2009 Athletes in Action Super Bowl Breakfast

Kurt Warner (2009). Courtesy of Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

The Super Bowl is coming up on February 2, 2009, and Athletes in Action has announced their finalists for the 2009 Bart Starr Award. Three players have been chosen for demonstrating leadership and character both at home and on the football field. The three finalists are Warrick Dunn, running back for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kurt Warner, quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, and Drew Brees, quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. The winner of the Bart Starr Award will be announced during the 22nd Annual Super Bowl Breakfast hosted by Athletes in Action on January 31st at the USF Sun Dome.

What is nice about this annual breakfast is that it honors character along with skill. There are plenty of great players in the NFL, and many of them do great things on that playing field. Yet a truly great player goes beyond catching a ball or making a tackle, and they use their notoriety to make a difference in this world. Too often we are distracted by headline-makers like Plaxico Burress or Terrell Owens who are often thinking more about themselves, or worse, committing crimes. The athletes nominated for this award are not only great players but great men, whose legacy is to be remembered not only for the joy they brought people when they were on the field, but how they helped people when they were off the field, too.

In a world where Christian teens are often told that fame and fortune are more important than character, here are men who demonstrate you can have both. You can follow the teaching of Christ, and demonstrate your faith in your actions while also succeeding in your endeavors. Let us all strive and pray to have both the faith and skill that inspires others.

• Register for the 22nd Annual Athletes in Action Superbowl Breakfast
• What is Athletes in Action?