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If you never got the chance to watch Reggie White play football, you missed one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.
The 6-foot-5, 290 pound White was an amazing combination of speed, superhuman strength, and athleticism.
An ordained minister, White was dubbed ‘The Minister of Defense’. Off the field he was kind, loving, soft spoken individual.
On the field, he was an absolute terror coming from his defensive end position. Along with Lawrence Taylor, White is arguably the greatest defensive player ever.
A native of Chattanooga, Tenn., White was an All-American at the University of Tennessee from 1979-’83. His began his pro career in 1983-‘85 with the USFL with the Memphis Showboats.
White played 17 years in the National Football League, with the Philadelphia Eagles (eight seasons) and the Green Bay Packers (six seasons). After retiring in 1998 with the Packers, he came back for the 2000 season and played with Carolina.
In 1987 White had 21 sacks with the Eagles, and followed that up with 18 sacks in 1988. He signed with the Green Bay Packers in 1993, and was key in anchoring the defense, and helping them win XXXII in 1998.
White finished with 198 sacks in his career, and more than 200 sacks if you count his two years in the USFL. He could run over you, around you, are simply go through you.
“He is the best football player I have ever played with, or seen,” said Brett Favre, the former Packers’ legend.
But White’s greatest contributions came off the field. White was the assistant pastor at Inner City Church, and he was active in several community endeavors. He was a counsel and inspiration to his teammates and friends, and a loving husband and father. When Inner City church was destroyed by an arsonist, White spoke out about the history of church burnings in the South in the late ‘90s. He was received threats and hate mail from those who opposed his mission. White was hardly intimidated. “I am willing to die for what I believe,” he said.
White came out of retirement to play a season with the Carolina Panthers in 2000.
Sadly, White, who suffered from Sarcoidosis died suddenly on Dec. 26, 2004, at the age of 43.
His loss is still felt by many who loved and admired the gentle giant, who was a giant of a man on the field, and a giant of a man off it.
