HOUSTON, Texas (KXXV) — "I was excited," said eight-year-old Nolan Smith.
— when 25 News asked him his reaction to being part of the pregame ceremonies for the Texas Bowl.
"I feel excited... I get to share my story and help other kids," he said.
Nolan is part of Children's Miracle Network. Kinder, the sponsor of the Texas Bowl invited his family to have him be part of the pregame coin toss.
His story is truly one to hear — at age three, his family received devastating news.
"He was diagnosed with Retinoblastoma, which is a cancer of the eye," said Nolan's mother, Courtney Smith.
"Throughout the entire thing, he has done amazing — he enjoyed going to the hospital. He had fun, which was something that we were really grateful for."
Nolan did have his left eye removed to stop the spreading —he is cancer-free and continues to find positives.
"He has a prosthetic eye on his left side — we started calling it his superhero eye when he was younger, because it's hard to explain to a three-year-old what a prosthetic eye is," she said.
"As he's learned more about it, he's been able to share with others exactly what that means and what his own story has been."
When it comes to the game itself, Nolan is excited to root for the teams.
"Just be able to know that we're just a small part in helping other kids and families going through difficult challenges like our family did," said Nolan's father, Josh Smith.
"S as a parent, it's pretty cool to get to see Nolan have that opportunity."
Nolan's parents are both Baylor alumni, and they will see that special moment come true when Baylor and LSU hit the field on December 31 at 2:30 p.m.
