Football

Former Panthers Safety Tre Boston Says God Clearly Directed His Steps To Sign With Chargers

By Jason Romano May 23, 2017
Tre Boston with his mother. (Photo courtesy: Tre Boston/Instagram - @trebos10)

In 3 seasons with the Carolina Panthers, Tre Boston played in 5 postseason games, including the Super Bowl 50 loss to the Denver Broncos. He was the starting safety in 10 of the team’s 16 games in 2016 before suffering a knee injury that would force him to end the season on the team’s injured reserve list.

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After the season was over, Boston became an unrestricted free agent and had a decision to make in which team he would sign with for the 2017 season. After much prayer and consideration, Tre signed a deal with the Los Angeles Chargers.

But this wasn’t your typical free agent decision and NFL signing. This was divine intervention.

A chance meeting at a gas station swayed Tre’s decision to join the Chargers.

“At the end of the day God told me to come here,” Boston to ESPN. “And I’m a man of faith, so I couldn’t go against his word.”

Boston had been released by the Panthers and was free to sign with any team. The decision came down to the Chargers, Bills and Steelers.

After visiting each of the three teams, Boston said he prayed for clarity as traveled back to Charlotte to make his decision.

As he was driving, he saw that a local gas station’s prices had dropped, so he stopped by to fill up his tank.

“I crossed two lanes to get to the gas station,” Boston told ESPN. “I pump my gas. After I pump my gas, I put my wallet in my car. After I put my wallet in my car, there’s a guy with three kids and he asked me for a little bit of change, or if I had a dollar or two. I gave him a $20.

“So he tells me thank you so much, and that God put me in his life for a reason. And in my mind I’m saying you’re here for a reason, too. So in my mind I’m saying should I ask him, ‘L.A. or Buffalo.’ And before I could ask him, my man told me, ‘Thank you so much. There aren’t too many people like you in this world, God’s children. My name’s Mike Daniels, but people call me L.A.'”

At that moment, Boston said began to weep. He heard the nickname L.A. and knew this was a sign from God and that his decision had been made.

Upon crying, Tre said he reached tissues in his car, but for a moment, thought he saw Jesus on an advertisement stand selling gas station cards.

Boston told ESPN that he looked back and saw a card that said, “Jesus saves.” The conversation continued between the two men for another 30 minutes before they said their goodbyes.

“I ended up giving him $100 because I knew he changed my life, just like I knew I changed his life,” Boston said to ESPN. “Honestly, that’s the reason why I’m here. It didn’t matter how much money was given to me. It didn’t matter really who was on the team, it just happened to be a great fit.

“God told me to come here, and that’s my testimony. And that’s why I’m here.”

In 2016, Tre posted a video on Instagram of him being baptized, saying:

“The time was now, to cleanse myself and become new. Less than a week from my wedding. I thank God for sacrificing his only son Jesus so that my sins could be washed away. Everybody has a new beginning with the Lord. And I thank em for it.”

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