Who needs the National Football League when you are getting so much love (and money) from shoe apparel companies and your own hometown?
NFL casualty Colin Kaepernick will most likely never be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. But more than 2,000 miles away in California is a place that will immortalize and enshrine the controversial former pro quarterback.
In a move that could be seen a flip-off to Donald Trump and radical right racists, the widely beloved and hated Kaepernick received the key to his hometown in Turlock, California, the place where he honed his skills, and now the high school where he attended will induct him into its own Hall of Fame.
Pitman High School announced they will be giving the ex-NFL star the school’s most prestigious athletic honor on November 3.
“Colin was chosen, like all the others, for their contribution to the history of athletes here at Pitman,” the school’s A.D., Dave Wells, told California television station KCRA.
“Of course, he was an outstanding athlete and a three-sport star.”⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
“Kaep,” as he is often nicknamed, is considered a legend in his hometown, as he led his high school to its first playoff win as a senior quarterback. Furthermore, Kaepernick was nominated as an All-State player in the three major sports: football, basketball, and baseball, a rare athletic feat.
Kaepernick has been a lightning rod for controversy since he first sat, then knelt, during the playing of the national anthem in 2016 as a player for the San Francisco 49ers. But that has not stopped Kaepernick from receiving support and endorsements from the world’s largest shoe and apparel manufacturer, Nike, and as well as accolades from fellow pro athletes.
Additionally, former Turlock mayor John Lazar boldly stated that Kaepernick’s fight in with the NFL and Donald Trump does not minimize what he did for the high school.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
“Colin Kaepernick still has much respect,” he said. “Although citizens differ on his approach, he is still a proud son of Turlock.”
