Former Rutgers Football Player Eric LeGrand Explains the Meaning of His Tattoos

"The best is yet to come," smiled Eric LeGrand, former Rutgers University football player and Wings for Life World Run ambassador.

Understand the meaning behind his numerous tattoos, and it's easy to see why he feels that way.

"Family First" inscribed on his biceps. A mighty gladiator mural on his back. Jesus' image inked on his left arm.

And now, his niece's and two nephews' zodiac signs.

"My tattoos paint a picture of my body through the years—my interests, my family, things that matter to me the most," LeGrand explained.

Writing his story in body ink has been a passion of the winner of the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance long before he was paralyzed in an October 16, 2010, football game.

As his mother recounts, Big E began brainstorming the design of his first piece of permanent artwork as a high school junior—a crown-wearing letter E.

Although the sensation of putting needle to skin has changed, tattoo artist Paula Lopez clarified that LeGrand's body still registers the pain.

To some degree, so does he.

"In the beginning, I get an immediate rush to my head...and it allows me to know something is going on," he described. "But as time goes on, it easily settles down until she hits a trigger spot on my body and it twitches. It's actually kind of funny to see."

It doesn't seem to deter him from filling his canvas.

Perhaps it's because, according to Lopez, "A lot of his tattoos are really about progression forward, with him getting better."

And in the process of his own improvement, the once-honorary member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers has also committed himself to bettering the lives of others, most recently by advocating for spinal cord injury research through Team LeGrand.

When those advancements come to pass, there's little doubt about how LeGrand will choose to commemorate it.

[YouTube, h/t Wings for Life World Run]