Szabo: Another special day for Christian
In the last big Irrelevant Week event before Gerald Christian’s mind goes back to football, this year’s Mr. Irrelevant got a chance to coach a game on Saturday.
Christian, the No. 256 and final pick in this year’s NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals, coached the red team in the Unified Flag Football Exhibition Game, which featured former pro football players competing alongside Special Olympics Southern California athletes.
Christian’s red team lost to the gray team, which had Amy Schulz, who works for the NFL in sponsorship and sales, as an honorary coach.
The final score at Jim Scott Stadium was Gray 30, Red 18, though that was really irrelevant.
“It gives me pleasure just to be out here and participate with them, to see them have fun and smile,” Christian said.
The flag football game capped off Irrelevant Week’s Community Field Day. It also had activities like an NFL punt, pass and kick competition, as well as fun things like bounce houses and raffles. Estancia High cheerleaders were there to support the event, as were cheerleaders from the Huntington Beach Pop Warner Chargers.
The snack bar was run by Costa Mesa Pop Warner, and Estancia High football players also gave of their time to help out in the punt, pass and kick competition. All in all, it seemed like a great community event.
“It’s a great way to introduce football to kids,” said Estancia incoming senior Juan Lozada, who plays guard and defensive end for the Eagles. “I never played football until my freshman year, but I think I would have liked this if I was a kid. I would have been shy, but it would have been fun. “
Christian was certainly gracious with his time as well. He posed for many pictures and autographed several items as well, doing it all with a smile on his own face.
“At the end of the day, for me personally, I just like seeing other people happy,” he said. “It’s nothing for me to write my name, that’s nothing to me. At the end of the day, I just love to make somebody’s day.”
The game proved memorable. Jay White, a man with special needs, delivered a rousing rendition of the national anthem to start off the action.
The teams scored quickly, on the first play of scrimmage each time, as Michael Lopez of the gray team and Jose Fernandez of the red team both found the end zone quickly.
Other Special Olympics athletes participating included Alex Hunt, Sara Thiel, Skyler Ludin, Joseph Gorin, Max Grasso, Shane Cline, Monique Oropeza, John King, Erica Friedline and Joey Barraza.
The Special Olympics athletes made big plays, which was particularly impressive considering that flag football is not a Special Olympics sport.
“We don’t have flag football as of yet,” said Special Olympics volunteer Christine Ludin, who watched her son Skyler, born with cerebral palsy, play in the game. “It’s a growing sport. It’s something they’re going to add in. The main goal on any of the athletes is not to have any kind of physical contact, so flag football is one of those [sports] that they’re really slowly starting to develop into Special Olympics, making sure that it’s trained properly.”
The NFL athletes playing in the game included past Mr. Irrelevant honorees like Tevita Ofahengaue (2001), Ryan Hoag (2003) and Tim Toone (2010), as well as Wes Horton of the Carolina Panthers and his brother Shane, who also played at USC.
“It’s a nice way to get the public awareness out there, pair them up with a pro athlete and show that everybody has a chance to be involved,” Ludin said.
Ofahengaue, who now lives in Utah where he and his wife own a foster program, said he was happy to come back to support Irrelevant Week in its 40th year. This was the second year it was a part of the Foundation for the Undefeated, a non-profit based in Newport Beach.
Ofahengaue said he likes Christian. Both were drafted by Arizona, and both are tight ends.
“I just told him, ‘Hey, enjoy the moment,’” Ofahengaue said. “You don’t know how long this thing is going to last. I had the same intentions as he does, I wanted to go in and prove [myself to] people, but I realized that the sport isn’t always about how good you are. You’ve got to just get the right fit, find the right coach that likes you. He’s a good kid, though. He seems like he comes from a good family background.”
Christian said that he and his family enjoyed all of the festivities like sailing, going to Disneyland, surfing and the Lowsman All-Star Banquet on Friday night. But his favorite event might have occurred on Thursday.
“I really liked the Goodyear blimp, just being up there and going over the water,” he said.
Christian will be back in the air on Sunday. He flies out of Orange County and said he will head back to Louisville for time with family, before reporting to the Cardinals training camp on July 29.
