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Brian Kelly took a moment on Wednesday to describe the outpouring of support for Tigers defensive back Greg Brooks Jr., who has been living with a rare brain cancer this year.
“The rallying has been not just with our team, I think that’s pretty easy to see, our guys wear Greg Brooks shirts and they have … his number,” Kelly told reporters during Wednesday’s SEC media teleconference.
“We visited him virtually every day in the hospital. He’s in our thoughts and prayers every day,” Kelly added. “ I don’t think there’s a day that goes by that we don’t think about Greg and his family. I think what has been inspirational, heart warming, has been the national support, and then in particular within the SEC.”
The support for Brooks has gone well beyond Baton Rouge from around the SEC to around the country. Kelly highlighted a few of those signs of support.
“Arkansas wore the No. 3 on their helmet, we went up to Missouri, Missouri did the same thing,” Kelly said. “He’s now been moved over to Memphis and the head coach from Memphis reached out. It’s just been heartwarming to see this kind of national support.”
“Our Victory Greg Brooks Fund is well over 6 figures. But I think our players individually have been impacted knowing that in this world of so many distractions, they realize how lucky they are to play the game,” Kelly added. “I think that’s probably been the single most important impact. That they recognize that it can all be taken away from you. And that’s kind of what the impact’s been.”
