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LSU freshman with cancer flips coin at Saturday's game
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BATON ROUGE - An LSU student got his chance to shine during the opening coin toss at LSU's game against Syracuse Saturday night.
Kayne Finley and his service dog, Moose, rode to the center of Tiger Stadium to open the game as the designated coin toss official.
Finley was diagnosed with a rare brain cancer that impedes his ability to walk and speak. But instead of dwelling on his limitations, the 18-year-old uses them as motivation to pursue his dream- becoming a veterinarian.
Today's game was sponsored by Our Lady of the Lake hospital. The hospital's chief executive, Scott Wester said it was easy to choose the best person for the coin toss job.
"We thought about it," the chief told WBRZ. "The most appropriate person to have out on the field would be a patient. So tonight we have Finley."
Finley made quite the impression on the crowd. Upon arrival almost everyone knew his name. Even LSU athletes lined up to shake his hand. Even Ed Orgeron wanted a chance to meet LSU's coin tosser.
"It's good to be well-known in the community. A lot of people know you but you don't know them," Finley said.
And before he could leave the turf, there's one more hand he had to shake -- Coach Ed Orgeron's.
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