Pat Tillman

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Lore & Background

Tillman played college football for the Arizona State Sun Devils, earning first-team All-American honors in 1997. After four seasons in the NFL, Tillman joined the Army Rangers and served combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan before he was killed in the mountains of Afghanistan. At first, the Army reported that Tillman had been killed by enemy fire. A month later, on May 28, 2004, the Pentagon notified the Tillman family that he was actually killed by friendly fire. The family and other critics allege that the Department of Defense delayed the disclosure until weeks after Tillman's memorial service out of a desire to protect the image of the U.S. military. In 2007, the Pentagon released a report ruling Tillman's death as accidental. Tillman was posthumously promoted from specialist to corporal. He also posthumously received the Silver Star and Purple Heart medals.

In Their Own Story

After four seasons with the Cardinals, Tillman chose to enlist rather than sign a lucrative contract offer. He and his brother Kevin completed basic training together in September 2002 and were assigned to the 2nd Ranger Battalion. Following deployment to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, he graduated from Ranger School in November 2003 before deploying to Afghanistan. On April 22, 2004, while his platoon was split into two serials due to a broken vehicle, gunfire confusion led one unit to fire on the other, fatally shooting Tillman.

Reader's Guide

Tillman was born on November 6, 1976, in Fremont, California, to Patrick Kevin and Mary Tillman. He attended Bret Harte Middle School and Leland High School, where he helped lead the team to the Central Coast Division I Football Championship. He played college football at Arizona State University, where he was a linebacker and was voted the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 1997. He majored in marketing and graduated in three and a half years with a 3.85 GPA. In the 1998 NFL draft, he was selected as the 226th pick by the Arizona Cardinals and played safety. He turned down a five-year, $9 million contract offer from the St. Louis Rams out of loyalty to the Cardinals. In May 2002, after the September 11 attacks, he turned down a contract offer of $3.6 million over three years from the Cardinals to enlist in the U.S. Army. He and his brother Kevin enlisted on May 31, 2002. Tillman served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was killed on April 22, 2004, by friendly fire.

Did You Know?

• Tillman turned down a five-year, $9 million contract offer from the Arizona Cardinals out of loyalty to the team.
• He was posthumously promoted from specialist to corporal and received the Silver Star and Purple Heart.
• Tillman graduated from Arizona State University in three and a half years with a 3.85 GPA.