Out of our hands
As though we needed it, there's even more gristle for the Illini to gnaw on this week. But the “other news” is so stark, perhaps it will help put the Illini loss into perspective.
Trulon Henry was shot in the early morning hours of Sunday following the loss to the Wolverines.
At a house party at 1004 South Lincoln, U, across the street from the Lincoln Avenue dorms, a party started to get rowdy. Some football players were present, and called Trulon Henry to come and pick them up, and to help encourage other players to leave. 
The call to Henry was a logical one. Henry, 27 years old and married, occasionally brings his beautiful young daughter Tatum to post-game interviews. His advanced maturity compared to the rest of his teammates is palpable, a stark contrast that only serves as a reminder of just how young the rest of the players really are.
After Henry arrived at the party, someone fired into the crowd. Three people were hit. Henry was shot in the hand. His wounds were not believed to be life threatening, and he reportedly underwent surgery on Sunday. He will miss the remainder of his senior season. It is not presently known whether he will be available to play in a bowl game for the Illini.
Trulon Henry won't get to play in Senior Day next week against Wisconsin. And truthfully, this saddens me more than the current state of the Illinois football team, or the frustrating loss to Michigan. One team is going to lose every game. It's the nature of it. Give or take, half the teams every year are going to finish up with a losing record. That's the way it is in a game that doesn't allow ties, where there are no gentlemanly offers of a draw.
The fact that Trulon Henry will not get one more opportunity to suit up for the Illini before the home crowd is truly saddening to me, and it should be to you as well.
Trulon Henry has been candid about exactly why he is so much more mature than his teammates, and it isn't just his chronological age, or the fact that he played football at College of DuPage before transferring to Illinois.
Henry, or “Tru” as he's known to friends, has been candid that he has grown into the responsible father and husband that he is today, not in spite of, but because of, the fact that he spent four years in a federal prison in West Virginia. When he was 18, Trulon Henry was arrested after robbing a Safeway grocery store with his uncle in Washington, D.C. I encourage everyone to read Bob Asmussen's outstanding article from The News-Gazette, detailing that incident and Henry's road back to college.
There will be people out there who see this recent event as vindication of their suspicions, that many college football players generally, and those with a troubled past like Henry particularly, are irredeemable thugs, destined to be further entangled with trouble. That stories of people learning and changing are just so much whitewash. That people don't change. Those critics might be right, or at least sometimes right.
But I refuse to believe that.
I will never stop believing in redemption, never stop believing in the redeeming potential of sports generally, and football particularly. Those who have the ability to physically overpower another, to outrun another, to use their body and their will to subdue or intimidate another so frequently make the newspaper. All too often these stories make the local blotter, tragic tales of violence that we have all become too accustomed to.
But sometimes these stories are on the sports page.
The sports pages were full of the details of Illinois' loss to Michigan, how the offense is in a “funk,” as Ron Zook repeatedly said. Illinois lost 31–14 and is now on a four game losing streak. The defense once again kept the team in a game they had no business being in, and the offense was unable to capitalize, ultimately falling on too many turnovers, too many missed opportunities.
But losing a football game seems so small and far away when considering how close Mr. Henry and the other two victims of Sunday's shooting came to losing their lives. I wrote after the loss to Penn State how football is a game of inches. Sunday's events were a frightening reminder that sometimes life is, too.
Anyone who has even been up close to a college football game knows that it is a game of exceptionally visceral violence. The force and speed with which these young men hit each other over and over is truly staggering viewed up close. Though the hundred-million-dollar stadiums and carefully designed uniforms may sometimes obscure the fact, the game at its essence remains one of brutality: two groups, each trying to physically subdue the other.
But unlike those crime blotter stories, football gives us the opportunity to see such contests fought on an even field, monitored in an agreed upon set of rules, tallied in a neat and mathematical way. Grace and finesse within the context of such violence tell us so much about how we see our lives, and how we want to see our own struggles. College athletics have a special place in my heart because of amateurism, controversial and under attack from within and without though it may be. At least in theory, the players fight and risk their bodies not for themselves or for money, but for their teammates, their institution, their community. They do it for us.
That Trulon Henry concluded his Illini football career away from the field may be an appropriate bookend to his journey. Having freely admitted a stupid mistake, a selfish act outside of the law as a young man, Henry's redemption may have reached an equally improbable conclusion Sunday. Henry placed himself in danger, sacrificed himself physically, for no other reason than to protect his teammates from that same danger.
What more can we ask from Mr. Henry? What more have we ever asked of him? What more can we ask of ourselves? Stand up for one another. Do the right thing. What happens after that is out of our hands.
29 comments
Beem
Why is this “responsible father and husband” out at 3 a.m. instead of being home with his wife and child (the N-G article reports that Henry wasn’t home when he got the call, he was picking up his brother)? And is this the same Trulon Henry who was just convicted of driving on a suspended license back in August? Yes, he sounds very responsible.
Beem: I believe you may be mistaking Mr. Henry for Jason Ford, who was arrested for driving on a suspended license. If you have any indication that Trulon Henry had run afoul of the law as you indicate, please share that. As for why he was out “picking up his brother” at that hour: his brother Arrelious Benn, plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and had a game in Tampa Bay at 1:00 ET on Sunday (which Benn did play in). It is not immediately clear if Benn was the “brother” he was picking up at this point, but the late travel arrangements would seem to line up with Benn having to be in Tampa Bay by Sunday afternoon.
Beem
Go to the circuit clerk’s website at https://secure.jtsmith.com/clerk/yytt331s.asp and type in his name under “traffic” and he comes up quite often.
Beem
Oh, and I wouldn’t think that Arrelious would be traveling during the early morning hours Sunday if he had to play at 1 on Sunday.
Uncreative Username
01/14/10 (Case #10TR000941) Driving 21-25 Mph Above Limit, failed to pay fine
02/18/10 (Case #10TR003423) Seat Belt Required/Driver, failed to pay fine
04/18/10 (Case #10TR007658) Right-Way/Pedestrian/Crosswalk
11/30/10 (Case #10TR024812) Driving 15-20 Mph Above Limit; Unsafe Equipment/1St & 2Nd
02/06/11 (Case #11TR002192) Driving 21-25 Mph Above Limit
06/22/11 (Case #11TR012124) Driving On Suspended License
Doesn’t exactly look like a paragon of responsibility and maturity to me.
ThugNation
Is this author for reals? Hells no!
A 27-year-old sperm donor went to a Frat party at 3 a.m. and gunfire erupts ??? Shocking. The only ones in real danger were the vanilla pudding cups with skirts on at the Sigma Delt house.
Someone call this super-duper senior jock’s parole officer.
Beem, it is true that this summer he was arrested for driving on a suspended license. So, according to your logic: only irresponsible thugs make bad decisions such as driving on a suspended license. This is someone who went from being in prison to becoming a starter on a Division 1 football team two years in a row. This reflects upon his character as well as his athletic ability. To an extent, teams try to avoid players who have behavioral problems, but an ex-con? Most teams would not touch someone like this, it would be considered unthinkable, especially a school that has had the recent public embarrassment of Jamar Smith’s DUI hit and run. The fact that Illinois took their chance with him shows that they saw someone whose character had changed drastically. I think the University was able to better gauge his responsibility and character than you are with only the knowledge of his minor offense and no knowledge of who he is on a personal level.
I’m not suggesting that undoubtedly this is the case but from my experience with the Department of Motor Vehicles they are not very efficient with notifying for license suspensions. My letter informing me my license was suspended for receiving two tickets under the age of 21 was sent to my old address. Luckily it was my mother’s house and she notified me the day of the suspension. I almost drove that day. For students or others who move frequently, this is a serious problem.
What was he doing out at 3am in the morning and not with his family? He was helping his other family that was obviously in harm’s way, risking his own safety to protect the safety of others who obviously viewed him as a responsible leader or why else would they have turned to him to keep them safe at 3am? And yes, he was not at home when they called him; he was picking up his brother. I do not know where his brother was, but at 3am it might be fair to assume he was intoxicated. We attack players for receiving DUIs but now you attack one for being a designated driver?
Stop feeding the trolls, ya’ll.
Good for Henry for looking out for his teammates. Anyone who has been on a serious sports program, especially at this level, knows that you are expected to treat your teammates like family and look out for them. Even more so when you are 5 to 9 years older than them. Its a shame that this happened to him when he was doing the right thing.
Who cares why he was already out that early in the morning? It seems pretty irrelovent.
Beem
So, Kyle Patterson, you’re saying that there’s a chance he didn’t know that he had a suspended license? If his license is still suspended now, can he use that same excuse, since he appeared in court on the other one? And we’re to believe that football players are incapable of leaving a party on their own? They have to call friends to help them leave? So I guess you’re saying that they’re dumb.
“We attack players for receiving DUIs but now you attack one for being a designated driver?” Yes, that’s what I’m attacking him for boy genius, I’m totally against designated drivers. I’m sure that’s why his brother was calling him. And if Trulon is still on a suspended license, that’s who you call??
And then Jason Patterson chimes in that you are supposed to treat your teammates like family. Seems like a pretty dysfunctional family if you are incapable of leaving a party on your own and you have to call Trulon to save you. I don’t care if he’s out at 3 am, but if he’s going to call himself a “responsible father and husband”, then I’m going to call him on it, especially if he’s out driving on a suspended license, even if you do think it’s “irrelovent”.
I guess you’re a troll if you have an opinion different from yours.
Beem, you are kind of condemning him without a lot of information. I don’t think him being out that late, especially if he is help people, makes him a bad father. I would think his daughter was sound asleep at that hour and I would bet his wife had the child supervision covered. I mean when me and Kyle were kids our dad worked the 3rd shift at Kraft. So he wasn’t home from 11pm-7am. This, I assure you, did not make him a bad father. We were sleeping and our mother was home, so it totally worked out.
Like Kyle mentioned, him being a 27 year old ex-con that the U of I was willing to let be in their football program says alot about his character. The U of I being a D1 program means there were probably 100s of 18 year olds that were just as good as him out of high school, they could have picked up. But they accepted him.
I agree that if he license was still suspended than that was pretty dumb. But he was still trying to do the right thing, as far as we know. And who knows where those teammates live? Could have been several miles away. They might have need a ride home.
You are being really nasty about this and a bit unfair, Beem. Thats why you sound like a troll. You could have said everything you’ve posted in a reasonable and respectful manner, without sounding like you are 100% sure that Henry is an awful person, based on assumed circumstances. It sounds like you are just trying to get attention and a raise out of people, on the internet. Which is textbook Troll behavior.
What WE know for sure is that Henry was there to pick up teammates after they called him for help. That sounds like the act of an upstanding person. And that opinion is based on the facts we have.
Beem
Points taken Jason. The Penn State scandal has me soured on people idolizing sports figures/coaches and this article seemed to do that with Trulon when it seems he still has some work to do in certain areas. I’ll hold off until more information is known, but as we found out a few weeks ago (Martel Miller son’s case) some people spout as facts things that turn out to be untrue.
I’m 24 years old and an African American. Do not call me boy. Mocking Jason for a misspelling is very mature and shows you truly care about debating the issue at hand. Name calling and irrelevant insults are the last straws. Debate yourself.
Totally agree with you Beem. That is part of the reason i have lost interest in college sports in recent years. Mike McQueary is almost as bad as Sandusky in my book… Almost. And the fans that took to the streets in State College are at the very least horribly missing what happened and how awful it was.
But as of now, with the info we have in this issue, it seems like Henry was someone trying to do the right thing for people he cares about. But we will see…
Beem
Kyle: You equate calling you “boy genius” to calling you “boy.” Wow. That’s kind of a stretch isn’t it? Nice chip on your shoulder. I guess if you do something great, I also can’t call you a boy wonder, or say “attaboy”? I really didn’t mean it “that” way. If you knew me, you would know that I use that phrase a lot.
I was going to say that I wasn’t mocking Jason for “irrelovent”, that I just copied and pasted from his post, and that could have been believable, but I won’t say that because I really did as you suggest. I shouldn’t have, especially since I have had my share of incorrect spellings on here too.
Don’t drop out of the debate, it’s no fun alone. But I think it’s time to wait now anyway.
Its a good rule of thumb to never call an African American man a boy, in any context. I suppose I can’t speak for all Black men. But it certianly makes my skin crawl even if its meant to be endearing. To much awful history behind it.
Yeah!
You are all racists.
There you go, boys!
The anonymous “gentlemen” might want to get their facts straight before the condemn Mr. Henry.
This from the Chicago Tribune:
“Henry, 27, said in a telephone interview Sunday that he was at home with his wife and 2-year-old daughter when a teammate called asking him to help get other football players out of the party. He said he’d only been at the house for about three minutes when shots rang out.
“One of the bullets struck Henry above his right wrist and ruptured an artery before exiting through his ring finger. The injury will force Henry to miss the Illini’s last two regular season games and possibly their bowl game, but “Henry’s wife said Monday that her husband has set a new goal.
“He wants to be strong enough to stand on the sidelines with his teammates Saturday against Wisconsin,” Morgan Henry said.
“Henry was in considerable pain but will not need surgery, his wife said. He underwent a CAT scan Monday afternoon, she said.
“Henry will learn more about his rehabilitation plans after he begins working with a physical therapist following his release from the hospital. Doctors initially told Henry he will need six to eight weeks to recover and the same amount of time to rehabilitate.
“Henry and his wife took to Twitter on Monday to update friends and fans.
“Henry wrote that he had received 178 text messages of support.
“Can’t sleep, in a lot of pain, got too much on my mind but happy to be alive,” Henry wrote on his Twitter feed.
“Coach Ron Zook said Ashante Williams will fill in for Henry at outside linebacker. Williams sat out of games at the beginning of the season after he was arrested for a preseason DUI.
“Asked about team discipline following the arrest of two players in a separate incident Saturday night, Zook said, “What am I supposed to tell these guys? That you can’t go anywhere in town.”
“Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Urbana police at 217-384-2320 or Crime Stoppers at 217-373-TIPS.”
Tribune reporter Ryan Haggerty contributed.
Morgan Henry
I appreciate the support for MY HUSBAND from the author. My family and I know the truth and appreciate those who refrain from judgement.
prayingf for Trulon
What a nice article, it is too bad that idiots like Beem and ThugNation have to ruin it with their uneducated comments. This man is a husband, a father, a son and a friend and he risk his own life to protect his teammates, obviously they called him because he is mature and responsible and that is why he was at home with his beautiful wife and child. He has a past a rough one yes…but don’t we all..Im sure you too idiots have done something you are not proud of, who do you think you are to judge him or anyone..Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes.
Beem
Or Keith Hays, maybe you should get your facts straight:
N-G: “Zook said Henry had been home and was actually picking up his brother somewhere else when he was called to the scene.”
Since Mrs. Henry has commented, maybe she can clear it up. Was he at home or picking up his brother? And is his license still suspended?
And prayingf for Trulon, you might want to check yourself before you call people idiots. Especially with your spelling and grammar. “Uneducated comments?” Apparently you are the uneducated one as you said he is “mature and responsible and that is why he was at home with his beautifule wife and child.” He wasn’t home mr. uneducated comment! What else did I say that was uneducated? That he had been convicted of driving on a suspended license? No, that is educated, because I looked it up!
praying for Trulon
<span style=“font-family: Arial; color: #666666;”>first of all Beem, i was refering to ThugNation’s comment as uneducated, that was my mistake for not pointing out that it was for him…..what does my spelling and grammar has to do with any of it??? and as far as the suspended license issue, I am not a stalker therefore i don’t go and look at people’s name to see what type of trouble they are in…and i believe that Mrs. Henry doesn’t have to answer to you..Beem get a life and stop looking at people’s past on the internet!! Regardless of what Trulon was doing out or if he was at home, or whatever he has done in the past…he is a human being and doesn’t deserve any of it. </span>
The Dude
Beem, you claimed not be a troll earlier, but you are reducing someone’s moral character to whether he was home or picking up his brother in the middle of the night. Or equating one’s moral character to how many traffic tickets he has.
More relevant to one’s moral character, I think, is whether he can act civilized in an internet forum, or whether he persists in being a douche.
praying for Trulon
The Dude: Beautiful!!! Beem I do apologize for calling you and Idiot…..That was unsesitive on my part :)
Beem
Praying for Trulon: 1. You called me an idiot, so, in my opinion, it makes you look silly when you do that with a post full of grammar and spelling errors. 2. Mrs. Henry obviously doesn’t have to answer to me, but there seems to be two different things reported in the N-G and Tribune, so I thought maybe she could clear it up. 3. The article talks about how good of a father and husband Trulon is, and how he is much more mature than his teammates. I say looking at his actions and current issues with the law may not back that up. (the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior) 4. No, he didn’t deserve to be shot, but he put himself in the situation, rather than his teammates being able to remove themselves from the situation.
Beem
The Dude: the words moral and character are nowhere in my posts, so obviously you have to make up things to have an argument. I said he may not be as mature and as good a father and husband as the article makes him out to be if he is out driving on a suspended license at 3 am. And that’s it. If you want to idolize him, go ahead. As for being a troll, it seems to me that I am staying on point and sticking to my original comment on the content of the article but having to reply to those who attack just because they disagree.
praying for Trulon
Nobody else but you is paying attention to my grammar or spelling errors, the only one looking silly here is you…people change Beem, and im sure Trulon made mistakes and will continue to make them,after all he is not perfect and people do change. Your friends better hope they are never in trouble, and if they are they should call someone else and not you!
The Dude
Beem, if you can’t make a connection between questioning someone being a good husband and father and questing their moral character, then you are a troll. Jason was right and I’m going to stop feeding you.
Billy Madison
Knibb High Football Rules!!!
Beem
Going on a hunch, and knowing that Trulon last attended the College of DuPage, I figured he would show up somewhere in the DuPage County Circuit Clerk’s site (you know, since I’m a stalker). Sure enough, he was convicted of retail theft (https://www.dupagecase.com/Clerk/caseNumberSearch.do) as recent as March of 2009. So, even after he had spent four years in prison, he was back at it in DuPage. Of coure some will say “well, this was his past” and you remind me of a little kid who says “I’m not going to talk again, starting NOW” and then talks and then says “Ok, starting NOW” and then talks again and says “Ok, really, I mean it, starting NOW”.
Trulon needs a little more (good) history before I give him sainthood. But I know that many of you think he’s a man of fine moral character and an excellent husband/father. And if you want to believe that he was just going over to help remove his teammates, that’s fine. I don’t know if I do. I don’t know why he went over there.
Hasn’t the Penn State scandal taught any of you to be a little more skeptical, or is that only when it comes to the police or other authority figures?
Of course, if there is another Trulon Henry born in 1984, and this is not “our” Trulon Henry, then I admit the error. Now, go ahead and start the bashing but I think I’ve had enough.
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hey, if hair ain’t gon’ be over your head, my jokes may as well be.
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@Dan - Wow. Unfortunately, I have to refrain from further comment due to a previous employment relationship. But with that brief context you might be able to imagine possible comments or responses I could have.