Cally Belcher’s death was a tragedy ahead of its time
By Brandon K. Scott, The Huntsville Item, Texas | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
As a defensive back for the Huntsville Hornets from 1987-89, Belcher was an intimidating tackler during a time in football when hitting was one of the more glamorous elements of the sport.
Former Huntsville coach
Belcher was like a coach's dream during tackling drills early on and it soon translated to the games once he made the Hornets varsity squad as a sophomore in '87.
"He would hit you unlike anybody else would hit you," Clements said. "That's how we learned about Cally. He will always be memorable for the way he played football because he would really hit you and hit you hard."
Practice could be painful
Clements' son
Even though Belcher mostly had a mild temperament, not known to be flashy, he was considered a complete menace for opposing teams that watched enough game film.
"He was an absolute terror on the football field,"
The older Clements said Belcher was one of his top two hitters in 35 years of coaching. The only other to compare was
"Those two, I guarantee, stand above everybody I ever coached and I say that with no hesitation at all,"
When the players watched game film on Saturdays, the offensive unit always asked coaches to show them defensive film so they could see the Belcher hits.
"It always happened,"
A tragedy ahead of its time
Nearly 25 years after Belcher last played for the Hornets, he is remembered by the
During a spring practice in 1994, Belcher took a hit to the head and staggered off the field before collapsing.
He went into a coma by the time his family arrived to the hospital and a week later, he died of a brain aneurysm.
This was well before former football players' brains were tested for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a progressive degenerative disease which eventually led to a group of more than 4,500 ex-
In college football, a group of
A story like Belcher's in today's media cycle would make headlines throughout newspapers and websites across the nation, which is ironic considering he rarely sought out attention.
"He was popular, but not because of his mouth or the clothes he wore,"
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