College football star, who is set to enter the 2014 NFL draft, Michael Sam just made a brave announcement to the world that he is gay. Missouri University football player Michael Sam just revealed in a national interview that he is a gay man. And if the Associated Press' SEC Defensive Player of the Year does get drafted, he will become the first openly gay NFL player.
Speaking to ESPN a few months before the 2014 draft, he said:
"I understand how big this is. It's a big deal. No one has done this before. And it's kind of a nervous process, but I know what I want to be ... I want to be a football player in the NFL."
Michael dated another athlete (who wasn't a football player) at school, said his close friends already knew. Still, coming out was still a bit scary:
"I didn't realize how many people actually knew, and I was afraid that someone would tell or leak something out about me," he said. "I want to own my truth. ... No one else should tell my story but me.""Coaches just wanted to know a little about ourselves, our majors, where we're from, and something that no one knows about you," Sam said. "And I used that opportunity just to tell them that I was gay. And their reaction was like, 'Michael Sam finally told us.' "
Asked what that moment felt like, Sam said,
"I was kind of scared, even though they already knew. Just to see their reaction was awesome. They supported me from Day One. I couldn't have better teammates. ... I'm telling you what: I wouldn't have the strength to do this today if I didn't know how much support they'd given me this past semester."
Being from a small town Texas native explained how he first discovered his sexuality, and why his past hardships prepared him fro this moment:
"I knew from a young age that I was attracted to guys," he said, "I didn't know if it was a phase ... I didn't want to say, 'Hey, I might be gay. I might be bi.' I just didn't know ... I wanted to find who I was and make sure I knew what was comfortable. So I didn't tell anyone growing up."Congrats to Michael for living in his truth. And, if drafted, encouraging others to do the same in professional sports.
"I endured so much in my past: seeing my older brother killed from a gunshot wound, not knowing that my oldest sister died when she was a baby and I never got the chance to meet her. My second oldest brother went missing in 1998, and me and my little sister were the last ones to see him ... my other two brothers have been in and out of jail since 8th grade, currently both in jail.
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