Atlas
09-15-2005, 10:32 PM
SoCals link: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=17060
THOMAS HERRION
Minutes after their August 20 exhibition game in Denver, the 49ers gather in the locker room to recite the Lord's Prayer. They end with "Amen." And Thomas Herrion, a guard with practice-squad aspirations, falls to the ground in a seizure. His teammates scream for the trainer. Medical personnel turn the locker room into an ER unit. York, a pathologist, helps cut away his uniform. Some 49ers pray; others yell encouragement: "Come on, Thomas, you can do it." They look on, disbelieving, as doctors use a defibrillator to try to start his heart. The heart monitor doesn't change. He is removed on a stretcher for a local hospital.
No one knows what sustained effect the death of Herrion will have on the team's emotions. His locker remains untouched, a daily reminder of the loss. A decal with his number is on the back of every helmet. "It is amazing how tragedy can pull people so close, but that's what has happened to us," says Jennings. "Thomas will always be part of this team. We know he is in our hearts. We won't forget him."
That's pretty powerfiul stuff.
THOMAS HERRION
Minutes after their August 20 exhibition game in Denver, the 49ers gather in the locker room to recite the Lord's Prayer. They end with "Amen." And Thomas Herrion, a guard with practice-squad aspirations, falls to the ground in a seizure. His teammates scream for the trainer. Medical personnel turn the locker room into an ER unit. York, a pathologist, helps cut away his uniform. Some 49ers pray; others yell encouragement: "Come on, Thomas, you can do it." They look on, disbelieving, as doctors use a defibrillator to try to start his heart. The heart monitor doesn't change. He is removed on a stretcher for a local hospital.
No one knows what sustained effect the death of Herrion will have on the team's emotions. His locker remains untouched, a daily reminder of the loss. A decal with his number is on the back of every helmet. "It is amazing how tragedy can pull people so close, but that's what has happened to us," says Jennings. "Thomas will always be part of this team. We know he is in our hearts. We won't forget him."
That's pretty powerfiul stuff.