NFL player killed in Afghanistan

Chardok · Post by **Chardok** » 2004-04-23 10:55am

http://www.cnn.com/

See breaking news at top of page. Guy turns his back on a 3.6 million dollar contract to serve in Afghanistan- and is killed. A true patriot.

EDITED by Vym

Chardok · Post by **Chardok** » 2004-04-23 11:00am

http://www.wnbc.com/sports/3034640/detail.html

more complete story

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-04-23 11:01am

Ouch

I'm sure there will be lots of jerks to say that he was stupid to go to Iraq

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2004-04-23 11:01am

I had heard that on the radio and been looking for the story.

He played for the Arizona Cardinals and before that he was an All American player for the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Pat Tillman

Knife · Post by **Knife** » 2004-04-23 11:01am

....

Good to see the sterotype of the greedy athlete is just a sterotype. My condolences to his family.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2004-04-23 11:05am

His brother, who joined with him, played baseball at ASU and was in the Cleveland Indians' organization.

Post by **Vympel** » 2004-04-23 11:10am

Afghanistan, not Iraq.

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2004-04-23 11:13am

A damn shame. I have to admire a man who turned down a multi million dollar carrer in football to serve his country. Also, whats up in Afghanistan? is this part of a new offensive, or was it an attack by taliban/al quaeda remnants?

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-04-23 11:13am

Vympel wrote:Afghanistan, not Iraq.

I hate when you can't edit

Joe · Post by **Joe** » 2004-04-23 12:29pm

There's a hero.

*takes off hat*

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2004-04-23 12:58pm

Well, there goes one Paragon of Virtue. Pity pop culture nowadays would rather have him in the NFL...

*Takes off his hat to a morally outstanding man...*

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2004-04-23 03:19pm

ESPN

Tillman was killed in direct action during a firefight in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, Pentagon sources told ABCNEWS.

A Pentagon source said that Tillman was killed when his Rangers patrol was attacked by small arms fire and mortars during a coordinated ambush.

Two U.S. soldiers were wounded and one enemy combatant was killed during the ambush. Tillman was the only U.S. soldier killed, Pentagon sources told ABCNEWS. His brother Kevin is in the same platoon.

Pat Tillman's battalion was involved in "Operation Mountain Storm," part of the U.S. campaign against Taliban and al-Qaida groups along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, military officials said.

Some members of the Army's elite Ranger units were taking part in the hunt for al-Qaida and Taliban fighters in southeastern Afghanistan, the military official said.

Although the military had not officially confirmed his death, the White House put out a statement of sympathy that praised Tillman as "an inspiration both on an off the football field."

Tillman played four seasons with the Arizona Cardinals before enlisting in the Army in May 2002. The safety turned down a three-year, $3.6 million deal from Arizona.

He made the decision after returning from his honeymoon with his wife, Marie. Several of Tillman's friends also have said the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks influenced his decision to enlist.

"He knew what was important to him, and he made his decision and stood by it," said quarterback Eli Manning, expected to be a top pick in Saturday's NFL draft.

Tillman's brother Kevin, a former minor league baseball prospect in the Cleveland Indians' organization, also joined the Rangers and served in the Middle East. They committed to three-year stints in the Army.

The Tillmans' goal to join the Rangers was not an easy one to achieve. Only 35 percent of all candidates get to wear the coveted black and gold Ranger Tab.

Some 110 U.S. soldiers have died -- 39 of them in combat -- during Operation Enduring Freedom, which began in Afghanistan in late 2001.

Tillman's agent, Frank Bauer, has called him a deep and clear thinker who has never valued material things.

In 2001, Tillman turned down a $9 million, five-year offer sheet from the Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams out of loyalty to the Cardinals, and by joining the Army he passed on millions more from the team.

Tillman turned aside interview requests after joining the Army. He had denied requests for media coverage of his enlistment, basic training and ultimate deployment. According to Army officials at the time, Tillman wanted no special treatment, wanted no special attention, but wanted to be considered just one of the soldiers doing his duty for his country.

In December, during a trip home, Tillman made a surprise visit to his Cardinal teammates.

"For all the respect and love that all of us have for Pat Tillman and his brother and Marie, for what they did and the sacrifices they made ... believe me, if you have a chance to sit down and talk with them, that respect and that love and admiration increase tenfold," then-Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis said at the time. "It was a really, really enriching evening."

Pat was first deployed to Iraq in March 2003, with the 75th Regiment Ranger Battalion. Following a brief break, he was posted in Afghanistan, where U.S. troops have been battling pockets of al Qaeda and Taliban resistance since U.S.-led forces attacked the Central Asian nation in 2001

The 5-foot-11, 200-pound Tillman was distinguished by his intelligence and appetite for rugged play. As an undersized linebacker at Arizona State, he was the Pac-10's defensive player of the year in 1997.

He set a franchise record with 224 tackles in 2000 and warmed up for last year's training camp by competing in a 70.2-mile triathlon in June.

Tillman carried a 3.84 grade point average through college and graduated with high honors in 3½ academic years with a degree in marketing.

"You don't find guys that have that combination of being as bright and as tough as him," Phil Snow, who coached Tillman as Arizona State's defensive coordinator, said in 2002. "This guy could go live in a foxhole for a year by himself with no food."

Tillman and his brother Kevin last year won the Arthur Ashe Courage award at the 11th annual ESPY Awards. Their younger brother, Richard, accepted the award while the brothers were away.

Definately a class act.

Can't help but feel for his family and espeically his wife.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2004-04-23 03:22pm

Check out what people are saying about him on ESPN, especially some of the people who knew him.

Master of Ossus · Post by **Master of Ossus** » 2004-04-23 04:28pm

Poor guy. What a tragic loss.

I remember writing the story in the paper when he left the Cardinals to fight in the military. I hope it doesn't fall to me to write this one.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2004-04-23 05:03pm

He's certainly a braver man than I; I won't pretend that I would even consider that in his place.

But remember we have our own guys in this community, like jegs2 and Rob Wilson and Greg Burnett and others, who have made a similar commitment, and who hopefully will not have to make a similar sacrifice.

h0rus · Post by **h0rus** » 2004-04-23 06:35pm

Knife wrote:....

Good to see the sterotype of the greedy athlete is just a sterotype. My condolences to his family.

Hardly. It was just one example. Not that I care about the salaries of players.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » 2004-04-23 07:20pm

Indymedia acting like Indymedia

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-04-23 07:30pm

Joe wrote:Indymedia acting like Indymedia

Its nice to know there are retards who can write shit.

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2004-04-23 11:31pm

He went to High School here in San Jose, so this is fairly big news. You have to give credit to a guy who would pass up enough money to set him up for life to serve in the Army.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-04-23 11:48pm

It is kind of annoying that he gets all of these enormous media coverage just because he played football. What about the hundreds of other dead? Is he more important than them?

consequences · Post by **consequences** » 2004-04-23 11:54pm

HemlockGrey wrote:It is kind of annoying that he gets all of these enormous media coverage just because he played football. What about the hundreds of other dead? Is he more important than them?

As a symbol, yes. As an example of a better human being than I could probably ever hope to be, yeah, he rates more than the normal amount of attention.
Its not just because he played football, its that he quite literally chose to put his life on the line, rather than receive several million dollars and stick with a team he had already demonstrated uncommon loyalty to.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2004-04-24 03:07am

Doom of the well-known soldier

Howedar · Post by **Howedar** » 2004-04-24 03:29am

HemlockGrey wrote:It is kind of annoying that he gets all of these enormous media coverage just because he played football. What about the hundreds of other dead? Is he more important than them?

In some respects, he is. I don't know if it should be that way, but it is. The man was a somewhat visible public figure, and certainly not every US soldier turns down millions of dollars when he enlists.

By no means should anyone take that as me saying that regular soldiers are unimportant.

Sarevok · Post by **Sarevok** » 2004-04-24 03:53am

HemlockGrey wrote:It is kind of annoying that he gets all of these enormous media coverage just because he played football. What about the hundreds of other dead? Is he more important than them?

Tillman is a like symbol. He represents the hundred of soldiers that died in recent military operations in Iraq and Afganistan. So by paying tribute to him we are also respecting the others who died.

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2004-04-24 05:37am

HemlockGrey wrote:It is kind of annoying that he gets all of these enormous media coverage just because he played football. What about the hundreds of other dead? Is he more important than them?

I think a big part of the attention is because he passed up oppurtunities most people will never get in a lifetime to become an enlisted man in the Army. Its not exactly a avenue to security, so in a sense he sacrificed much to serve.

And at least for the Bay Area he is getting a lot of attention because he was from here.