Anyone who knows me, knows that I don’t know anything about football. Or any sport for that matter. (Forgive me) But…one thing I do know, is good people when I meet them.

And I do come across them everyday in my daily interactions at work, and out in my community. So let me tell you how I learned about a great football legend named Gale Sayers.

A man who is the epitome of good people. Not just because of his fame, but also for his “active philanthropy.” He was, and still is good people.

I learned about Gale Sayers through my coworker Gary (who by the way is also good people). Gary is the son of the legendary football player 🏈.

I have discovered that telling other peoples stories is a new favorite pastime of mine.

Even though I have never had a favorite football team, I now have a favorite football player. That is Mr.Gale Sayers.

And while most of the world is fascinated with him because of his impressive footbal status, I on the other hand, am more impacted by the other aspects of the mans life.

Gale Sayers was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1965. He played from 1965 to 1971. According to an article published on CSPN, he still holds these records: the record for most touchdowns by a rookie (22), the highest kickoff return average (30.6 yards per return), and is tied for the most touchdowns in a game by a single player (six).

After watching a few YouTube videos, to learn more about him, I began reading the comments. I like to read comments because it gives me a little insight into other people’s thoughts and it helps me formulate my own opinion.

One commentor said, “Sayers was the kind of graceful athlete whose work became fine art.” and, “…everyone said he is beautiful to watch.”Another commentor said, he is like “artwork in motion.”

In the Gale Sayers Biography, I learned that he is the youngest football player inducted into the professional football Hall of Fame. At the age of 34.

Before he was in the NFL, he played college football at the University of Kansas and was known as “The Kansas Comet.”

Unfortunately after a football injury, his career came to a screeching halt. Gale Sayers never fully recovered despite having knee surgery.

Now here comes the parts of his life that interest me a little more.

In 1967 he was the roomate of another football player named Brian Piccolo. Brian Piccolo is white and Gale Sayers is African American. This caused a little rukus because of the segregation still happening at the time.

“They were roomates, but could not go out in public and eat a meal comfortably during a period when barriers of racial segregation had yet to be fully dismantled.”

Despite the chaos happening with the civil rights movement and all of the racial tension, Gale and Brian became good friends. They both played the same position. This usually led players to have a more rivalry relationship between players. But not these two guys.

Sadly both of these remarkable men had short football careers. Brian developed lung cancer and died shortly after. Gale never fully recovered from his injury.

But the loss of his good friend Brian had an intense impact on him. There was a movie created to depict their friendship. The film is called Brian‘s Song. Gale also wrote a book about putting others before yourself in a book called I Am Third.

Mr. Gale Sayers became an active supporter of many organizations such as The Boys & Girls Clubs of America, The Boy Scouts, and The American Cancer Association. He also formed the Gale Sayers Foundation in 2007, with the aim of providing educational opportunities for underprivileged children.

Pastor T.L.McBeth who resides in Fort Worth, Texas said that “Gale Sayers was a people person. He didn’t forget where he came from. He always found the time to help people and to talk to them.”

Featured below is Mr.Sayers speech. His words are inspiring no matter who you are. Black or white, young or old, Man, Woman, or child.

God gave me a great gift and I had a lot of developing for this occasion. Reaching this point, however, is not as important as striving to get here. This is true in all professions and all of life’s activities. There are doctors, lawyers, schoolteachers, plumbers all who strive to do their very best with their abilities. We hear a lot today about how the American people have lost their dedication to excellence. I don’t believe that is true. Each of us excels at different things, sometimes in areas that are only a hobby, more often in our life vocation. The most important thing however, is to strive to do our very best. Nothing is more of a waste than unrealized potential.”-Gale Sayers

Works Cited

Ott,Tim.,Gale Sayers Biography, The Biography.Com, URL: http://www.biography.com/people/gale-sayers-9472953.

Sibor,Doug.,A History of NFL Running Back Careers Ruined By Injury

Gale Sayers Speech Taken From http://www.encyclopedia.com/people/sports-and-games/sports-biographies/gale-sayers.