SHSU Hall of Honor QB Honored By Chicago Bears
5/8/2014 7:26:00 AM | Football
Josh McCown, a Hall of Honor Sam Houston quarterback, is the winner of the 2013 Brian Piccolo Award.
The Chicago Bears and the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund have presented the award annually since 1992 to a Bears rookie and a veteran.
Bears players vote on the award which recognizes teammates who best exemplify the courage, loyalty, teamwork, dedication and sense of humor of the late Brian Piccolo. The awards were presented earlier this week.
Replacing injured Jay Cutler, McCown started five of the eight games he played in 2013 for the Bears, completing 149-of-224 passing attempts for 1,829 yards, 13 touchdowns and one interception. His 109.0 passer rating and 66.5 completion percentage were highest in single-season franchise history.
McCown earned All-America, All-Southland and Southland “Player of the Year” honors after leading Sam Houston to the conference championship and the NCAA Division I playoffs quarterfinals in 2001. He was inducted into the Sam Houston Lettermen's Association Hall of Honor two years ago.
McCown now is a Tampa Bay Buccaneer and was unable to attend the award ceremony earlier this week. However, the Chicago Tribune reported that Cutler accepted on McCown's behalf and read a message from McCown.
The Tribune reported, in part, the message said:
“2013 will always be special to me because of the men I worked with every day. I'd like to thank my teammates for allowing me to represent them with this award. I say that because you can't be chosen for something like this in golf or tennis. It takes a team.
“Which makes this more a celebration of a team's relationship than of one person. The opportunity to come to work every day to build authentic relationships with your teammates or co-workers starts from the top. The McCaskey family, especially Pat, I can't thank you enough. What flows from there to the general manager's office to the group in ticket sales, the people inside Halas Hall are always willing to serve.
“2013 will always be remembered as a special season in my life because I learned so much. The core values in my faith have been strengthened and that experience alone is priceless. There's a scripture that says, 'Perfect love casts out all fear.' And that was brought to light many times throughout the 2013 season.
“The most vivid moment was when I was pressed into action halfway through the season. I was flooded with emotions when I took the field with concern for my injured teammate but also anxious over how I'd perform. The anxiety began to go away when I remembered the countless hours we had put in. We had built trust and the brotherly love and we served one another in the early stages of learning the offense. When my focus turned away from myself and onto my teammates, I gained a peace and my fears were gone.
“Coach Trestman said many times that what one of us does affects all of us. That's what makes receiving this award so humbling. I remember watching the movie 'Brian's Song' as a kid in my cousin's living room. It was humbling to hear the love and affection his teammates had for him. Gale Sayers acknowledged his love for Brian (Piccolo) and encouraged other to love Brian themselves. That's what makes being a teammate such a special deal. The moment we understand it's not about me but of serving those around us, when we try to get others to love the others around us more than ourselves, that's when we capture what Brian Piccolo was all about.”
Brian Piccolo joined the Bears in 1965, following a senior season at Wake Forest during which he led the nation in scoring (111 points) and rushing (1,044 yards). Piccolo was not selected in the NFL draft, but he signed with the Bears as a free agent and made the club. He was in his fourth season when a chest x-ray revealed a malignancy. Several months later on June 16, 1970, he died at age 26 from embryonal cell carcinoma. At the time Piccolo died, the disease was 100% fatal, but today the cure rate is over 95%. He left behind his wife Joy, three daughters, and legions of friends.
Proceeds from the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund benefit breast cancer research at Rush Medical Center and the Clearbrook Center for the developmentally disabled in Arlington Heights.
