Covering recruiting for 11 years, there are a lot of people you speak with. Players, coaches, parents, friends and even mentors outside of football. Too often I think we let coverage slip into the demeaning territory of talking about these young men as if they are purely a product, and I think we lose so much of the humanity.
I cannot count the number of high school athletes with whom I have spoken in this time, but I know one thing is true: the more you speak with, the less displeasure you take when they choose a school not affiliated with your own. There is a sort of affinity that is developed between me as the writer and the person. Maybe it’s a dad thing. I don’t know.
But every once in a while, someone special stands out and you think to yourself that you are really pulling for the kid.
Spencer Webb was one of those people.
No matter where he went, I was going to be one of his biggest (non-related) fans. I stumbled on his story as an accident; the course of a normal set of questions. I asked him to talk about his biggest influences and role models and he opened up about his situation telling me that his “parents are out of the picture due to substances abuse issues. I go to a college prep school to prepare me for college and it's pretty challenging. Love to fish so Oregon [is] great for that. But my life's pretty simple.”
I dug deeper and told a story because I want recruiting to be about more than their stars, stats and value as a player; there was a human being there and that story was far more important and far more touching. I think we forget that these immensely talented 16 and 17-year-olds are still teenagers with all of the same fears, angst, concerns and other issues we all had at that age. They are more than a football player, and that is why I continue to write for the site -- to try and tell good stories. To bring some heart to this thing we call college football recruiting.
It was said by Johannes Kepler that “we do not ask for what useful purpose the birds do sing, for song is their pleasure since they were created for singing. Similarly, we ought not to ask why the human mind troubles to fathom the secrets of the heavens.” What does that say about the need for humans to interact through shared passions? We are the birds. We sing because that is our purpose. As fall approaches, the shared passions of men and women all across the nation will commence with barbecues, drinks and football.
It is in those moments that we can shine our best and those moments which we can cherish.
Football is sport; entertainment. Sometimes we take this very seriously; there is a lot of money involved and we care about the sport in a way that can be, at times, unnatural. We dig deep into the lives of teenagers looking to take some pride in something bigger than ourselves. I like this – especially when it goes right. Spencer Webb is where college football went right, creating a bright future for a young man who could have been lost into the abyss of emptiness by choices he never made.
Football is how we all know Spencer Webb’s story, but humanity is why we know his story. It takes incredible strength, power, love and hope for a brother and his family to step in and raise a child when they are barely old enough to understand the implications of that choice.
Fans cheer football ‘heroes’ on Saturdays and Sundays; but Cody and Alicia Webb are the true heroes. They saved Spencer from a fate he did not deserve. They delivered him a life, hope, love and redemption. I once wrote that football can be something bigger than ourselves; it can be something worth finding pride and passion, so long as that something bigger is about more than wins and losses, and as long as that something bigger makes the world a better place. I think the triumph of Spencer Webb over the haunting demons of abandonment is that something bigger -- it made the world a better place.
He passed away in a tragic accident Wednesday. While many will remember some of his more memorable on-field moments, I hope that his off-field legacy is what really matters most and that all fans everywhere can take inspiration from his journey, his passion, his true compassion for all people.
When I heard the news, I was dumbfounded in a way I have not been for a long time. I think too often we get lost in the minutiae of our every day lives; we move on to the next recruit, the next game, the next season with small anecdotal post-mortems. The story of Spencer Webb stuck with me from the moment I heard it -- the powerful thought of his brother Cody and his wife taking in a young child always reminded me that the world can be a far better place than is often presented.
Spencer Webb gave me hope.
While the tragic death of any young man or woman takes its toll on the psyche of all who knew and loved them, the remaining consciousness of their actions can keep those hopes alive. What is tragic to me is that a young man who had the chance to change the world with his story of perseverance, faith, love, compassion, and yes, hope, has had that gift taken. That mission will have to fall on the shoulders of others. Can we take that collective challenge and keep Spencer Webb’s hope alive?
I hope so.
I have seen plenty of posts with fans remembering how gracious Spencer was to their child, or brother, or sister, and I think he got that from his own brother showing the same kind of love and respect.
There have been many tributes, but I think the one that we should all take as a tribute is his life itself described by his girlfriend: “You always put everybody else before yourself and I’ll try to hold the same kindness in my heart from this life to the next one.”
We loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night – from the tombstone of two anonymous astronomers.
I hope we all look up at night and remember to keep his spirit alive in some way. Spencer Webb is now among the stars far too soon.
