The first year we played an extremely talented Syracuse team that
came in with an unimpressive 6-5 record if I remember correctly.
But boy were they loaded with talent . On our first or second night
in Shreveport there was a big cookout for both teams.

It was a big Louisiana style barbecue with sodas and orange juice
for the players . Of course some of our guys tried to get the waiters
to sprinkle a little vodka in their juice, but this article is not about
throwing anyone under the bus .

I got to meet both Art Monk who went on to star with the Redskins ,
and Joe Morris who became a pretty good running back with the Giants.
But of all the events that went on that week ,and all the cool free stuff
we got , the thing that made the biggest impression on me was a trip
the team took to a local hospital.

I was injuried for a lot of the season and new I wasn't going to play
much so I was a little down.But after seeing those kids in the hospital
who were dealing with real issues that we couldn't even
imagine, it really changed my perspective .

The visit to the hospital changed my life . For the first time I realized
how lucky I was . There were so many things I was taking for granted,
but seeing those big smiles just blew me away. Here were all these big tough football players , and these little kids, some without arms or legs were
tougher than we could ever be .

We went on to lose that game to Syracuse , and we lost the following
year to Southern Mississippi during the final minute of the game.
I don't remember the scores to those games ,but I will always remember
those kids at the hospital.