Minnesota Vikings offensive tackle Korey Stinger went through his last football practice on July 31, 2001. The day was Tuesday. I learned a lot about being a football fan on Wednesday.
I never met Korey Stringer. He was the right tackle for the Minnesota Vikings. He played that position pretty much from the moment that the Vikings selected him with 24th pick of the 1995 NFL Draft. From that moment he was family. He was a Viking. My team. Even though I've never lived outside of California the Vikings have been a part of me since I found the game. Those purple horned helmets hooked me in the 1970s and I never thought of another. When Korey Stringer died on August 1, 2001 I felt like I had lost a family member or dear friend. It took a few days before I realized that I had lost both. I wasn't being a fool for being a wreck over the death of a man that I had never met. I was being human for caring about a man and his family because they were close to me. Whether I meet them or not the Minnesota Vikings are family to me. They have been for more than forty years. They will be for the rest of my days. Being a sports fan is personal. Every fan approaches it differently. No one is right. No one is wrong. I may take being a fan of a particular team a bit more seriously than most seeing as I think of people that I've never met as family. I just find no other explanation to explain why Korey Stringer's death 15 years ago as being the devastating moment that it was for me.
Joe Delaney, Brian Piccolo, Korey Stringer. Some of the most sparkling personalities, some of the greatest people that have made their mark on NFL fields have been taken too soon. It's a damn shame. There are certainly others. Those three came to mind quickly. Stringer is the one that lost his life to football. Athletes often mention putting out the impossible 110%. Stringer actually did. He put out more than he had in his last football practice. He felt that he had to do more than he had done the day before. His body decided that it was a bit too much. His legacy is his son Kodi and his wife Kleci. His death also brought about change. All levels of the game changed. Youth leagues. High Schools. College. NFL. Football practices at all levels changed because of Big K.
I think of Korey Stringer often. I think of him even more often at about this time each year, The anniversary of the day that he gave his everything to football. His absolute everything. His death made me realize how human these football players are. I realized that the players that wear the Vikings uniform on Sundays, Mondays, Thursdays or any damn day that the NFL play these games are family. My family. The NFL and the teams may see the players as disposable commodities but most fans see them as family. I sure do. Fans of teams will mark their years by the players that they loved. I've missed Korey Stringer every day since his last. My thoughts and prayers are with Kelci and Kodi Stringer always.
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