I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of one of the greatest University of Colorado football players ever, and one of the best running backs in college football history, Rashaan Salaam.
I am not just going to write all about all of his football accomplishments, or his 1994 Heisman Trophy season that made him not only a legend in college football nationally, but also made him the first and only player in CU history to win the Heisman: I want to write more about the kind of wonderful man he was, and his class off the field. But football brought Rashaan and me together.
I was a Rashaan Salaam fan long before he came to Boulder: He was a Pop Warner standout from San Diego where he played at Skyline Pop Warner. My brother Tommy and I played for El Cajon Pop Warner, and there was a huge rivalry between our respective teams over the years. Skyline's program was always at the top, and they were scary good, and El Cajon and Skyline always met in the championship called the "Super Q Bowl" (The "Super Bowl" for San Diego County Pop Warner) many times over the years.
Rashaan played 8-man football as a standout at La Jolla Country Day High School, so I was already "619" proud (San Diego's area code) of Rashaan coming out of high school, as he was representing "us," when he went to the "303," where he would make everybody proud at CU in Boulder.
I have written several blogs about some of my CU Buff heroes over the years, and Rashaan was one of those heroes I wrote about. We became Facebook friends when he read some of the blogs about him. Maybe it might have been the things I remembered that were NOT in his many national press clippings that listed all of his astronomical rushing yards all season long, especially at ranked #16 Texas, the week after the Miracle In Michigan, where he rushed for 317 yards. What I remembered, and wrote about most of all that season, was Rashaan's key and unheralded block against a rushing and much bigger defensive lineman, Trevor Pryce of Michigan, (who became years later a great defensive linemen for the Denver Broncos.) Rashaan's block enabled Kordell Stewart to step out of the pocket, and launch a 73 yard Hail Mary pass into the Ann Arbor early autumn air to Michael Westbrook, for one of the greatest plays in Colorado Football history the week before.
Rashaan and I finally met for the first time face-to-face at one of the "Rocky Mountain Showdowns" (Colorado State versus Colorado) years ago, and as soon as we saw each other, he had his trademark smile and gave me a huge hug when we recognized each other from our Facebook photos. It felt like we were lifelong friends, as we bantered about who was better, Skyline or El Cajon Pop Warner, talked about the great places we both liked to eat in Southeast San Diego, and shared stories about his and Tommy's football careers.
I heard his trademark belly laugh for the first time when I told him about how I had to always tell disappointed fans, that I was not "Touchdown Tommy" Vardell; I was his older brother "Tailgatin' Teddy," (after I would come out of the locker room after visiting Tommy game after game, where eager fans awaited and long faces always were an end result after finding out I was not Tommy.) I told Rashaan I finally got sick of explaining "who I was" to the fans, so I just started signing all balls and all memorabilia, only for them to find out 20 years later that I was an imposter, and how upset they must have been when they saw their memorabilia was signed by a worthless nobody they had ever heard of before, named " Tailgatin' Teddy Vardell."
I have never met a more genuine, enthusiastic, friendly, warm, and funny guy in my life, or one with less ego. We became fast friends, and we would speak on the phone or check in with each other from time to time.
Several years ago, he was our guest speaker at our University of Colorado alumni association watch party. He was a great speaker, sincere, warm and friendly to all his fans: He looked at each and every young star-struck kid in the eye, joked with them, and signed autographs, as if he had all day to chat with each and every person there.
The most touching memory I have about Rashaan encapsulates his kind, wonderful spirit. I was delighted to attend a dinner party in his honor at Elway's steakhouse a couple of years ago with my fellow alumni in downtown Denver. At the close of the event, they called all of the great players from the CU 1990 National Championship team up on stage to join Rashaan.- Darian Hagan, Alfred Williams, Charles Johnson, James Hill-, and many others. I was already content to be in the same room with these guys. Then Rashaan took the mike from the emcee, and said "where is my 619 brother Tailgatin' Teddy!! ??... He needs to get up here on the stage with us!"
I couldn't believe I was included in the same company, a fan among my heroes, and after I joined them on stage, we all stood shoulder to shoulder and sang the CU fight song together, and for a moment, I was a fan pulled out of the stands and onto the field, and elevated with my CU football Buff heroes.
It was a moment I will never forget. That gesture speaks volumes for the kind of inclusive person and big heart Rashaan had to not only me, but anybody who crossed his path.
My sincerest condolences thoughts are with his family, the CU Buff football players and coaching staff, his close friends that knew him best, and all the fans that admired him from afar. Bless you during this difficult time.
God Bless #19, Rashaan Salaam. The University of Colorado family lost a Prince of a man.
Your fan and friend,
-Tailgatin' Teddy Vardell
