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Jerry Rice
It all started with Jerry Rice. Until the fall ’04, the ball
was blank. I had always wanted to fill it up with signatures, but
it really wasn’t high on my priority list. Then Jerry Rice
came to play for the Seahawks. Wide Receiver has always been my
favorite position in football, probably, because of Steve Largent.
As a result, Jerry Rice was one of my favorite players.
His rookie card, and Steve Largent’s have always been my favorites.
So, when Jerry Rice came to Seattle, I knew that there would only
be a short window of time to get his autograph on the ball.
I can’t remember the exact date, but my sister, brother-in-law,
Katie (my son’s mom), and I watched the game from my family’s
seats. It just so happened that we had an opportunity to park
in the players parking garage for that game. Knowing that it would
most likely be my only opportunity, I brought the ball with me
to the game, and my brother-in-law brought a miniature Seahawks
helmet. |
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After the game we
planned to wait in the garage when the players were going to their
cars. Admittedly, there are signs up all over the players parking
garage saying, “no autographs”. Well, I really wanted
Jerry Rice’s signature!
When the game was over, we went to the car and re-parked in a spot
that would give us better visibility of the players coming out.
I bet we waited at least 30 minutes. Then, we saw Jerry Rice. My
brother-in-law and I got out, walked over to Jerry Rice, and he
signed both the football, and my bother in-laws Seahawks helmet.
I was really nervous. However, it was a success. We got back in
the car, and were both very happy with the outcome. If you look
at the ball, Jerry Rice’s signature is bigger than all the
others. That’s because it was the first one, and the ball
was completely blank at that point. At that time I had no idea
that the ball would become what it has. I just knew I wanted to
fill it up. I have since asked whoever has signed it to “please,
keep it small”, so to leave room for others. It wasn’t
instantaneous, but in time, I became a man possessed. This became
more true once I decided that when it was done, I would donate
it to charity.
It took on a whole new meaning at that point, and became a lot
more fun for me. I bet that more than half of the signatures that
I have now, came after I decided to donate the ball. They also
came at a much faster rate. |
