Farewell to the Greatest Ever

Most of you who know me should know that I am fanatical when it comes to football. I grew up with the sport, playing it all through highschool and following it religously.

My favorite player - in any sport - to this day is Jerry Rice. He had so many jaw dropping moments on the field that one could spend pages recounting them. From the diving catch he made for a touchdown with a seperated shoulder against San Diego on the Superbowl to the 60 yard, one handed reception he made while looking down at the sideline so he wouldn't step out of bounds - Jerry Rice never ceased to amaze.

It wasn't just his on-field play that endeared him to me. He was the ultimate team player and the fans player too. Week after week he would autograph his gloves and hand them kids in the stands as he walked off the field. In a day when many players are all about causing stirs in the media and me first attitudes, the biggest media splashes he would make usually centered on the fact that he would come out on the field an hour before the rest of the team and run laps while revving up the crowds who had shown up early.

Just reading his daily workout routine made me tired. As a sports player myself, I looked up to him as a model of how to conduct oneself on the field and off - a model of how one should define their work ethic.

He retired today, and to me the world of football seems just a little dimmer. Thanks for the twenty years Jerry.