Macon, Ga. (WGXA) — A Macon teen is recovering in an Atlanta hospital after suffering a serious spinal injury during a football game.

Thirteen-year-old Kelvin “Bug” Howard, who plays for Appling Middle School, was injured during a game when he made a powerful hit on another player. His mother, Doris Howard, says that moment changed their family’s life in an instant.

“I was thinking, Lord, why? Why my son? Why take him through so much pain?” she said. On October 4, Doris and her husband received a phone call that their son had been hurt. They immediately drove from Atlanta to Macon—only to be told to turn back when they learned Kelvin was being airlifted to Atlanta for specialized treatment.

“My heart dropped,” Howard recalled. “The boy had the ball, and my son hit him. The coach said he hit him so hard that when Bug stood up, he fell back down—and everybody ran onto the field.”

According to doctors, Kelvin fractured his spine and hip and suffered a concussion. For a time, he was unable to feel anything. He now faces a long recovery that will include physical therapy.

But there’s reason for hope. “A couple of weeks ago, he started having feeling in his legs, and he started moving them,” Howard said. “Every day I see him, I see that fight in him. He always says, ‘I’m going to get up, I’m going to walk, I’m going to do this. We’re not going to be here long, Mom.’ And I believe that—I believe every word he says.”

Howard says the outpouring of support from the community has been overwhelming. “Oh my God, they come up there with shirts made for him. He’s got a hat, a blanket—they’ve bought so much stuff. They even made me a T-shirt. Thank God, and I love it to death,” she said.

She also expressed gratitude to the Bibb County superintendent, who visited the family in the hospital. “He’s so amazing,” Howard said. “He stood there with us, held our hands, and we gathered around my son and prayed.”