Noble Move By Team Glazer
May 2nd, 2012
Eric LeGrand leads his Rutgers teammates out onto the field for Senior Day last fall.
The Bucs, like all NFL teams, are scouring the bushes to find any hidden gem to bring to their rookie mini-camp in hopes of finding the next Night Train Lane or Drew Pearson or Kurt Warner.
One player the Bucs signed this morning has no chance of ever making a football team, much less the Bucs. But that’s not the point.
Today, the Bucs announced that former Rutgers defensive lineman Eric LeGrand signed a contract with the team.
LeGrand, who played for new Bucs coach Greg Schiano at Rutgers, won’t make the Bucs and won’t even participate in the rookie mini-camp.
That’s because LeGrand is paralyzed.
LeGrand made a tackle in a game against Army in October 2010 and couldn’t get up because he couldn’t move from the neck down. LeGrand was able to recover movement in his shoulders and some in his arms later in therapy.
LeGrand wouldn’t let the injury stop him. He is scheduled to graduate this fall with a degree in labor studies. This past year, he was also a radio analyst on Rutgers broadcasts.
LeGrand was able to take part in Senior Day ceremonies for Rutgers last season.
Per NJ.com, LeGrand will have some sort of affiliation with the Bucs, though currently his role is unspecified.
“Leading up to the draft, I couldn’t help but think that this should’ve been Eric’s draft class,” Schiano said in a statement released today by Rutgers and the Buccaneers. “This small gesture is the least we could do to recognize his character, spirit, and perseverance. The way Eric lives his life epitomizes what we are looking for in Buccaneer Men.”
This is just beyond a cool gesture by Team Glazer and Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik. LeGrand and Schiano are clearly very close. It is a nice gesture not just for your new coach, not just for the image of the team, but for LeGrand as well.
Such a move is not unprecedented. In 1981, Isiah Thomas led the Bobby Knight-coached Indiana Hoosiers to second national title in six seasons. A junior center was also a key member of the club, Landon Turner, who many expected to be a star in the NBA.
But fate was cruel to Turner, who was paralyzed in a car accident a few months later.
Knight and then-Boston Celtics patriarch Red Auerbach were close. Knight had mentioned to Auerbach that Turner was a huge Celtics fan and how nice of a gesture it would be if he could sign Turner as a free agent.
Auerbach one-upped Knight’s suggestion and selected Turner in the 1982 NBA draft.
Of course, that was in the days that the NBA had 10 rounds in its draft. If the NFL still had a 12-round draft, Joe’s pretty confident the Bucs would have pulled a similar move.
All around, this is turning into a proud Bucs week.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:32 am
Today I am 100% proud to be a fan of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If this is the kind of organization that they are turning into, count me in. Classy move.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:33 am
Bucs cool points this off season flying up the scale. Schiano said he wish he had one of those thermometers to measure the teams improvement, to me, it’s definitely headed in the right direction under Coach Schiano. Doing things old school way and the right way. Go Bucs
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:33 am
Schiano is putting his mark on this team early and often and we are all here standing and clapping our hands. This coach is bringing so much class and integrity towards the game. Words can’t describe how refreshing it is to know that our team will be coached in a completely dedicated and professional manner in the foreseeable future.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:36 am
I am more impressed with each passing day that Greg Schiano is our head coach.
I always knew the BUCS had this in’em, it just took Schiano to bring it out.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:40 am
Even the haters of Schiano/Dominik/Glazers have to respect this move.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:46 am
Cant describe the feeling of being a Tampa Bay Buccaneer fan today. Just an incredible display of honor and respect. Its a great day to be a buccaneer
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:49 am
CLASS
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:50 am
This is seriously classy. Well done, Bucs. Well done.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:55 am
….it’s simply the Buccaneer way!
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:03 am
Ditto to all above! Always great to be a Buccaneer fan and this signing just exemplifies that!
Class act, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Shiano, class act!
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:09 am
Wow! I actually got choked up reading that. What a class move.
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:11 am
Wasn’t there a story years ago that a Buc’s male cheerleader (or whatever you call those piraty dressed guys) was paralyzed while performing and the Bucs refused to help him financially on the grounds he was not a team employee?
I seem to recall some people circulating a petition outside the stadium trying to get him benefits.
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:13 am
Great move Bucs!
This is the type of gesture that will make fans appreciate the leadership we now have at Tampa Bay.
If you are a player, you have to be pumped that this is the guy you will be following into battle with the assusance that he will be there for you.
Inspirational story! Go Bucs!
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:14 am
the best thing this isnt some media stunt, Schiano is just a good dude.
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:21 am
Not much else to add. Classy move…. by a class individual.
I would love to see him lead the Bucs out of the tunnel for a game.
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:22 am
Guys…im flying into Tampa later today…whats the best place to load up on Bucs gear?
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:23 am
Today, I’m proud to be a Buccaneer once again… it’s been a long time.
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:25 am
@ JoeBucsFans.com classy story , The Glazer Family and TampaBay Buccaneers organization awesome move and last but not least Coach Greg Schiano,this goes way beyond football or any sport,thank you. Plenty of dap & high 5’s to you,you’re a real winner my book, funny I thought the draft was good.Doesn’t even come close to this act of kindness.Bucfan4life
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:25 am
Very cool
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:28 am
Steve from Oregon ….
Mons Venus !! All kinds of Bucs Garb!!
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:30 am
@Steve from Oregon…..leading the team out the tunnel is a great idea!!!!
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:31 am
We have our Lombardi in Tampa Bay. I’m overwhelmed with emotion and totally buy into the Buccaneer way and I feel like a Buccaneer Man.
Total Class Act…
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:32 am
Even Thomas 2.2 and Capt. Tim have to feel this awesome.
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:39 am
What an awesome move by Greg Schiano and the Bucs. So proud to be a fan of this team, I really feel between the draft and a classy move like this, that things are really starting to change for the better. Bravo, coach!
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:03 pm
Best signing of the off season. Proud day to be a bucs fan!
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:07 pm
100% publicity stunt. They could have helped the thousand of people in need in they’re own community but we all know that will not get any more publicity than what they get right now instead they go out there and do this instead which they knew was gonna touch the heart of most of you specially the mindless ones… If they wanted to impress me then they should’ve drafted the guy instead, but it’s about business I get it…
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:09 pm
1. Thanks to Joe for posting this insprational story. We need more like this in the NFL.
2. How classy is this?! Father Dungy would be proud.
IMHO, this brings allot of class and credibility to the organization and not just the coach. Schiano is really trying to teach these players a new way of thinking. Hard work and a sense of pride come to mind.
This is a great way to reach your fans and connect with them. One step closer to bringing your community back to the Bucs.
GO BUCS!!
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:10 pm
@K_bassuka
Fail.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:17 pm
This is a cool thing to do…really cool.
A fringe benefit is the players see that Schiano put’s into practice what he teaches.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:19 pm
So glad that this was the biggest story in the NFL for a whopping 2.3 hours. Now we all know the ‘aints got what they deserved, though our day in the spotlight is over.
Classy move by the bucs, and ‘aints suspensions couldn’t have happened to a better team.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:21 pm
K_bassuka Says:
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:07 pm
100% publicity stunt. They could have helped the thousand of people in need in they’re own community but we all know that will not get any more publicity than what they get right now instead they go out there and do this instead which they knew was gonna touch the heart of most of you specially the mindless ones… If they wanted to impress me then they should’ve drafted the guy instead, but it’s about business I get it…
.
Give me a freaking break. Schiano had a personal connection to the kid. It was NOT a publicity stunt. Sure, when he suggested the idea to Dominick I’m sure Mark saw a publicity benefit, but that had nothing to do with the reasons Greg Schiano did this.
And, FOR YOUR INFORMATION…
…he has already made the mandate to do things for the local community. That doesn’t mean he can ONLY show compassion locally.
God…grant me patience with the spiteful, mindless people I’m stuck on this earth with!
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:23 pm
K_bassuka
Clearly you’re an idiot.
Enough said. You’re not worth more then that.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:23 pm
True class! The Bucs just gained a lot of fans today. That photo posted has got me totally choked up. Truly proud to be a Bucs fan.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:23 pm
@ Joe
If you have the ear of anyone in the marketing dept of the team, suggest selling LeGrand, and donating proceeds to charity of his choice. I’d bet he’d be in the Top 3 in sales for the team for the next year.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:24 pm
Selling LeGrand JERSEYS, oops.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Love this! Today’s wet blanket brought to you by Scott Inc.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:32 pm
SteveFrmOregon
Check out Bucs Heaven! They’ve got it all.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:35 pm
Bassuka you are an idiot. On behalf of all buc fans please shut the hell up.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:41 pm
Awesome! Maybe the Glazers did take advantage, but the move comes straight from Schiano’s heart. He dedicates a lot of his own time to supporting that kid and his family. If you are a dirtbag, it is hard to envision someone else having a pure intent.
May 2nd, 2012 at 12:47 pm
Joe,
Thank you for posting this, I’m so proud of my team today. Could you please ban that POS bassucker.
I never buy jersey’s but I would purchase an Eric LeGrand Bucs jersey if they were to become available.
Bassucker,
You’re a TROLL!
May 2nd, 2012 at 1:15 pm
Definitely a cool picture above !!
May 2nd, 2012 at 1:15 pm
rdbucfan , no need to insult Bass like that. You need to go quite a bit lower on the food chain before you get to babushka’s level.
May 2nd, 2012 at 1:34 pm
They’ve already been giving back to the community more now than ever so I really don’t see where this is a PR move. More like a coach & an organization trying to get this franchise back on the right path. Good actions bring good Karma! This team is on it’s way back!
May 2nd, 2012 at 2:26 pm
Wow, this really puts things in perspective, just like a trip to Bay Pines. How can you not love Schiano for this?
Eric & Thomas, I’m sorry for all the bad things I said about y’all (yous guys).
May 2nd, 2012 at 2:54 pm
Funny how a great story like this comes out,yet Thomas and Eric are nowhere to be found. I’m sure that’s merely a coincidence.
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:12 pm
Bulldog,
You’re right, I should have left it alone. But to call people mindless because they allow a story like this to touch their hearts is a POS in my book.
Basshole,
Didn’t you read the article regarding the Bucs giving a local mother a new car?
I guess that has nothing to do with helping someone in OUR community.
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:21 pm
Eyes watered up big time lol.
Listen K_bassuka,
Regardless of any of what you said which I think frankly is all garbage spoken out of pure ignorance and idiocy, the blessing of this act is indescribable. It cannnot be defined what this act has bestowed upon Legrand and his family…The joy, hope, and love this young man has received from realizing a dream that was torn from him. That he never himself would have the capability of realizing. He IS living a dream in this moment and he is happy. I don’t understand why you can be happy for him?
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:22 pm
KBasshole,
I make stupid comments from time to time, but just so you know that was…..
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:29 pm
I believe that you can never ever do enough good in your life. The more good you do, and the more you try, the more good will come your way. Right now the Bucs need all the good Karma they can muster, and Schiano obviously brings a lot of good to the table. I hope they keep Eric around because he can be a very positive influence for the team, helping them walk the walk and being true “Buccaneer Men” as Shiano says. His good will influence the entire team and Bay Area.
Today is great day to be a Buc Fan.
Thanks, Coach Schiano.
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:32 pm
well said BMac
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:38 pm
@K_bassuka,
Exactly how many people have you helped to call out the Glazers? It’s real easy for you to sit back behind your keyboard and talk trash. The Glazers did more today than you have done in your entire life to help others. You just made quite possibly the stupidest and most insensitive comments ever posted on this site, and that says a lot.
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:58 pm
@Hawaiian
I think I after spending close to 10 years in the Army I have helped enough to call out anyone, but more than not its usually viewed as a bad thing instead of helping… Oh yeah, and I won’t speak for all but at least the soldiers I have the pleasure to serve with don’t go around publicizing who we helped out over the years…
May 2nd, 2012 at 5:01 pm
Going along with my above post is this quote from Legrand
“It came out of nowhere,” LeGrand said. “He told my mom about it I believe Monday night. Didn’t tell me until Tuesday. … I said, ‘I don’t even know what to say right now. This is amazing, coach, thank you.’ Dreams do come true if you really believe.’ “
May 2nd, 2012 at 5:29 pm
@k_bassuka,
Do you know everything the Glazers do for the community, all the things that don’t get publicized? No you don’t because you are talking out of your arse, and it is disgusting. Only a fool could see something like this and think the way you do. I am embarrassed for you, I truly am. Look at all the people ripping you for your stupid comment, yet instead of realizing how dumb it was, you try to defend it.
Personally, I don’t give a damn if they call the press every time they do something to help others, as long as they are helping others. They don’t have to do a damn thing. I haven’t seen other teams doing a gesture like this, so publicity stunt or not, it’s a damn good thing. How do you think Legrand feels about it? How about his family? Go on his facebook or twitter page and see how proud he is. Only a miserable excuse for a person would see anything negative about this story. What a joke.
May 2nd, 2012 at 5:33 pm
K_Bassuka, I was a Marine, and I can 110% guarantee that you don’t speak for me, or any of my Brothers in the Corps.
And no matter who you are, or what you’ve done in your life, it doesn’t give you the right to be an A$$hole for no apparent reason.
You should have shut your yap and quit while you were ahead. I’m sure anything else you have to say to defend your ignorance will not be appreciated.
May 2nd, 2012 at 5:52 pm
@K_Bassuka….Wow!! I didn’t think anyone could leap frog Thomas in the idiot category but you managed to do it with one post! Congratulations moron!
May 2nd, 2012 at 6:11 pm
K_bassuka Says:
May 2nd, 2012 at 3:58 pm
I think I after spending close to 10 years in the Army I have helped enough to call out anyone, but more than not its usually viewed as a bad thing instead of helping… Oh yeah, and I won’t speak for all but at least the soldiers I have the pleasure to serve with don’t go around publicizing who we helped out over the years…
.
All that time under a disciplined environment and you still have no common sense. I bet a good number of those guys you serve with would tell you that you were out of line. And I bet marines would kick your @$$.
May 2nd, 2012 at 6:34 pm
All of you bashing me for expressing myself are the fools I was referring to. I never said that signing him was a bad thing or something team Glazer shouldn’t have done, but I hope I have the right to believe the reasons behind it. Congrats to LeGrand but I still think it was a publicity stunt. If that makes him and his family happy and make you go and be better citizen more power to you…
@BiMacAttack
You right I don’t speak for any Marines, specially after
your corps screw up mission after mission…
And if pointing out something makes me a bad person then so be it i’m a big boy words don’t hurt me…specially from anyone here.
@Hawaiian
So you think the Glazers are the only ones doing things like this on a daily basis? Seriously…
May 2nd, 2012 at 7:17 pm
Private Bassuka…back to your latrine duty..now!
May 2nd, 2012 at 7:18 pm
@K_bassuka,
You are truly digging yourself deeper and deeper into the depths of stupidity. What a disgrace. I’ll let BigMac take care of you for your comments towards him (I can’t wait to see that!).
So we are mindless because it touches our heart? Really? And trust me, they could give a sh!t less about impressing some jack arse like you. People like you should be the furthest from their minds.
“So you think the Glazers are the only ones doing things like this on a daily basis? Seriously…”
——-
Yes, I do believe they are the only ones signing paralyzed players onto their NFL team. So yes, seriously. Funny how there is nothing but love all over the country for the gesture, yet some dip sh!t fake arse fan like you criticizes it. I even had a Saints fan who is a friend message me “Geaux Bucs” today, which says an awful lot (especially since I’ve given him so much hell about the Saints this offseason).
May 2nd, 2012 at 7:21 pm
The worst thing about you is that you are so bull headed that you can’t look at how insensitive and ridiculous your comments and just apologize. However, you are so stupid that you fail to see that with every comment, you just make yourself look worse. Has one person come to your defense? There’s a reason for that.
May 2nd, 2012 at 7:29 pm
k_bassuka Says:
@BiMacAttack
You right I don’t speak for any Marines, specially after
your corps screw up mission after mission…
————————————————————–
Seriously, dude, don’t be stupid. You have already dug yourself into a hole and now you are hurling insults at the Corps. Unlike you I have good buddies that were Rangers and no way I would insult them or the Army for your dumb A$$.
Like I said before, you really should have quit after the first comment, because now your ignorance is compounding exponentially.
May 2nd, 2012 at 7:31 pm
I think that should just about cover it.
May 2nd, 2012 at 7:35 pm
bASSuka, I hope you find the help you need.
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:25 pm
@K_bassuka
I spent 2 years in Nam living the horrors of war on a daily basis. Your 10 years of service haven’t taught you respect and honor which you clearly lack in the statements you made. You’re a disgrace to everything the force stands for, because this was a Class Act.
Semper Fi! Hoorah!
May 2nd, 2012 at 10:49 pm
Apologize to who? To the Glazers? Last I checked I didn’t say anything bad about LeGrand or his family, wait… I know you don’t want me to apologize to you guys… Did I hurt your feelings….
@BigMacAttack
And what knowing Rangers have to do with anything? One of my soldiers was an ex Marine and feels the same way bout the Corps than I do….
@Drew
I’m happy for you and respect your service, but if we throwing war time out there I have spend over 5 years of my beautiful life between Iraq and now Afghanistan and not pushing paper neither… Maybe thats why I dont get all sensitive like some here…
Anyway it was good and dandy but this thread is getting old… Good nite to all and if you wakeup still mad about me and my comments, I’m just a guy enjoying the privilege of been part of this great country exercising my rights that soldiers like Drew have fought so hard for… Pease…to y’all…I’ll take care of the rest…
May 2nd, 2012 at 11:10 pm
^ Spoken like a true jack arse. Some people just don’t get it.
May 3rd, 2012 at 12:01 am
@K_bassuka
The tour of duty clarifies your current thought process. I’ll give you a pass because it took me 20 years to get my thought process straight. Stay safe and always be aware of your surroundings and come home in one functioning piece.
This discussion needs to end, because it’s a lot deeper than most of you will ever know or experience.