Alabama Football recognizes their Student-Athletes of the Week with some expected key contributors making it!
In the modern day of Name, Image, Likeness licensing deals, and big-time college football stars, we often lose sight of what really matters when it comes to college athletics. To win on the field you must win in the classroom first, and Alabama head football coach [autotag]Nick Saban[/autotag] has always preached the importance of getting an education and a degree.
Whether fans admire or despise Saban, they must admit his commitment to his players is admirable. Whether it’s a walk-on player or a star who declares for the NFL draft before his eligibility is up, Saban will preach the importance of a degree until he is blue in the face. No matter who it is, there is life after football and he wants his players to be the most well-developed man, father, and husband they can be.
This week, Alabama football recognized James Smith, Malik Benson and Jam Miller as the Student-Athletes of the Week. For me, Benson is a guy who I think has all of the talent in the world and the ability to change the offense, so to see him succeeding academically should be a very encouraging sign for Tide fans.
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Kansas City Chiefs safety Justin Reid cemented himself as a key part of his team’s defense last season and is proving to be an equally crucial member of the community after making a significant donation to a local school on Monday.
Reid’s foundation, JReid Indeed, invested significantly in the STEM and engineering departments at Kansas City Public Schools, donating $15,000 to their robotics team as part of an outreach effort. A Standford graduate, Reid is known to be a firm believer in the value of education and seems poised to inspire a new generation of thinkers with this latest good deed in the Kansas City area.
“Technology is the game changer for our students to succeed,” Reid said in a statement, via KSHB. “Everyday technology is changing the future and it is changing how we live. I want to give children who look like me a fighting chance to have a better education, and to compete in life. That’s my ultimate goal.”
During his appearance at KC Central High School, Reid posed for pictures with the promotional check provided by his foundation and members of the robotics team who stand to benefit greatly from this kind gesture. The mission of his foundation is as follows:
 JReid InDeed is a charitable organization founded by Justin Reid that focuses on equipping and funding disadvantaged youth and communities through interactive programs, community engagement, and technology access. The foundation focuses on children in underserved communities of Houston, Baton Rouge, and Kansas City.Â
Heading into his second year with the Chiefs in 2023, Reid is sure to become a fan-favorite in Kansas City’s secondary as he further ingrains himself both in his community and on the gridiron.
Plethora of former Crimson Tide players will serve as NFL captains in 2022
The University of Alabama is known for the talent they produce on the gridiron, however, the individuals they are off the field are just as impressive. Saban has always advocated for his players to leave Alabama with a college degree.
The lessons learned in Tuscaloosa are blooming in the NFL now as eight former Crimson Tide members will be captains in 2022 including the three quarterbacks: Mac Jones, Tua Tagovailoa and Jalen Hurts.
Over the course of the past few years, Saban has made it a priority to recruit talented prospects, but also players that are willing to be coached.
Eight former @AlabamaFTBL players will be captains for their teams for the 2022 #NFL season.
Mac Jones – Patriots Jalen Hurts – Eagles Tua Tagovailoa – Dolphins Derrick Henry – Titans Najee Harris – Steelers Xavier McKinney – Giants Jonathan Allen – Commanders CJ Mosley – Jets
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.
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Juneteenth is one of the most important days in American history.
It’s about Black freedom. It’s about emancipation. It’s about America finally abolishing one of its greatest sins—slavery.
There are so many people who only know today as June 19 — an otherwise ordinary day — despite it being anything but ordinary.
But, for the first time, it’s hard not to notice Juneteenth today. It’s trending across social media sites and search engines, but there’s still a lot of confusion surrounding what Juneteenth is and why it carries such historical significance.
For those wanting more information on the importance of this day, here’s an explainer to get you up to speed.
What is Juneteenth?
On June 19, 1865, Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas, and told slaves they were emancipated from slavery. Those slaves were the last to be notified of the official abolition of slavery.
Lacking a formal holiday to commemorate the end of slavery, over time, June 19 has been celebrated as Juneteenth.
But, wait, wasn’t the emancipation proclamation in 1863?
Yes, it was. Abraham Lincoln officially signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, which declared “that all persons held as slaves” within the Confederate states “are, and henceforward shall be free.”
Still, the Proclamation didn’t immediately free slaves across the country. The Civil War raged for another two years, and then, even once the war was over in 1865, it took another two months after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered for those 250,000 slaves in Texas — the furthest U.S. state at the time—to be notified that they were freed.
This animated short from the television show Black-ish offers a pretty short explainer on that.
Wow, that seems big. Why didn’t I know about this?
Well, because this day has never really been acknowledged or celebrated in the ways that it should.
For starters, it’s not even recognized as an official federal holiday in America. Texas, New York and Virginia recognize the day as an official state holiday.
However, Texas only acknowledged the day more than a century later in 1980. Virginia and New York just began to this year. Other than that, most states recognize the day but not as a holiday like they do with, say, the 4th of July or even Columbus day.
That’s why Juneteenth has largely only been celebrated in Black communities across the country for 155 years.
That means today’s celebration is super important, right?
Right. Celebrating and acknowledging Juneteenth is always important, but it’s especially important today because of the moment we’re living in.
People are still protesting across the country because of the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers. People are angry. They’re pushing hard for change.
Juneteenth serves as a celebration of Black freedom and emancipation, but today it also serves as a message.
Black advancement and justice have always been delayed or outright denied in America. Even Juneteenth came late. And even after that, Black Codes upheld the tenets of slavery for years after it was abolished.
Fast forward 155 years later and Black people are still under attack in America. Today’s Juneteenth celebration sends a message to the powers that be in this nation that there’s no more skating over this country’s checkered history. It’s time to own up to it and it’s time to do better.
What are people doing today to observe Juneteenth? What can I do?
There are a number of protests and marches going on across America. Join in on some of those marches, if possible, while keeping safety and COVID-19 in mind.
Other than that, spread the news. Tell everyone about Juneteenth, why it’s important and what it stands for. Don’t ever let anyone forget about it and never go another year without celebrating it again.
