10:50 AM ET Jesse TempleESPN Staff Writer Close Covers Wisconsin and Big Ten. Joined ESPN in 2015. Graduate of Knox College and University of Kansas. Urban Meyer’s quest to equip his players with life lessons and instill patriotic pride in late May was fast approaching. He had organized so many enriching sessions as part of his self-created “Patriot Week” program, but with players set to soak up knowledge for themselves, Meyer, Ohio State’s fifth-year football coach, began to wonder what more could be done to effect change for others. “And then we said, ‘Wait a minute, let’s tie it right into Memorial Day and honor the men and women who have protected our country for so many years,'” Meyer told ESPN.com by phone this week. “We wanted to take it one step further and reach out to some of the families who lost their loved ones. I was blown away with the letters I read.” What followed was a letter-writing assignment conducted by every player on Ohio State’s football team. One morning early in the “Patriot Week” sessions, players sat in a team meeting room and listened to the life story of a Navy SEAL, who spoke of enduring the pain of his best friend being killed while on duty. Afterward, each player found pages of information on a deceased soldier at his desk, coupled with the address for that serviceperson’s family. The charge from Meyer: Handwrite a letter on program letterhead to that family by the end of the week and mail it out before the Memorial Day weekend. “I…
Continue Reading: Letters give Ohio State players new appreciation of Independence Day
