Spring Break
Pro athletes shouldn't take what they have for granted
THE THROWBACK
Ian Ross
Spartan Daily Sports Editor
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Sadly, Tillman made headlines again after being killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan on Thursday.
Tillman, who was born in San Jose in 1976, played four seasons as a safety for the Arizona Cardinals.
In 1997, Tillman played alongside Jake Plummer, leading Arizona State University to the Rose Bowl. In 1998, he was named the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year and was drafted by the Cardinals in the seventh round.
He started his career on special teams but worked his way into the starting lineup and later shattered the team record for tackles in a season, recording 223 during the 2000 NFL season.
According to Associated Press reports, the Sept. 11 attacks were a major factor in Tillman's decision to walk away from a multi-year contract and devote his time to serving his country instead.
I first learned about Tillman's death while checking out NFL.com on Friday night, while trying to read up on this weekend's NFL draft to find out which players my Detroit Lions might be selecting.
The contrast between the top two stories on the Web site was shocking.
Tillman giving his life for his country versus University of Mississippi quarterback Eli Manning's refusal to ever play for the San Diego Chargers if they drafted him with the first overall pick.
On one hand, you have the ultimate act of sacrifice, the ideal team player. On the other hand, you have a guy who at least came across as being selfish and the exact opposite of a team player.
I don't necessarily want to vilify Manning because, as I understand it, he made a private request to the Chargers not to be drafted by them and then the Chargers took that to the media and made a huge story out of it.
However, the contrast between the two stories is startling.
It reminded me that a lot of athletes take what they have for granted.
They either don't appreciate it enough or they think that everything should be handed to them because of who they are.
Take Manning or former 49er wideout Terrell Owens. Both guys, by all appearances, basically whined until they got what they wanted.
Manning wanted to be a Giant and now he is. Good luck winning over those New York fans, Eli.
Owens was traded to the Baltimore Ravens when his agent failed to file his free agency paperwork on time. Owens refused to show up for his physical and basically forced a trade to the Philadelphia Eagles.
He, too, got what he wanted. I hope "TO" knows better than to go across the middle when his Eagles square off with Ray Lewis' Ravens on Halloween later this year.
Those two guys got all the attention and all the headlines, while guys who aren't deemed superstars - the role players of the world, who are just as crucial to a team's success - get completely ignored.
Then you have the athletes who screw up their own careers because they can't stay out of the bottle or take various illegal drugs.
These guys are getting paid millions to do what many of us can only dream of doing, but many of them don't seem to appreciate what a great opportunity they have been given.
I love sports. I always have and always will, but sometimes certain athletes just get on my nerves.
Strangely enough, I found myself on the other side of this fence last week - defending Barry Bonds from a number of friends who reserve a special hatred for him.
After gleefully rubbing it in their faces that Bonds was not only threatening to tie Ken Griffey Jr.'s and Don Mattingly's "consecutive games with a home run" record, but also batting over .500 for the season in the process, I got into a heated debate over why I don't feel Bonds is worthy of the hatred he often incurs from the baseball-loving public.
After all, aside from being a jerk, what exactly has Bonds done that was so bad?
Well, aside from possible steroid use, that is, but that hasn't been proven yet.
However, when comparing Bonds' recent history to that of Tillman's, I have to admit our beloved slugger has his shortcomings.
Bonds is someone who many sports fans would typically include in that group of athletes who take what they have for granted.
So now I'm sitting on both sides of the fence.
Perhaps Eli's refusal to play for San Diego wouldn't have annoyed me nearly so much if he had done it last week instead.
I don't recall being overly annoyed when Steve Francis refused to play for the Vancouver Grizzlies or when John Elway similarly refused to play for the Baltimore Colts.
But the fact remains that the guys who have been given the opportunity to live out the dream need to remember that it is a gift, not some God-given right.
Athletes do have a certain responsibility to themselves, their teams, their communities and their fans to be good role models - not only to the kids, but to each other.
Tillman should be recognized as a role model for other athletes to emulate.
Not only did he put his team ahead of himself during his playing days - passing up on a bigger contract offer from the St. Louis Rams to stay with the Cardinals - but he put his entire country ahead of himself, too.
More athletes should make headlines because of their unselfishness or their dedication to the team - they just shouldn't have to die in order to do it.
Ian Ross is the Spartan Daily sports editor.
"The Throwback" usually appears every other Friday.
