Last year at this time, senior Davis Bullock was lying in a hospital bed wondering if he would ever be able to play soccer again.

Bullock was unexpectedly diagnosed with stage IV Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma over a year ago. But after months of extensive treatments, Bullock’s cancer is finally in remission and he’s back on the soccer field as Cal’s captain with a healthy heart and mind.

Bullock’s last round of chemotherapy was on April 22, 2015, which marked the last night Bullock stayed at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. Since his release, Bullock has been working his way back to living a normal teenage life as a student athlete.

“I trained ridiculously hard every day for months to get back into good enough shape to play soccer again,” Bullock said. “I poured my heart and soul into getting my body into the shape it is now and I still push myself harder to keep getting stronger.”

Bullock spent his summer lightly jogging around his neighborhood until he gained enough strength and energy to begin running. He then went on runs a couple times a week and lifted light weights for multiple hours a day until his body began to gain full strength back.

Bullock’s first game back on Dec. 1 was one to remember. Cal beat Dougherty 4-0. The senior forward led the way with a goal and an assist.

“Everyone wanted that win, but Davis wanted it most,” said teammate Trevor Koehne. “This was his chance to prove he was the missing link in last year’s season and boy did  he prove it.”

Bullock is currently among the league leaders in points, which is a combination of goals and assists. Bullock has six goals and five assists (17 points), which is above the national average, according to Maxpreps.

Bullock has greatly contributed to the team’s success so far this season. Cal is 6-5-6 overall, 3-4-3 in EBAL.

“His skills and play are on par with what I had seen in the past,” said coach Tyler Rosecrans. “His physicality and aggressiveness have increased as well.”

Bullock is not only a captain on the field, but maintains his leadership off of it, too, as senior class president.

“It’s as if cancer never even existed for him,” said Koehne.

Recently, the Make-A-Wish Foundation granted Bullock one of his life-long wishes: a trip to England with his family to attend a Liverpool FC soccer game. While on this recent trip, Bullock went sightseeing, toured London, and attended the soccer match with his family.

The game between Liverpool and Arsenal on Jan. 13 ended in a 3-3 tie.

“The game itself was unparalleled,” said Bullock. “I wake up at five in the morning on my weekends to catch their games, and it meant the world to me to watch them live.”

Once Bullock was healthy enough to be in contact with other people, he hosted an open house last summer to thank as many people as he could for their prayers and support during his illness. At this event, Bullock also raised money and did swabbings to find bone marrow transplant matches for the organization Delete Blood Cancer.

“Hundreds of people came to see me,” said Bullock. “It was so amazing to see and thank so many people who walked alongside me during such a difficult time in my life.”

Although Bullock is in remissio, he still deals with several side effects from the chemotherapy, including “chemo brain,” which causes thinking and memory problems after cancer treatment. Bullock describes some of his days as “living in a fog.”

Stage IV cancer took a huge toll on Bullock’s mind and spirit. It is hard to remain hopeful during such a painful time.

“I can’t express how difficult it was to look in the mirror at a face you hardly recognize and still keep a positive outlook,” said Bullock.

Despite the challenges he faced, Bullock, bounced back surprisingly quickly. He is now back at a healthy weight and as active as ever.

“Davis has come so far since his diagnosis last January,” said soccer co-captain Garret Meyer. “He has put countless hours into returning to the soccer field, and I am honored to wear the captain’s arm-band alongside Davis this season.”