CLEARWATER, FL - Efrem Only takes a lot of pride in being a Clearwater Tornado.

“A lot of people around here went here,” says Only. “My dad graduated from here.”

Efrem was a late bloomer on the football field. After just one touchdown his junior year in 2020, he exploded his senior season with 14 TDs – putting together one of best performances by a running back in program history.

“Over 1,200 rushing yards,” said a smiling Only. “When I get the ball I want to score. I want to hit the end zone and everybody else wants to see me hit the end zone.”

But Efrem meant so much more to his team. He became one of the leaders everyone could turn to.

“The character that he has, he’s infectious,” said Clearwater head coach Thor Jozwiak. “You want to be around him – great smile, always positive.”

Jozwiak led the Tornadoes to an unforgettable season in his first year. They made it all the way to the program’s first-ever regional final.

“These seniors left their mark. Longest run in 114 years, 11 wins on the year. One of the guys on the top of that mountain of that buy-in was Efrem Only,” said Jozwiak.

Coach Thor was so impressed by Efrem, he has a photo of the two leading the Tornadoes onto the field in the team’s locker room. It will be one of the last images future players see before each game.

“I’m grateful for the relationship that we got to build,” said Jozwiak.

Efrem should be preparing for his next step – playing college football. But that won’t be happening.

“I think about it at nighttime and some days it’s just weird, and I cry about it a little bit,” said Only.

Efrem has to wear special sunglasses.

On January 2^nd, Efrem was involved an accidental shooting, in which a BB gun was fired in front of his right eye. His daily routine is no longer lifting weights or running on a field. He’s timing out eye drops with his parents.  

“When it happened I just remember I had a headache. But when I got to the hospital and before I had the surgery they kept opening it and it hurt then,” said Only.

The BB is still lodged in the back of Efrem’s eye – luckily he will not lose the eye. Another surgery is expected in the near future. Efrem is staying his positive self and still doing normal things around the house. But his parents know it’s weighing on him.

“At night he’ll have flashbacks of the incident,”said mom Michelle Only. “As well that feeling of ‘now what do I do?’”

“He was going to go off to play college ball, now I’ll never get to see him do that,” said dad Efrem Sr.

Efrem goes from school to the doctor’s office for check-ups. With each visit to a different specialist, the medical bills are starting to pile up.

“We’ve already met the deductible,” said Michelle. “At this point now there are some things we have to pay out of pocket and there’s some things that the insurance is covering.”

The Only’s have had their world turned upside down. But they’re not in this alone. A GoFundMe was set up to help with Efrem’s medical bills. The goal is to raise $50,000. People all over Clearwater have donated.

“With the GoFundMe that has been such a big help and such a huge blessing to us,” said Michelle.

“Money and bills will come and go. The Only’s are prepared. The one thing they couldn’t afford to lose is Efrem.

“I thank God I still have my son,” said Efrem Sr. “Every day I come home I look at him, I grab him, hug him and kiss him.”

The road ahead for Efrem Only will not be easy. Much about his future is up in the air. But one thing life and football has taught him is that adversity can be met head on, especially when your family and community are in your corner.

“I’m blessed to still be here,” said Efrem.