Today, an 18 year old young man died on his first day of football practice as a walk-on at BGSU. Aaron Robertson was from Sandusky Perkins High School where he was one of the top athletes in the state of Ohio. He dominated in basketball, football and went to state in track in 4 separate events. He was an un-recruited walk on at BGSU and collapsed and died 10 minutes into his first practice. I can only hope that he had realized his dream by joining the BGSU football team…

May God rest his soul and comfort all those who knew and loved him.

TO AN ATHLETE DYING YOUNG

by A.E. Housman

The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder high-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay
And early though the laurel grows
It whithers quicker than the rose.

Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:

Now you will not swell the rout
of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

So set, before its echos fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.

And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl’s.

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