HONORED GUEST
Ex-Lobo, College Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher spends a little time in Albuquerque
Former Lobo, Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher pays a visit to Albuquerque
This week, Brian Urlacher allowed an Albuquerque charity golf tournament to add his name to its two-day event.
In December, the College Football Hall of Fame will add Urlacher’s name to its list of all-time greats.
“I’m very excited about that,” Urlacher told the Journal, just prior to Wednesday night’s banquet at The Canyon Club in Four Hills. “I was shocked when I got the news. It’s cool. I never dreamed that when I started my football career, that’s where I would end up.
“And what a great class I’m going in with. Peyton (Manning), Marshall Faulk, Kirk Gibson, Matt Leinart, Adrian Peterson — not the one from Minnesota, but with the Bears.”
Urlacher, of course, was also with the Chicago Bears. He was the ninth overall draft pick by the franchise in 2000 and spent his entire 13-year career with the Bears on his way to eight Pro Bowls and NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2005.
On Wednesday, Urlacher was back in Albuquerque — where he was superstar for the University of New Mexico football team — to take part in the second annual Brian Urlacher Banquet/Golf Tournament at The Canyon Club.
The event is also a fundraiser for the Salvation Army, and tournament director Joe O’Neill, said it raised more than $5,000 for the charity last year.
“He’s a pro to work with,” said O’Neill, the president of ESPN Radio 101.7. “It seems like every golfer comes away an even bigger fan of Brian. I think I speak for everyone, it’s great that he keeps coming home.
“This is the only event he puts his name on.”
Urlacher, who played his high school football in Lovington, said he doesn’t make it back to the state much anymore, “My family’s all gone from New Mexico,” but loves it when he comes.
And he enjoys showing that retired No. 44 that is on University Stadium.
“Whenever we come here, my kids like it when we drive by there; my daughter took a picture of it,” he said. “It feels great. It’s really an accomplishment.”
Urlacher, 39, retired from the NFL after the 2012 season. He said he hasn’t looked back. “I don’t miss playing football,” he said. “I don’t miss the hits. The only part I miss is the camaraderie with my teammates, the coaches in the locker room. But I don’t miss the game.”
Or the injuries, one of which (hamstring) sidelined him for the final month
of his final season.
“It’s all part of the game, whether it’s knees , shoulders, elbows, your neck, your brain, you’re going to get somehow,” he said.
“I have a 12-year-old son (Kennedy), and he wants to play tackle football. I said I wouldn’t stop him from playing, ‘But you have to know that football is a violent game. If you play, you’re going to get hurt.’ ”
Despite being a multisport high school star, UNM was just about the only school to offer him a scholarship.
He said the lack of recruitment caused him some doubt at times, but he still felt he could play at the collegiate level, and maybe even as a pro.
“I think every kid has that dream, but it’s hard,” he said. “You have to stay healthy, number 1. And you have to do well in school, get through college to where you can actually give yourself a chance to show your skills.”
And his advice to New Mexico high school football players?
“If you can play, they will find you,” he said. “They found me. I wasn’t a great high school player. I was good enough to get looked at by UNM. But I feel that if you can play they will find you. It may not be the school that you want, but if you’re playing somewhere it’s a good thing in my opinion.”