I got a call Thursday morning from Bryan Gilmore, who wanted to talk about my Dez Bryant column in the Thursday Oklahoman. Basically, I wrote about Dez’s horrible upbringing in his hometown of Lufkin, Texas, and how it continues to curse him. You can read the column here.
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Bryan Gilmore (82) makes a catch Monday, Aug. 8, 2005 during second quarter of the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio.
Gilmore read the column and was moved to reach out to someone because he knows a little about being an NFL wide receiver from Lufkin. He was one. Gilmore went from Lufkin to Midwestern State in Wichita Falls, Texas, and then on to the NFL, where he played eight seasons, with the Cardinals, Dolphins and 49ers. He wasn’t a star. Gilmore had just 53 career catches and no touchdowns.
But in 2006, in Gilmore’s seventh season in the league, he contacted Dez, because he had heard of the latest Lufkin star. When he saw Dez play, he knew Dez was something special. “You could start for the San Francisco 49ers right now,” Gilmore told Dez, who then was a senior in high school.
Gilmore said he tried to act as a mentor to Dez, but that didn’t take after Dez hooked up with Deion Sanders sometime in Dez’s OSU career. “If you want to call out someone, call out Deion Sanders,” Gilmore said. “He didn’t even call me after that. I personally tried to keep him away from that.”
Association with Deion led to an NCAA investigation that caused Dez to become ineligible for most of his final OSU season, after Dez lied to NCAA investigators about his relationship. Deion later publicly denounced Dez after some of Dez’s missteps after joining the Dallas Cowboys. “Wrote him off,” Gilmore said.
Gilmore said all the stories about Dez’s homelife are true. When Gilmore met Dez, he was living with a girlfriend’s uncle. “Nobody really knows that this kid has been like homeless,” Gilmore said. ”Enough is enough. Somebody needs to intercede. I still love him and I’m praying for him. He really is a good kid. This is disturbing.”
I have no idea if Bryan Gilmore is someone who could help Dez. But someone like Bryan Gilmore is exactly what Dez needs. Someone who spent eight years in the NFL with less than top-shelf talent and knows what it takes to stick around the league, how being a good citizen will extend a career. Someone who knows Dez’s background and what he’s up against. Someone who is not all about flash and PR.
-------------Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel. Visit Berry's website here.If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Source : Dez Bryant: A former colleague is anxious - NewsOK.com (blog)
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