Story of rookie linebacker with ‘good heart’ goes viral
Dre Greenlaw had 321 tackles in his career at Arkansas, but the inside linebacker’s most important stop came off the field.
That’s how Gerry Daly feels about it.
On Saturday, shortly after the 49ers selected Greenlaw in the fifth round of the NFL draft, Daly, a 52-year-old husband and father of two, shared a story about the Razorbacks’ team captain on Twitter that resonated widely.
Daly’s seven-post story, which detailed how Greenlaw protected his daughter at a fraternity party in 2015, ended with these words: “So, do me a favor. Root for Dre. He’s a good kid with a good heart.”
Twitter is a socialmedia platform some have abandoned because it can inspire toxicity. But here were some of the words used in the more than 500 replies to Daly’s story: touching, heartwarming and uplifting.
Yes, the story struck a chord. Daly’s daughter, Meghan, has declined interview requests from “Good Morning America,” “CBS This Morning” and “The Today Show,” since Greenlaw was drafted. Gerry Daly’s final post, imploring others to root for Greenlaw, has received more than 1,500 retweets and more than 20,000 “likes.”
“I did not expect it to go viral the way it did,” Gerry Daly said Thursday, “but I’m happy because the whole reason I did it because Dre did a good thing for my family.”
In 2015, Greenlaw and Meghan Daly were both freshmen at Arkansas who had become casual friends at Fayetteville High. At the party, Meghan, who hadn’t been drinking heavily with her group of friends, was acting erratically and told Greenlaw at one point she thought a pill, a date-rape drug, had been slipped into her drink.
Gerry Daly said Meghan’s friends later told her that Greenlaw stopped a man from leaving the party with her. On Thursday, Greenlaw recalled stepping in when a man began acting aggressively toward Meghan. Greenlaw helped Meghan find her friends, from whom she’d become separated, and they took her to the nearest emergency room.
“I’m thankful it stopped when it did and I took action,” Greenlaw said. “You never know what could have happened. … I was just doing it because I just felt that’s what was right at the time.”
For days after the incident, Gerry Daly was focused on his daughter, who had no memory of the party. He and his wife had been terrified when they were jolted awake by a late-night call just a few weeks into her freshman year.
It was only later that Daly began to consider his daughter’s protector.
“This is a guy who literally could have screwed up his future by doing this,” Daly said. “If the guy that’s trying to take Meghan away throws a punch and it ends up in a fight, who knows? He could end up getting arrested or thrown off the team. It was one of those things.
“The more I thought about it, the more I realized what he could have been putting at risk for my daughter. The more the shock of the event passed, the more the gratitude set in.”
Daly reached out to Greenlaw on social media about two weeks later, but didn’t receive a response. And Daly appreciated why Greenlaw might want to downplay his role, given he was a freshman on the football team who was at a party where there was underage drinking.
For that reason, Daly didn’t share the story publicly until Saturday, when Greenlaw officially landed in the NFL.
Daly said both his wife and Meghan, who are more private, were mildly annoyed at him when the story exploded on the internet. However, they all can appreciate why it has inspired such a response.
Daly noted it contrasts with the stories of other NFL players, whose actions unfairly can paint others in an unflattering light. He pointed to Kansas City wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who is being investigated for abusing his 3-year-old son. Hill was arrested for assaulting his girlfriend in 2014.
“You see the stories about Tyreek Hill,” Daly said. “Well, what about the stories about guys that prevent something bad from happening?”
Greenlaw had overcome tough circumstances to become a four-year starter at Arkansas who earned a captain role as a senior.
Greenlaw spent much of his childhood in group homes and foster care. He was a ward of the state of Arkansas for six years and was adopted in 2018 by Brian and Nancy Early, who took him in when he was 14.
“At one point in my life if I had a phone,” Greenlaw said, “I wouldn’t have had two numbers to put in it.”
Greenlaw is thrilled to begin the next chapter in his journey. On Thursday, the day he reported for the 49ers’ rookie minicamp, he said he’d slept four hours the night before and arrived more than three hours early for his 9:45 a.m. flight to the Bay Area.
Greenlaw, who said he spoke with Meghan Daly on Sunday night, is also eager for others to focus on him for his football ability. The story of his difficult childhood was well-chronicled in college. And the focus on him in his just-started NFL career has centered on his role at a fraternity party.
Still, he appreciates that his story can inspire others. He understands why a dad was moved to finally tell the story he’d kept private for years.
“If it’s somebody’s daughter, I understand why he would be so appreciative of it,” Greenlaw said. “At the time, I was just looking out for a friend.”