This is Part II of a multi-part series about Gray Military Academy, a planned post-grad prep school in the Midlands.

WEST COLUMBIA - For everything he accomplished on the football field and baseball diamond, former South Carolina two-sport star Rob DeBoer understands the last time he made major headlines some people got a negative perception of him.

The reason for that was one word - BurnLounge.

Eighteen months ago, DeBoer spent almost three weeks in a federal courthouse in Los Angeles defending BurnLounge from accusations the online music company was an illegal pyramid scheme. The Federal Trade Commission brought the action and named DeBoer, one of the company's top salesmen, as a defendant.

DeBoer defended himself at trial.

"From a whirlwind perspective, it's been a tough four years," DeBoer said Gamecock Central recently. "Most people don't know the whole BurnLounge story. It was the first case in the history of network marketing to ever go to trial. That's because nobody was ever willing to fight the system. It wasn't about some righteous, noble fight. I have to look my son in the eye and say I did the right thing."

But DeBoer has refused to allow that controversial episode to soil his ambitions. Nowadays, he's engrossed and enthusiastically involved in getting Gray Military Academy, the first post-graduate prep school in the Palmetto State, off the ground at a location close to Columbia Metropolitan Airport where the Will Lou Gray Opportunity School is currently situated.

DeBoer has worked closely with the school's co-founder Todd Helms since the beginning. Last November, DeBoer was present at a bible study class for Christian men when Helms first presented his vision of a post-grad prep school for football players in the Palmetto State.

Soon, DeBoer was helping Helms chase his dream.

"Todd and I have a lot in common. We really connected on a spiritual level," DeBoer said. "We have similar backgrounds with coaching and testimonies with our faith in Christ. Then, when the movie 'The Blind Side' came out, we just kept talking, throwing ideas up against the wall. We wondered why there wasn't a prep school here even though we have two major universities in the state."

DeBoer will not only coach running backs and head up GMA's Christian Mentor program, he's also on the Board of Advisors along with legendary college coaches Jim Carlen, Willie Jefferies and Danny Ford, among others.

"I'm all in," DeBoer said. "This is more about sharing the message of Christ than anything. We're very unashamed about that. We expect the players to do it the right way and to respect the game the way it should be respected. We're going to create men who can go beyond football. When our kids go back to the schools they signed with, the coaches there won't have to ask about character, work ethic or responsibility."

DeBoer, who played for USC from 1990-93, and now ranks 18th on the school's all-time rushing list with 1,810 career yards, said GMA is the right school at the right time.

"There are so many kids that go unnoticed and they never realize their full potential," DeBoer said. "Jim Baxter (GMA's Recruiting Coordinator and Director of Player Personnel) told me that for every success story like the 'Blind Side', there are 10 kids we never hear of. So we wanted to do something about that. We feel like we're going to impact a lot of lives.

"Right now, my faith is everything. I've come to believe in the purpose of sharing the Gospels. That's what I live for. At the end of the day, there's not a better gift I could give a player the college level."

Even though it has taken a lot of hard work to reach this point, DeBoer is thankful the road towards establishing GMA hasn't been filled with too many potholes.

"There were a bunch of things that needed to happen, the stars had to all line up for this to even come about," DeBoer said. "Todd and I agreed to wait for the Lord to show us the way. Before long, we had our answer. It's the right time because that place (Will Lou Gray) is an underutilized facility. Ninety-nine of 100 people don't even know the facility exists and it's right here in our background. We can do something special with that. We can teach young men about football and leadership and life. It's quite incredible what has taken place."

While GMA hopes USC and Clemson funnel players to their school rather than ship them to Fork Union or Hargrave Military, DeBoer wants to establish relationships with many of the other football programs in the Palmetto State and beyond.

"While I think we'll draw the best players from USC and Clemson, we're also going to feed into the Coastal Carolinas and the Newberrys. We're here for everyone."

As a USC grad and native of Omaha, Neb., DeBoer is proud the Gamecocks won the final College World Series at Rosenblatt Stadium, the same place he competed during high school.

"It was pretty neat to watch," DeBoer said. "South Carolina will be the answer to a trivia question someday. Being from Omaha, I know all about the tradition and history of Rosenblatt. I'm happy USC got to experience that."

So, how did the BurnLounge trial end up? The federal judge who heard the case has yet to make a final ruling, DeBoer said. He rejected overtures from the federal government to settle the case before trial.

"I'm not going to sign a paper admitting anything I didn't do," DeBoer said. "As a result, I took the time, saved money, lived on savings, learned the law and represented myself for 16 days in federal court. I walked out of court three months later when we had closing arguments. That was March 2009. I haven't as much as a whisper since then. There has been no resolution and no ruling."

Is it unsettling to DeBoer that the BurnLounge case has yet to reach the final stage?

"I rarely think about it," he said. "I know the Lord is in control. Before all this, I thought I had faith and knew Jesus, but I didn't. In some cases, God will strip you down to bare nothing and that's what he had to do with me. I was so worried about what people thought. I made sure people knew the facts and were aware there was another side to the story than what they were reading in the newspaper.

"I feel good about everything and wouldn't change one thing I've done. I would do it all over again tomorrow. It's a shame the system works the way it does."

If DeBoer represented himself pro se during the BurnLounge trial and there's still no final ruling 18 months later, it is safe to presume DeBoer did a respectable job defending the charges brought by the federal government?

"I'm going to stay humble and let people draw their own conclusions," DeBoer said. "But that wouldn't be a bad assumption."

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