Nov 20, 2009 9:08 pm US/Central
Paralyzed Athletes Become Football Entrepreneurs
Ex-Players Have Formed 'Gridiron Alliance,' Which Will Market Framed Jerseys To Players
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Kenneth Jennings, left, and Rocky Clark are both ex-football players who were paralyzed. Now, they're aspiring entrepreneurs.
CBS
They were once young, vibrant, and active. But through cruel twists of fate, they were left without the use of their arms and legs.
Now, years later, these former football players are hoping to sustain themselves by offering mementos of the game they love the most.
CBS 2's Rob Johnson reports.
Life and football -- as 38-year-old Kenneth Jennings knew it -- ended on Oct. 8, 1988.
"I remember going down on opening kickoff making the tackle, and then trying to get up," he said. "Mentally I was getting up, physically my body wasn't moving."
For 25-year-old Rocky Clark, it was Sept. 15, 2000.
He said he "got pulled down onto the ground pretty hard -- I didn't feel anything, I couldn't hear anything."
Ken and Rocky's care is expensive, and the burdens on their families are tremendous.
"What I've been through with mom over the years, it's not easy," Rocky said.
Their injuries did not involve negligence, so there were no lawsuits or settlements. As adults, they want something to support themselves and to help other paralyzed athletes.
That something is a venture framing athletes' jerseys and mementos. Rocky and Ken make the sales pitch to professional, college and high school athletes nationwide. Waukegan memento framer Scott Wallem, who has a company called
ProCase, will make the jerseys into art.
"Every year, you're going to have seniors, and every year those seniors are going to need their jerseys framed and put up as a keepsake for themselves," Ken said.
Rocky and Ken watched the bears practice at Halas Hall this week, knowing the team will help publicize their efforts.
"The sport is great, but every once in a while some bad things can happen," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "Being in the football family, we want to help as much as anything."
It looks like Northwestern University seniors will get their jerseys framed. Coach Pat Fitzgerald also supports the venture.
Ken and Rocky coach high school football part-time, giving back to the game that took so much from them. Now they need football's support.
"I think most definitely football should give something back," Ken said.
"We still love the game, we're still part of the game," Rocky said.
The jersey venture is part of a program called
The Gridiron Alliance. Rocky and Ken are thinking big. They want to get an alliance in every NFL city with the support of every NFL team.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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