Truly Golden Buffaloes

After the tragic death of one of their own, former CU footballers have huddled up to create a weekend-long golf event dedicated

By Andy Bigford

In the mid-1980s, Anthony Weatherspoon was the cornerstone of a University of Colorado football team ascending from the Big Eight cellar to a national championship. A 6-foot, 240-pound fullback out of La Habra, Calif., and the son of two college professors, Weatherspoon made an immediate impact in Boulder. On the eve of his first scrimmage, Weatherspoon sat quietly in the corner as trash-talking upperclassmen boasted about shutting down the offense. He finally rose from his seat, cleared his throat, and declared, “I want to know who’s going to hit me.” The next day, he made a much louder statement, running over and through the Buffs’ defense and sending one of the veterans to the disabled list.

“Anthony Weatherspoon gave CU football an identity—he was Spoon,” remembers former CU quarterback and current assistant athletic director for external affairs Charles “C.J.” Johnson, who arrived in Boulder in 1988.”And everybody had a healthy fear of Spoon on the field.”
 
A ferocious blocker in Bill McCartney’s newly installed wishbone offense, Weatherspoon led the team in rushing in 1985 when the Buffs rebounded from 1-10 to a 7-5 bowl season. He rushed for 101 yards in a signature win over Oregon, marking the Buffs’ return to the national stage. Always smiling off the field but fearsome on it, he was serenaded by the Folsom Field faithful with chants of “Spooooon.”

“Anthony was the guy everyone rallied around,” recalls Jon Embree, an all-conference tight end during that period. “He thrived on contact. The more you hit him, the stronger he got. On campus, he knew everybody, and everybody knew Spoon. He loved to laugh.”

Weatherspoon encountered off-field problems during his junior year, and bad luck over the summer. Home visiting buddies in California, Weatherspoon took a friend’s new motorcycle for a spin and got chewed up by asphalt. He dislocated his hip and fractured his collarbone. The accident helped derail his college career and his NFL dreams; his football tenure at CU unceremoniously ended.

As Johnson and other Buffs his continued a resurrection that produced an 11-1 record in 1989 and a national championship in 1990, Spoon moved back to Orange County, Calif. He married his high-school sweetheart, Jacqueline, whom he would describe as “a diamond, a very special woman.” The couple had three daughters, the youngest two with autism.

In July 2004, Spoon was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS). His bone marrow wasn’t producing the right white blood cells to fight infection, and his MDS eventually led to leukemia. With hospital bills mounting and his wife taking care of the children, Spoon’s ex-teammates rallied to his side with moral and financial support. They called, e-mailed, sent cards and helped move the family from California to a specialist hospital in Austin, Texas. In an effort overseen by former teammate James Smith, they passed the hat and raised $10,000 for the family. Two former Buffs who lived in Houston, Kanavis McGhee and Greg Thomas, made visits to the hospital.

So did Brad Robinson, who recalls his initial reluctance in contacting his former teammate “while he was literally dying.” He now says it’s the best thing he’s ever done. “He put things in perspective for me,” says Robinson. “He was asking about how everyone else was doing. One of the last things he said to me was, ‘Hug your wife and kids, bro.’”

Weatherspoon also worked to raise awareness of MDS, particularly among minorities. In Denver and Boulder, bone marrow and blood drives were organized in his name.

More than anything, Spoon appreciated his teammates taking the time to contact him. “The disease was something he couldn’t fight alone,” Jacqueline says. “The reconnection with his teammates made a huge difference. They became even closer. For the guys to reach out to us and support us, it changed Anthony’s life. He said, ‘I can accept this. I can go in peace.’”

Too weak to accept a bone marrow transplant, Anthony Weatherspoon died at age 39 on Nov. 15, 2005. His teammates had discussed starting a foundation to assist ex-Buffs in need, and with Spoon’s passing they now had their reason to rally. A mere mention of the fullback’s name brought everyone back together. “It took a guy like Anthony for it to work,” Smith says. “Unfortunately, it had to happen that way to get where we are.”

They quickly organized a golf fundraiser in the summer of 2006 at Legacy Ridge Golf Course in Westminster, donating the proceeds to Jacqueline. Despite its last-minute nature, the tourney drew dozens of ex-players, reuniting teammates who hadn’t seen each other for years. McCartney also attended, as did newly hired head coach Dan Hawkins, recently departed Gary Barnett, who’d coached Weatherspoon as an assistant, and Mike Bohn, the CU athletic director.

With the first event under their belts, the group created a 501(3)(c) foundation, called Buffs4Life, with three goals: to help former CU athletes and families with a medical or financial hardship; to serve as a bridge between CU and its former athletes; and to provide toys for children during the holidays at the Denver Safe House women’s shelter.

The 2007 golf event, held at Aurora’s Heritage Eagle Bend Golf & Country Club, doubled the field to 150 players, including Rick Neuheisel, Darian Hagan, Alfred Williams and CU basketball coach Jeff Bzdelik. It raised more than $60,000, with the proceeds primarily donated to John Hessler, the former CU quarterback who was seriously injured in a hit-and-run automobile accident in 2003.

For its third-annual golf tourney this summer, Buffs4Life is raising the bar and wants to net $100,000. The June 30 event features a pairings party the evening prior and golf at Omni Interlocken Resort Golf Club, with plans to host 54 fivesomes, including a CU player or coach in each group. A portion of the proceeds will go to the National Emphysema Foundation in honor of Lyndi McCartney, the First Lady of CU football, who is battling the disease.

Embree, who played in the NFL, coached at CU for 10 years and is currently tight ends coach for the Kansas City Chiefs, says the concept behind Buffs4Life stems from McCartney’s philosophy. “Coach Mac always preached that college is when you become a man. And it’s the people you meet who will become your best friends for life. I want us helping us, all of us who had to walk up that hill. Each year, we’ll find a guy who needs help.”

The foundation is setting up a job board on its Web site where players can post resumes; it will also include video clips of great moments in CU history. Its growing sponsor support includes adidas, Reebok, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Subway, Spring, Papa John’s, Gatorade and The Children’s Hospital. There is talk of an endowment. The players believe the foundation is unprecedented; they don’t know of a similar program at other schools.

“Anthony’s speaking louder to us in death than he did in life,” says Charles Johnson, who serves as the liaison between Buffs4Life and the CU athletic department. “He’s the primary purpose for getting us all back together. The whole thing has been brilliant, the way the guys have put this together. You think about how fast it’s grown. It obviously underscores a void.”

“I salute the leadership of this group for pulling this together,” athletic director Bohn says, noting the effort targeted a clear need and met it. “To see them helping out one of their own is inspiring. The foundation is unique in its stature.”

Johnson admits the relationship between the university and Buffs4Life “has been a balancing act, and we’re moving in the right direction.” CU has to be wary that donations otherwise earmarked for the athletic department or football program might now be written to Buffs4Life. There is no question that the alums have pulled in people for fundraising and participation that CU has lost. Johnson says it took a while for some at CU to embrace the positive side of this, but now they do. “At the end of the day,” he says, “to have this group engaged and approachable is far greater than what CU might lose.”

Indeed, one of the goals of Buffs4Life is to bond former players with the current program, and it seems to be working. There is a natural tendency for alums to feel unappreciated; when a university does call, it’s usually to ask for money. Former players were initially displeased with Bohn’s choice to hire Hawkins over their teammate Embree, but they are now optimistic about the positive direction at CU. And a portion of the golf-event proceeds are earmarked for CU athletics.

Jacqueline Weatherspoon, who plans to attend the event this June, remains overwhelmed by the efforts of Buffs4Life. “It’s been a rough road for me and the kids,” Jacqueline says. “You have to pick up the pieces. Anthony and I had a lot of peace toward the end. He said, ‘Don’t worry, you’re not alone.’ And I’m not. They don’t forget about me, they don’t forget about Anthony. I have a huge heart for these guys who came together. It’s a blessing. These Buffs are everywhere.”

For more information on participation or sponsorships, go to buffs4life.com.

 

Colorado AvidGolfer is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it. It publishes eight issues annually and proudly delivers daily content via www.coloradoavidgolfer.com.