Football: UBC D-line recruit a survivor of Balkan war

You have to read about incoming UBC Thunderbirds defensive end Ben Kahriman, the child of Bosnian refugees who "literally got the last train out of Serbia" during the war in the 1990s. Honestly, it is heart-in-the-throat stuff, about a young man and his parents who have overcome more than you could while passing through 100 lifetimes.

"Kahriman might have received Division I offers had it not been for his physical setbacks, but he isn't deterred by it. He believes he still might wind up playing at that level if UBC joins the NCAA, which the Canadian university has been considering. The key is that the prestigious university presents the best springboard to his longer-term goals — helping people from his native country.

" 'There's still a lot of hatred between the religions, and there's a still a lot of anger between Montenegro and Serbia, Bosnia and Serbia,' he said. 'My main goal in life is to help people in that region develop stable government.' "

Words kind of fail when you read about this:

"' I remember since I was little, like 3 or 4, at the dinner table there would be talk about the war and everything,' Kahriman said. 'My mom, she didn't want to hide anything from me. She wanted me to know everything that was happening and didn't want to shield us.'

"... 'When I got older, probably fourth or fifth grade, I developed a resentment against what happened and the fact that a lot of innocent civilians died like my grandparents,' "

There's someone you have to cheer for, regardless of rooting interest.

Kahriman clan gets off train ride to nowhere (Carl Steward, InsideBayArea.com)
Balkan war refugee achieves college football dream (Vytas Mazeika, San Jose Mercury News)