08/23/20 A SUPER SATURDAY — Years ago on a Saturday afternoon we had a special men’s event at Central Baptist Church in Oak Ridge. The speakers were all famous football players; the keynote speaker was UT alum and Hall-of-Fame defensive end Reggie White. My job was to wait for him to arrive on the backside of the campus and escort him into the worship auditorium.

It was nearly time to start and he had not arrived yet. Plus my walkie-talkie seemed to have quit. Just as I was about to give up and abandon my post, several police cars came barreling into the parking lot, lights flashing and sirens blaring. They pulled up right in front of me and screeched to a halt. The rear door opened and this giant of a man got out. I could check his official stats right now, but, instead, let me just say that my mouth dropped open, and I automatically took a step back—he was the largest man I’ve ever been close to. Reggie White grabbed my right hand with his—about the size of a catcher’s mitt—and nearly crushed it!

AsI turned to go inside, Reggie stopped me, laughing. He gestured toward the rear seat of the patrol car and UT tackle Antone Davis began his cumbersome exit. I’m pretty sure the entire vehicle shook as he tried to squeeze his massive frame through the tiny door opening. As he stood up, it seemed as if a solar eclipse had occurred—he was nearly completely blocking out the sun. He towered over us both—Reggie looked average-sized and me, a runt.

Someone had mistakenly locked the back doors of the church. We could hear the music and loud singing—the service had already begun. Reggie asked me what we should do. I told him if I had two monsters with me I’d get them to open the door somehow and deal with the consequences later. He and Antone grabbed the door handles and jerked the locked doors open—no problem!

Someone had saved me a seat on the front row! Reggie told us all about his adventures traveling to CBC, arriving late, and how he, Antone and Ed (me) had managed to get inside. My jealous friends made all manner of fun of me for weeks afterward! What a glorious day that was, serving the Lord along with a thousand of His men!