does hear, not what he doesn't. But he can see the numbers on his stat line growing for the Providence Friars, the grades in his coursework climbing. "I have no more frustrations," he says.

Brewington is hearing-impaired. He explains his hearing loss is about 60 percent, corrected to a degree by the hearing aids he wears. A 6-5 shooting guard, Brewington is in his second season at Providence and leads the 4-2 Friars in scoring with 18.5 points per game. But Brewington admits he almost didn't make it to the start of his first season.

Most Popular Articles in Sports: The first family: Archie, Peyton and Eli are incredibly famous, immensely ...; The growing gap: driving distances are skyrocketing on the PGA Tour. So why ...; Which pistol caliber for self defense? Four different people come to four ...; Drag racing - National Hot Rod Association; The world's most popular .22: the Marlin Model 60 just keeps on ticking; More »

Because of his disability, he struggled to keep up in classes. He could hear some of what his instructors said and read their lips, but he'd lose track of the lecture if he looked down to take notes or the professor wasn't facing him. Brewington thought about leaving. "I wanted them to look bad, not me," he says. His mother begged him not to leave school, and he ultimately decided, "I didn't want people to think I'm a quitter."

The first step was convincing Providence he needed some help. The school arranged for him to have a note-taker and tutor. Anne Marie Clarkson accompanies Brewington to class and sits beside him, taking notes while Brewington follows the lecture. If he misses a point, she covers it for him in sign language, which he can understand but can't speak. Between classes, Clarkson functions as a tutor.

This semester, Brewington is taking four classes on his way to a management degree. The most challenging, he says, is a core requirement: History of Film. That might sound like a cushy course, but it's not for Brewington. "It all has to do with watching movies, and I can't hear what they're saying," he says. He is dealing with it. His grades, he says, put him on course for the honor roll.

On the court, he's on track to become a Big East star. Brewington is long and agile. He made 16 of his first 33 attempts from 3-point range. As a freshman, his concern about functioning as a college student made it difficult for him to function on the basketball court. For example, despite his shooting touch, he hit just 56.8 percent from the foul line.

"I'm not a player who goes to school just for basketball," he says. "I wanted my degree. This year, the weight is off my back. Once it's game time, the only thing I think about is basketball. Last year, I was thinking about everything else. Basketball wasn't even in my mind."

Providence guard is making his own noise

Sporting News, The, Dec 6, 2004 by Mike DeCourcy

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Sports

Most Popular Articles in Sports

Most Popular Publications in Sports