Dear lord thank you for everyone team thank you for the coaches thank you for everyone here’s the thing about football football is a brotherhood and we can play for you we’re all connected by the grind the commitment the sacrifice the highs and the lows for me one of
Those highs came this season when I broke the NFL record for career passing yards but you know what I didn’t set that record alone in this game you never do anything alone why wearing Herman Hine Oh true breeze everyone talks about his height if you talk about your
Bridges talk about his height and I think that’s how people talked about me my whole identity growing up was football he was a competitor just feisty diehard doesn’t understand or know the kid was good 2017 was Alex’s junior year at Lynn field Christian high school and he was already receiving scholarship offers to
Play at the next level his dream was to go to college to play football to get his degree paid for and you know all the hard work that he done in high school to be worth something that would pay off in college Then with one play everything changed it was the 15th buy the game and it was a read option and I remember Alex had decided to keep the ball as opposed to giving it to our running back I ran up the middle got hit by one guy I like
Spun off and he fell I was going down but he was right there so I went to step over him and my lady just hyper-extended and it caught in the grass the coach came over and I just told him was like this is a dream don’t worry this is a
Dream don’t worry this a dream don’t worry he’s like Alex it’s not a dream you know I was holding like his my own son you know rubbing his head hugging him and just real close real close it was his he and I just talking and we’d get
Back and I’ll play him and look at me I saw home child at that moment right there I requested Floria yes I’m calling from Ontario Christian High School we have an injury on a football field me an ambulance there’s a quarterback that tag along on his play and he’s got a leg
Injury severe pain he’s breathing right leg deformation Alex had a popliteal artery injury this is the artery that runs behind the knee joint if there is lack of blood flow for six hours or more the chances of that limb recovering lack of functional status goes lower and or
By the time Alex was out of surgery ten hours had passed since he had injured his knee now it was essentially a wait and wash game and see how his muscles and nurse was gonna respond my mind jump to the worst sight football’s never gonna be there for me again like
I’m never gonna be the same I’m never gonna be the same person Three weeks after Alex’s surgery I’m at the Superdome and we’re hosting the Chicago Bears back in California Alex and his family were watching the game it was the third quarter and Chicago was driving that’s what I saw was that Garrett even from the sidelines I knew it was Ben
Zach Miller had torn the popliteal artery in his leg the same injury as Alex a few days later Zach was posting updates on his social media accounts I had been checking his Instagram so I thought one I’ll take a shot I’ll send him a direct message you know her son
Was a high school football player and suffered the same injury and it’s very similar to what you’re going through like here’s this number you can reach out if you want just seeing his text message and his name pop up on my phone just my heart kind of stopped hey Alex
It’s Zach Miller I got your number from your mom and I wanted to reach out to you and see how you’re hanging in there I’m going through this with you you’re ahead of me when it started I just wanted to give him some comfort some encouragement tough times don’t last
Brother tough people do to share this same devastating injury I think it kind of just connected us from the ego what started as a couple encouraging messages evolved into more when Zach finally left the hospital a month after his injury the bear’s tight end and the high school quarterback were
Talking every other day I leaned on him more than he leaned on me whether he knows that or not for both of us there was the raw emotion in the raw feelings of what is my life now both were going through intense rehab it took nine surgeries but finally Zach
Was told his leg was improving Alex at different news we need you to seriously consider amputation your nerve endings are never gonna come back like you have too much dead tissue I just broke down why me why this take anything else about that Is it gone was the first thing he said I never want to live that day ever again was bad day now I heard about Alex’s injury right after it happened I felt horrible for him I always hoped I’d get a chance to meet Alex and then in May of
2018 I did I’ve never been so nervous in my life I always like watch drew brees highlights and that just really pushed me to to do the things that I wanted to do to follow like see him and talk to him that moon was crazy on behalf of
Football in America we would like to present you with your walking prosthetic leg but not just this but we are committing to you that in the fall once you get the hang of this and it’s ready to start running and training and competing again we’re gonna get you your
Athletic training prosthetic as well [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] Yo hey how you doing guy hey let me show you something real quick let me show you yeah it’s a my first steps a little like Oh 15 minutes ago it felt weird honestly I like first steps I was like I don’t know if I like it yeah I’ll talk you later Exactly one year after the injury homecoming Alexes team was playing the same team he was injured against it just made me realize that it’s been a year I wasn’t where I planned to be I plan to be a little bit further ahead in my recovery I’ve never really had to struggle with
Depression but having this kind of hit me like a train wreck instead of attending the dance with his friends Alex spent the night alone I just did not feel like myself anymore I’m gonna do anything in my power to get back on the field
If I find out that there’s the way I can get back on then I’m gonna do it I don’t care what it takes a little care how much pain it was like something I’ve already been through pretty much the worst The rotational stuff where that’s where the rotate the season was winding down just one home game remain my mom texts me and she just said your surgeon just cleared you like you’re good to go for Friday and I just kind of grinned and I put my phone away I just kind of was
Like all right but like look let’s go there’s a lot of backstory to this doors in the backstory to this this number in general and a year ago I really didn’t think I’d ever put it on again you guys really motivated me to get back and just be out there and just saying
You guys have as much fun as you guys have each and every week I just wanna thank you guys for the opportunity to do a lineup with you one more time so honestly let’s just go out there pounding for Corey he was very adamant alex was that he didn’t want a charity
Snap and I made the decision that I’m not going to say any other coach [Applause] walking out there and just hearing everyone behind me stepping onto the field it was just way more than I anticipated hey we’re gonna go hey we’re gold Lions for Joker Iowa East Hitchin goes oh one ready no right turn dope [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] We got you bro good stuff [Applause] surrounded by his teammates there was another team one he had never met but had always been by side You know this game is really a Brotherhood from from start to finish that fraternity and Brotherhood I think you know kind of encompasses every game of football whether it’s peewee high school college whatever it is you had that bond like I said we’re all connected By the grind the commitment the sacrifice but the only way we get through it is together you you
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