As the snow falls on the campus of the University of Tennessee, Travis Bryan is inside, studying for finals.
But come Friday's graduation, he won't walk the stage.
He'll roll.
"It's humor, I got shirts that says 'leg day,'" he said with a laugh.
He's taking it all in stride.The 42 year-old first hurt his knee on a Marine Corps PT run in 1998.
"Something popped and I went down," he said.
It was just after basic training on Parris Island.
At first, it was just a torn ligament. But over the years, it got worse.
Bryan stood strong through 15 surgeries, but the amputation in May hurt differently.
"I literally only had a leg to stand on," he said.
He had to withdraw from classes in the Spring--and his issues haven't stopped. He had more of his leg amputated a couple months ago while on fall break.
His 'Big Orange' wheelchair isn't the same as walking.
"I hate the rain because I can't hold the umbrella," he said.
But he holds his sense of humor tight.
"I find that I go a lot faster than people with two legs, and every once in a while I'll roll by and say, 'Hey you're slowing up there dude,'" Bryan said.
He even surprised his surgeon with stick-on googly eyes at a checkup.
"He about fell out of his stool," he said.
Bryan said it's the attention that surprises him. He meets the challenges head on.
It's what the Parris Island drill sergeant taught him back in '98: adapt and overcome.