WILLIAMSBURG, VA (FR) – Considered one of the most feared receivers in Division I-AA by The Sporting News, Harry Mehre is making his mark on collegiate football in an “unassuming manner.” He’s a fast runner whose style is different from what people are used to because he appears to not be running hard when he’s actually blasting across the field at 4.5 seconds per 40 yards.

William & Mary’s arch rival, James Madison University Coach Joe Purzycki, says 6-foot, 180-pound Mehre requires one and one half men on him from the opposition. “Mehre’s presence is enough,” he said.

Despite the possibility of playing pro after finishing up his senior year with a big bang, Mehre says the one thing he wants people to say about him is: “There is a man who loves God.” Mehre became a Christian last January after hearing evangelist Rice Broocks speak on his campus.

“From a very young age, I had an awareness of God and I knew right from wrong,” Mehre said. “I come from a stable loving family background and have had excellent training, discipline and upbringing. Although I recognized Jesus as my saviour, I had never made Him my Lord.

“Basically, I tried to live a good life. I thought moderation was the key. As long as I didn’t do anything to an excess, I would be okay,” he explained. “Yet a scripture kept coming to mind: ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I would that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.”

Mehre says he realized that living a good, upright, moral life wasn’t enough. “I wasn’t okay with God. I thought, ‘Maybe He is requiring more of my life, perhaps all of my life.’” While driving home to Georgia from Virginia during Christmas break, he began listening to tapes that Rice Broocks had given to him. “I began to reflect on how many chances God had given me to repent.

“I thought about the awful predicament I would be in if He stopped calling me to serve Him. I began to count the cost of serving God. I realized that only good could come from such a decision. I could see that the decisions I had made up to this point had only been leading me to evil and not good.

“So even though I knew it would be tough to return to school in January as a Christian, I knew it was the right thing to do. God was gracious to me because when I returned to school, one of my closest friends had decided to become a Christian as well.”

Mehre said his whole life had changed. “My eyes had been opened to just how much darkness I was engulfed in. I am so thankful that God showed me the truth. I want to live wholeheartedly for Him and make Him known to others.”

In the close of his college football career, Mehre is not anxious about where he is going to be after graduation. Although he’s been looked at by NFL scouts, he plans to go out with a big bang, even if they don’t call him. “I’d really like to try it,” he said. “But I’m not going to be devastated if I find it is not God’s choice for my life.”