Tennesse tidbits.......

[Brenjetsfan]

Titans meet with wounded soldiers

By JONATHAN BABALOLA

For The Tennessean

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — Football players are sometimes called "warriors" when they are on the field, but after a meeting with some "true heroes" yesterday Titans center Kevin Mawae and tight end Erron Kinney would disagree.

Mawae and Kinney — along with several of the Titans cheerleaders and staff — took part in Titans Caravan IX at the Blanchfield Army Community Hospital where they visited the hospital's Wounded Warrior Ward, which serves patients wounded in combat overseas.

Mawae, whose father, David Mawae, served in the Army for 23 years, said there is no comparison between what soldiers go through and the rigors of football.

"The guys we talked to are itching to go back and risk their lives," Mawae said.

"We have guys in our business who twist an ankle and don't want to play on Sundays because it's going to hurt their careers so this shines some light on what's really important."

Pfc. Brian Daniels, 20, who was injured when a device exploded near him in Iraq, said it was a gratifying experience to have the players come and give words of encouragement.

"You wouldn't think that an NFL player would look up to you like that but it's really cool that they came to see us," said Daniels, a Titans fan from Lansing, Mich.

"I'm stoked. I'm so excited right now, I feel like I'm 9 again."

Mawae, who signed as a free agent with the Titans last month, said he just wanted show appreciation for the soldiers.

"For them to feel that way is pretty neat," Mawae said.

"We're just as excited to see them as they are to see us and it's an honor for us to come and tell them we appreciate what they've done."

Kinney, who was hampered late last season by a knee injury, said it was "almost embarrassing" to compare his situation to those who were in the hospital.

"I took a shot in the knee and had surgery but one of the first soldiers I met out here was shot in the knee so that's a big difference," Kinney said.

"It's a pretty humbling experience for me."

The soldier Kinney spoke of, Pfc. Brandon Greer of Wilmington, Ohio, said not too many people, regardless of their profession, would give the type of time that Mawae and Kinney did.

"It takes a special person to come out and do this, especially guys of their stature," Greer, 20, said.

Some of the soldiers, who were not Titans fans to begin with, came away impressed.

"You always hear about the million dollar athlete being selfish but for these guys to take their time to come out and support us shows how much they care," said Sgt. William Benzing, a Chicago Bears fan from Albany, Ga.

"These guys are like celebrities and for them to tell us they appreciate us, that's great."

Mawae said people that watch the war from a distance cannot get the full grasp of what soldiers and their families have to deal with.

"It's one thing to see it on C-SPAN or MSNBC," Mawae said. "But when you come into a hospital and see the soldier come in with his wife and two kids and he's got shrapnel wounds all over his face, that makes it real."

After signing a few autographs for the soldiers and taking pictures with some of the hospital staff, Mawae put the visit in perspective.

"People put us up on a pedestal but the reality is we don't put our lives on the line like they do," Mawae said, as he pointed to the room where a few of the injured soldiers were going through rehabilitation.

"In my mind, though, there's no comparison. They're the true heroes."

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[vinnys025]

Great article and very nice comments from Kev. Well, if everyone thinks we are hero's, then pay us like we're heros and stop talking us up all the time. Also, i think he took at shot at Abraham in that article....

[Fred Jetstone]

What are you doing in Tennesee????

[Brenjetsfan]

waiting for CAMP to start!!! I miss my man:character43:

[4HCrew]

please do not tell me every Kevin blurb is going to be posted here..we all know how mouthy he is ha ha

[GreenBeans]

Great article and very nice comments from Kev. Well, if everyone thinks we are hero's, then pay us like we're heros and stop talking us up all the time. Also, i think he took at shot at Abraham in that article....

You mean this:

"We have guys in our business who twist an ankle and don't want to play on Sundays because it's going to hurt their careers so this shines some light on what's really important."

I'd guess you are right. Best, most accurate thing Mawae has said in months.

[JetCane]

The guys we talked to are itching to go back and risk their lives," Mawae said.

"We have guys in our business who twist an ankle and don't want to play on Sundays because it's going to hurt their careers so this shines some light on what's really important."

True dat!