Ryan Davidson never understood the big deal.

Stricken with brain cancer since the age of 6, the Sun Prairie boy led a valiant fight against the insidious disease and inspired everyone who came in contact with him — from friends and neighbors to the University of Southern California football team.

But Ryan couldn't fathom the impact he had on so many people.

"He told us one day, 'I just don't understand why people say I inspire them so much. I'm just being me,' " said Kirby Davidson, Ryan's father. 

Ryan's nearly 10-year battle with cancer ended when he passed away on Feb. 19, his 16th birthday. He endured four brain surgeries, 60 rounds of radiation, 25 months of chemotherapy and a variety of experimental drugs.

His doctors gave him the news last fall: There was nothing more they could do. Ryan hugged the doctors and told them they did the best they could. And then, the simple message adopted from the USC Trojans, his favorite football team, "Fight On."

"In talking with his doctors later, I don't think they had ever experienced something like that," Kirby Davidson said. "Here's a child that's been told, 'There's nothing further we can do for you,' and he's supporting them."

Pete Carroll has coached some of the biggest names in college football in eight years at Southern Cal, players like Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and Troy Polamalu. Carroll called Ryan, "as great a competitor as we've ever had in the program."

Make no mistake, Ryan was considered to be a part of the program the past five years, from his first trip to Los Angeles to watch the Trojans beat California in 2004. No one exemplified the team's motto of "Fight On" more than he did.

"He is the definition of fighting on," Leinart said. "The definition of strength, courage, all those things. I told him that every time I saw him and talked to him."

'A big giver'

Of all the remarkable things that happened to Ryan since he was embraced by the USC family, nothing meant more to him than his friendship with Leinart, the star quarterback and Ryan's favorite player.

Kirby Davidson grew up a USC fan and met Jim Phillips, a member of the Trojans' board of directors. Phillips, who lost his first wife to cancer, heard about Ryan and made arrangements for the initial trip. 

Ryan got a chance to tour Heritage Hall, where the USC football offices are located. He sat in on a quarterbacks meeting and attended practice. It didn't take long for the players to fall in love with the skinny 11-year-old boy with the wide smile and indomitable spirit.

"He's so smart and he was so sociable and you could just tell he was on Cloud Nine being there," Leinart said. "When he went to the team meeting room, coach Carroll carried him on his shoulders and we sang "Fight On." It kind of made everybody choke up a little bit. It was such a great moment."

The Trojans went on to win the 2004 national title, defeating Oklahoma in Miami in the title game. The entire Davidson family, including parents Kirby and Amy as well as sister Mallory, flew to Florida for the game. 

Ryan was considered a good-luck charm for the team and stories were written about him in newspapers in California, as well as the State Journal. But it went a lot deeper than that for most of the coaches and players. Ryan gave more than he got.

"He was a big giver," Carroll said. "He gave of himself in the toughest of times."

Friend and inspiration

On the trip home from the hospital, after getting the news there was nothing more the doctors could do, Ryan came up with the idea of setting a fund-raising record for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. Since he was 15 at the time, he set a goal of $15,000. With the help of his CaringBridge Web site, he quickly doubled that, raising more than $30,000.
The reason for doing it, he told his dad, was "because I don't want any other kid to have to go through what I've gone through."

After Leinart was drafted by the NFL's Arizona Cardinals, he stayed in touch with Ryan. Leinart would call Ryan and the two played video games online. Each season, Leinart arranged to have Ryan and his dad fly to Phoenix for a game. The highlight of the weekend was Leinart and Ryan, sitting on the couch together, two buddies watching college football and catching up.

"It really turned into a friendship," Leinart said. "That's the hardest part about it now. We all know he is in a better place and he's not suffering anymore, (but) what an incredible person and friend we all lost."

Ryan was fiercely loyal to the Trojans. He attended seven USC games and the only loss was to Texas, 41-38 in the 2006 Rose Bowl.

"We were in the stands, Texas had just scored the winning touchdown," Kirby Davidson said. "Ryan said, 'We need to go.' He was tearing up. He said, 'I just can't stand to watch this. These are like my brothers to me.' " 

Leinart, who has a son, said he is a better father because of Ryan, who inspired Leinart to get his charitable foundation involved in the Make-A-Wish program, sponsoring the wishes of 12 kids per year.

Ryan gave Leinart a necklace with a picture of them from the first time they met. It hangs around the rear-view mirror in Leinart's car, so he can see it and think about Ryan every day. Meanwhile, Ryan will be buried in his favorite Leinart jersey on Saturday.

"I just wish I could be like him one day," Leinart said. "He has inspired so many people, his strength and courage and determination and how he kept going. He was battling his heart out. Such an amazing boy."

A final goal

The culmination of Ryan's relationship with USC came last October, when he made his final trip to California for a game against Arizona State. He led the band at the pep rally the day before the game using a sword for a baton, an honor usually reserved for a player.

Carroll choked up, watching a slightly unstable Ryan being supported on the ladder by players.

"He deserved to be part of it," Carroll said of the honor. "He earned his way, just like everybody else did, by fighting on. We'll always hold him very dear in our hearts."

Ryan was named an honorary captain for the game and led the players out of the tunnel. He walked to midfield with the captains for the coin flip, and he was given a game ball after the Trojans' victory. Ryan was invited to so many events that weekend, Kirby Davidson joked that he felt more like Ryan's agent than his father.

"To walk out in the Coliseum, through the tunnel with the team and to hear 90,000 fans screaming for you, he felt it," Kirby Davidson said.

Through all of his treatments, Ryan always beat the odds. He survived longer than expected. Kirby Davidson strongly believes all the love and support kept him going, as well as having so many things to look forward to.

Ryan wanted to reach his 16th birthday. It was important to him to be 16. Like he did so many other times in his treatment, he set a goal and reached it.

"Somebody wrote to us and said, 'Only saints are called home on their birthdays,' " Kirby Davidson said. "Near the end, he was really fighting, because he wanted to be 16 and he made it to his 16th birthday. That's just him.

"His body couldn't survive for the whole day, but he was with us for part of it. It's like when we were at USC the last time and he had all these different gigs to get to. He had other things to do that day. He had a bigger birthday celebration waiting for him."