Remember Steve 'Air' McNair

Murdered in his prime, the game of football lost a great man on Saturday

By: Brett Sebastian

Posted: 7/6/09

I admit, I was never a fan of the Tennessee Titans; in fact they are probably the team I despise most in all of sports, more than the Yankees, more than the Cardinals, and more than all the teams in a certain north Texas city.

They held Houston hostage for years, always threatening to move unless the city and the people paid for renovations to the Astrodome and then a new stadium entirely. The day they left for Tennessee in 1997 was the day I learned childhood heroes and larger-than-life organizations are cold-hearted businesses just like any other. It still pains me a little to think that Texas hall of famers like running back Earl Campbell and quarterback Warren Moon have their Oilers jerseys hanging in Nashville.

But while I hate the Titans, there was one player on that team I was always a fan of, Steve McNair.

McNair was brutally murdered Saturday in Nashville along with a woman he was with. Police are calling it a homicide, but questions of whether or not it was a murder-suicide, or to what degree the woman was involved, remain.

Regardless of the details of the murder, McNair's legacy shouldn't be connected in any way with the tragic way his life came to an end.

"Air" McNair is arguably the greatest Div. I-AA football player of all time; single-handedly putting Alcon State on the map. Drafted third overall to the Oilers in 1995 he would have a brilliant career with the Titans. He was the quarterback who famously led the last-minute drive in the 2000 Superbowl, which ended one yard short of the end zone as time expired. He shared the 2003 MVP with Peyton Manning and was always in the AFC playoff mix, whether it be with Tennessee in his prime or with Baltimore at the end.

McNair exemplified toughness in an age when many think quarterbacks are too protected. Oftentimes he was so beat up that he couldn't practice in the week, coming out on Sundays only to will his teams to victory.

McNair gave back to the community and did things the right way. He was an ambassador for his sport and an example of doing things right at a time when so many NFL stars are in the wrong.

You will be missed McNair, the game has lost one of its best.

Brett Sebastian is a senior geography major.