Corvaughn Archie has been the go to guy this season for the Fresno City College Rams. So far this season, Archie has 25 catches for 439 yards and three touchdowns. He is ranked eighth in the state for yards per game, and is already making highlight reel plays this season, most notably for a game winning Hail Mary touchdown reception with seven seconds on the clock in a dramatic game against West Hills College.

Archie says this season’s football team is a special one. In his eyes, last year’s team had more playmakers, but this year’s team works better collectively on the field which makes him believe that the 2010 Rams football team is one of the best he’s ever played on.

“This team knows how to grind it out,” Archie said. “This team knows how to play. We don’t stop. We are just ballers.”

Fans have seen the type of player Archie is on the field, but many wonder what it is that makes Corvaughn Archie tick.

“They call me ‘preacher man’ in the locker room,” Archie said. “They know that being a Christian is my lifestyle. You’re not going to catch me at a party. You will not see me smoking, nor will you hear me cursing.”

The FCC wide receiver described  an incident that changed his life forever. When he was in the fifth grade he was walking form the store with his cousin when he saw two guys arguing in front of the store.

“It was the summer, and I was about 20 feet away, and they started arguing,” he said “One of them pulled out a gun, and boom, point blank.” Archie made his hand look like a gun and pointed it at his forehead when he made the gun shooting gesture.

They ran back to his cousin’s apartment in shock.

Archie said that incident changed his life forever.

“I made a decision to either condone that behavior, or I was going to go away from that lifestyle and say I don’t want that for myself,” said Archie. “I didn’t want to be put in a situation where a man would put a gun to my head because of some stupid incident.”

The two main influences in Archie’s life have been his father and his grandfather. He first spoke about his grandfather who Archie said he absolutely admires.

Bishop James Oliver Archie was born and raised in western Louisiana during the time when the KKK was running rampant.

“He was a radical who almost joined the Black Panthers movement,” Archie said. “He was going to be a regional leader, I believe.”

Archie said that his grandfather had a hatred for society as a whole, and completely changed after he got saved.

Archie says that he admires his grandfather because he survived many overwhelming obstacles.

“There are things that he has done that I don’t believe that I will ever be able to do,” Archie said.

The role that Archie’s parents played in his life is just as profound as the lesson that Archie learned when he was in the fifth grade, because his parents have given him 100 percent support throughout his life.

“I can’t deny that my dad is one of my best friends,” Archie said. “My mom’s philosophy was girls go with mom and boys go with dad. So, I was with my dad almost 24/7 and naturally we sort of bonded.”

Archie says that he and his dad, Cornell Archie, talk about everything. He also says that his dad is like “one of my boys.”

“My dad is definitely my mentor because he is there at the end of the day,” Archie said. “When I needed someone to talk to, about any situation that could help me grow, or to help me clarify an issue, I could always count on him to give me something that would be deep and not sugar coated.”

On the field, Archie tries to live by what he calls his “personal philosophy” each and every day he plays football.

This personal philosophy seems to work well for himself and his teammates. It is one of the many reasons why he believes that his team has the potential to win a championship this season.

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard,” Archie said. “You have to work hard no matter who you think you are. Talent can only take you so far.”

Archie believes that you are defined by your work ethics in his league.

“This season’s football team is a special one because we really work as a team, and a team wins championships,” Archie said. “I believe that this team can win a championship because of our continuity. It’s one of the best teams I have ever played on. This team is real.”