Jovan Henry Allen Belcher was born on July 24, 1987 in West Babylon, Long Island, New York. One of the few University of Maine football players to reach the NFL, he was not selected in the 2009 NFL Draft, but the Chiefs signed him as a free agent.
He became a regular starter in the 2010 season, had a good year in 2011, and had started 10 of the Chiefs' 11 games to that point in 2012. So he must have been doing something right on the field. He had a girlfriend and an infant daughter. Professionally and personally, things seemed to be looking up for him. There appeared to be no sign that he was unhappy.
But on the morning of December 1, he shot and killed his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins, 22 -- in the presence of her mother. Then he drove to the Chiefs' practice facility at Arrowhead Stadium, and, in front of head coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Scott Pioli, whom he thanked for giving him a chance to play pro ball, he used his gun again, this time on himself.
A medical examiner's report revealed that Belcher had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a.k.a. CTE, the brain damage caused by repeated head contact in football.
The Chiefs have had a sad history. In 1963, running back Stone Johnson was killed when he broke his neck in a preseason game. He was only 23, and had yet to play a regular-season game in the NFL (or the AFL, in which the Chiefs were playing at the time).
In 1965, Mack Lee Hill, essentially drafted to fill the hole left by Johnson's death, died on the operating table during what should have been routine knee surgery. He was only 25.
In 1980, former All-Pro offensive tackle Jim Tyrer, going through business failures, did what Belcher later did: He shot and killed his wife, and then killed himself. He was 41.
In 1983, running back Joe Delaney, having played 2 All-Pro seasons, drowned in a failed attempt to save 2 drowning boys. He was 24.
In 2000, Derrick Thomas, then one of the best linebackers in the game, crashed his car, was paralyzed, and died a few days later of a blood clot, at 33.
In 1965, Mack Lee Hill, essentially drafted to fill the hole left by Johnson's death, died on the operating table during what should have been routine knee surgery. He was only 25.
In 1980, former All-Pro offensive tackle Jim Tyrer, going through business failures, did what Belcher later did: He shot and killed his wife, and then killed himself. He was 41.
In 1983, running back Joe Delaney, having played 2 All-Pro seasons, drowned in a failed attempt to save 2 drowning boys. He was 24.
In 2000, Derrick Thomas, then one of the best linebackers in the game, crashed his car, was paralyzed, and died a few days later of a blood clot, at 33.
In 2012, Jovan Belcher was added to the list. I don't know what the Chiefs did to bring all this on, but it seems like the club is cursed. In 2020, they won Super Bowl LIV, their 1st World Championship in 50 years. But their history is still tragic.
*
December 1, 2012 was a Saturday. The Chiefs were scheduled to play at home the next day, against the Carolina Panthers. The game went on as scheduled, following discussions between the NFL, Crennel, and the Chiefs' team captains. No formal mention was made of the shooting at the game, although there was a moment of silence for "victims of domestic violence and their families." The Chiefs defeated the Panthers, 27–21.
It was the last full week of the college football season. These games were among those played:
* Number 2 Alabama beat Number 3 Georgia, 32-28 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game.
* Number 7 Kansas State beat Number 23 Texas, 42-24 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas. While the Big Twelve Conference did not have a Championship Game that season, this win by KSU gave them a share of the league's title, and their earlier defeat of Oklahoma gave them the tiebreaker.
* Number 13 Florida State beat Georgia Tech, 21-15 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Game.
* Number 14 Nebraska were not merely upset, but blown away by Wisconsin, 70-31 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, in the Big Ten Conference Championship Game.
* The University of Tulsa beat Central Florida, 33-27 at Skelly Stadium in Tulsa, in the Conference USA Championship Game.
* The University of Cincinnati beat Connecticut, 34-17 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. This forged a 4-way tie at the top of the Big East Conference: Cincinnati, Louisville, Syracuse and Rutgers.
* The night before, Number 8 Stanford beat Number 17 UCLA, 27-24 at the new Stanford Stadium in the San Francisco suburb of Palo Alto, California, in the Pacific-Twelve Conference Championship Game.
In the major bowls, Stanford beat Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, Florida State beat Northern Illinois in the Orange Bowl, Louisville upset Florida in the Sugar Bowl, Oregon beat Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl, and Texas A&M beat Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl. And, in the Bowl Championship Series' National Championship Game, in Miami Gardens, Florida, Number 2 Alabama beat Number 1 Notre Dame.
Baseball was in the off-season. The NHL team owners had locked the players out, and the season didn't start until January 19, 2013. But there were 10 games played in the NBA that day:
* The Brooklyn Nets lost to the Miami Heat, 102-89 at the American Airlines Arena (now the Kaseya Center) in Miami. Dwyane Wade scored 34 points.
* The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 118-117 in double overtime at the Quicken Loans Arena (now the Rocket Arena) in Cleveland.
* The Chicago Bulls beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 93-88 at the United Center in Chicago.
* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Boston Celtics, 91-88 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.
* The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the New Orleans Hornets, 100-79 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.
* The Dallas Mavericks beat the Detroit Pistons, 92-77 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
* The Houston Rockets beat the Utah Jazz, 124-116 at the Toyota Center in Houston.
* The San Antonio Spurs beat the Memphis Grizzlies, 99-95 at the AT&T Center (now the Frost Bank Center) in San Antonio.
* The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Sacramento Kings, 116-81 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles.
* And the Golden State Warriors beat the Indiana Pacers, 103-92 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena (then named the Oracle Arena).
And in English soccer, Arsenal lost to Welsh team Swansea City, 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium in North London. Both goals were scored by Spanish striker Michu: One in the 88th minute, the other in stoppage time. Many Arsenal fans, unhappy with losing striker Robin van Persie in the off-season and with his replacement, Olivier Giroud, demanded that the team sign Michu, based on this one performance. It turned out to be the highlight of his career, as he never amounted to anything.
No comments:
Post a Comment