Lost at Sea

Today's news is a sobering reminder about how truly precious and fragile life can be. We will continue to pray for a miracle, though we fully understand and respect the decision of the Coast Guard. This is what the Detroit Lions had to say today.

This is a sad story that most likely will not have a good ending for two NFL stars
who left the coast of Florida for a fishing trip Saturday morning. A missing persons call was made Saturday evening when the four never returned.

Officials said the search would end at sundown, with Oakland Raiders linebacker Marquis Cooper, free-agent defensive lineman Corey Smith, who played with the Detroit Lions last season, and former South Florida player William Bleakley still missing in the rough, chilly seas.
Following this story reminds me of my freshman college days at the University of Florida, there were at couple of weekends where I was invited by one of my good white friends, to go deep sea fishing, in a small boat, about the same size as Marquis Coopers boat. There were three of us, and we would leave out before sunrise, and by the sun came up there was no land in site. I would always tell my boy, "why in the HELL are we out so far"? And if I had to swim, I would not know what direction to go. It's one of those things I look back on now and say, it must not have been my time to go, because drinking and high seas don't match. Needless to say both trips I got home safely, but there were some scares, such as the having something on our line that was so big, it actually moved the boat while we were trying to bring it in (LOL).

Cooper and Smith, 29, became friends when they were teammates at Tampa Bay. Smith signed with the Bucs as an undrafted free agent in 2002, and spent last season with Detroit before becoming a free agent. The former North Carolina State standout recorded 42 tackles (28 solo), three sacks and 10 special teams tackles in 2008, his best NFL season.

My prayers are with the families.

Kneedeep7