Wounded Warriors face off against ex-NFL players in football game
Friday night in San Diego was a night for heroes.
And we’re not talking about the former NFL players who gathered there to play a charity football game. Sporting heroes are all well and good, but in the grand scheme of life, sports are a mere distraction.
The real heroes on offer were the Wounded Warriors, veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan who paid the iron price for their Purple Hearts.
The veterans, all of whom have lost limbs in combat, took on a team of retired pros in a football game at San Diego’s Cathedral Catholic High School in front of a packed house for the annual Game of Honor.
And even better, the soldiers came away with a decisive 48-28 victory.
Marine veteran B.J. Ganem, who lost his leg in Iraq on Thanksgiving Day, was among those on the winning side in this one, and he spoke to KNSD-TV about the game.
“You know, we all get challenges,” Ganem said. “You don’t have to do anything crazy, just find a way through it.”
Chargers legend Ed White, who was never in the military himself but whose grandfather served in World War II, took a moment for a tip of the hat to the heroes fighting for America’s freedom.
“I’m very proud of him and his service,” White said. “It’s just my little way of giving back and one of the little ways I can give back to guys who’ve done more than just sacrifice their time. They’ve sacrificed their lives and their bodies.”
White is a fixture in the San Diego community, frequently showing up at these sorts of charity events.
Chris Draft, who played 12 years in the NFL and has been in the charity game 14 times, was similarly awed by the heroism of his gridiron foes.
“The first time I saw it, wow, it’s difficult to put it into words how amazing it is,” Draft said.
Draft continued, “This game challenges you to be better. Physically, mentally and spiritually. It challenges you to push yourself to limits. And when you do that, it’s not just physically that you’re better, it’s across the board.”
Among the other NFL alumni at the game were Darren Bennett, Rolf Benirschke, Ryan Leaf, Jeff Garcia, Steve Beuerlein, Lorenzo Neal, Kyle Turley, Nick Hardwick, Dan Sileo, Todd Marinovich, Freddie Keiaho and J.T. O’Sullivan.
Which … well, take a moment there and see which two names jump out at you.
Ryan Leaf and Todd Marinovich, two guys who were the very definition of “character issues” during their time playing football, got their own chance to, in a manner of speaking, heal some wounds through sports.
That’s how utterly inspiring the heroism of these military veterans can be. Through watching them cope with their sacrifice, we realize that if they can overcome their adversity, there is nothing the world can throw at us as civilians that we too cannot conquer.
Before the game, Draft said, “I’m looking forward to San Diego showing up. With all the military connections here. … I’m ready for this place to be packed and excited and cheer. And when one of our guys scores a touchdown, this place will just explode.”
San Diego showed up. And the place exploded like the rockets’ red glare and bombs bursting in air.
And nowhere were the last five words of the national anthem more proudly on display than in a high school football stadium in southern California on Friday night.
It was, in every sense of the term, the home of the brave.
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