The last 3 times I cried were all family related. The birth of my first child, finding out my step-dad had cancer, and when I heard Reece Morgan retired from @HawkeyeFootball. Tonight I cried for family yet again, as brothers from the Iowa Football program poured their stories...
...of racial disparity within the program out on social media. I LOVE Iowa Football more than almost anything. But it is not the facilities or the jersey that I love. I like those things, but they aren't @HawkeyeFootball. It's teammates who became friends who became brothers...
...It's coaches who became mentors who became father figures. The people in the facilities and the men in the jerseys sweating, bleeding, puking, working, growing TOGETHER. Pushing each other to be the best version of ourselves. That is @HawkeyeFootball. That's why I cried...
...Hearing my brothers stories I cried because we worked, ate, trained, and lived together for years! And I was either so blind or absorbed in my own quest to be the best ME, that I remained blissfully unaware of what was happening to THEM. That makes me complicit in my eyes...
...@HawkeyeFootball to me has always been a microcosm for what the world should be. People of various ethnicities, religions, and backgrounds coming together for that common goal: "Preparing to be the Best". Tonight that view was shattered. I know that no team is perfect...
...no college or community is safe from biases and stereotypes, but @HawkeyeFootball was the closest I'd ever come to such a place. It hurts, a deep pain, because being half-black raised white and white-presenting I wonder if I could have done something if I'd paid attention...
...The guys I count as my best friends on those teams and who I still love are guys like @Tpryor51, @Mike_Daniels76, and @NotOnDuty__ . What pains did they endure that I either ignored or brushed off? I've always been proud that even a fat nerd like me could be successful by...
...just keeping my head down, mouth shut, and working my ass off. But in doing so I missed a chance to look up, speak up, and be a better brother. I'm sorry guys. I'm sorry that I let you down. I'm sorry @HawkeyeFootball let you down. When you truly love something you don't...
...just love it as it is, you love it so much you want it to be the best version of itself. That's how I feel about my kids, my country, and @HawkeyeFootball, and that's why I'm glad this truth is out there. I hope when all is said and done the changes have been made so that...
...@HawkeyeFootball can be a place that every little brother who comes through feels the same pride and love for the program that I do. That no one is ever made to feel lesser because of their background or skin tone. And this time I want to be part of the solution. #FightForIowa
