A Hall of Fame father

Victor Penney:

Do you know why we have the stereotype that professional athletes are into gambling, partying hard, and having babies out of wedlock with multiple women? Precedent. I don’t need to point to any specific examples here, but you know I’m right.

Let’s face it: Pro-sports is a world that seems to enable those kinds of reckless behaviours, but does that mean every athlete is a womanizing drug fiend who’s heavily indebted to the mob? Absolutely not.

There are many professional athletes who are God-fearing family men. Harrison Butker, the placekicker for the Kansas City Chiefs, is a great example of this kind of fellow, the sort of hero the pro-life movement can cheer for, on and off the field. Then you have certain athletes who continue bearing witness to faith and family values long after their playing days are over, and I came across an inspiring story recently about one such individual – to borrow a phrase from NFL Films, he’s “the best running back” most fans have forgotten about.

Shaun Alexander made headlines with his appearance on the “Up & Adams” morning show on FanDuel TV. He was a guest, helping to break down the slate of upcoming games for week four on the NFL schedule, but it wasn’t his analysis that had everyone’s jaw hitting the floor – it was the way he casually broke the incredible news about his growing family.

“We’re just now starting to tell people,” he said near the end of his segment, “but (baby) number 14 is in the belly.”

Fourteen children? Now that’s a legacy!

Alexander and his wife Valerie are expecting their new bundle of joy to arrive on February 17th, but you know how delivery dates go: it could be sooner, it could be later, and who cares, right? In this case, it’s the joyful news that matters and we’ll let God sort out the finer details.

Alexander was never one of my favourites during his heyday, and it’s not because he couldn’t score a touchdown in Super Bowl XL against the Pittsburgh Steelers; I wasn’t a diehard fan back then, so I just wasn’t paying close enough attention to the league. Still, when you look at what he accomplished during his career, how can you not be impressed? He’s one of only 10 players in NFL history with 100 rushing touchdowns, a stat that could eventually land him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In 2005, he earned the Most Valuable Player award which led to a $62 million contract, a deal that made him the league’s highest-paid running back at the time. Those are impressive numbers, to be sure, but they aren’t even on the same level as having three sons, 10 daughters, and another baby on the way.

The former MVP’s commitment to faith and family has grown well beyond his home. When his eldest son was old enough to start playing football, there weren’t any opportunities for him because he was being homeschooled. That’s when Alexander and his wife took matters into their own hands: they created a co-op so local homeschooling families could play football. Now, the couple oversees Harvest Covenant, a “private, faith-based learning community” that opens up athletic opportunities and academic programs to homeschooling families.

What I find more remarkable, however, is the recent online article by Essence magazine that quotes an old interview where Alexander talked about the importance of chastity and how he never even kissed his wife until they were married. “If you’re patient with your walk and don’t jump into things that married people do, you’ll see the perfect mate for you,” he said, which is stunning to hear these days.

This is the kind of example I love sharing with my own wife and children. At the same time, I take it as my personal responsibility to be the primary role model in my home, and I will be, no matter how I carry myself, which is both a warning and a higher calling. I’m not naive, though, and I know my kids will find other role models in the popular culture. There’s no missing the way my sons light up, for example, when Josh Allen, the quarterback for the Buffalo Bills, lights up his opponents on any given Sunday, and I’m fine that some of their heroes wear football helmets, as long as they know their old Papa Fantastico will always make them mortadella sandwiches and tuck them in at night.

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