Artie Lange's Podcast Channel - 13 - ERIC LEGRAND

Episode Date: December 23, 2019

Artie interviews former Rutgers Defensive Tackle Eric LeGrand who was paralyzed from the neck down during a game in October of 2010 and has since become an inspiration to thousands.  Artie is joined by Mike Bocchetti.  Presented by TheComicsGym.com Thanks to MyBookie.ag - If you're going to wager this weekend go to http://bit.ly/MYB-Artie and use code Artie to get a 50% signup bonus. Thanks to Blue Chew. Go to BlueChew.com and get your first shipment FREE (just pay $5 shipping) when you use the promo code ARTIE. 

Hey, it's Artie Lang's Halfway House. My co-host, Mike Boschetti. What's up, Mikey? Hey, guys. How you doing? All right? Very articulate. Thank you.

Very articulate. This is, to me, as special as an episode gets. I got a guy on who is a fellow Jersey brother of mine. And as inspirational as a story can get, there's no way not to smile when you think of this guy. And I've always wanted to meet him and talk to him. And that's, of course, Eric LeGrand. Is it LeGrand? LeGrand. LeGrand. Eric LeGrand. Hey, Eric, welcome. How are you? Eric is from Woodbridge, New Jersey,

and he went to play football at Rutgers. Did you get a full scholarship? I did get a full scholarship. And you were an offensive lineman. Oh, defense. Defense attack. That's more fun. Exactly.

It's more of a rock star position. Exactly. I like to play down in the trenches down there. Yeah. And, you know, we don't always get enough credit that we deserve, but the D-line is where it's at. Right. Defensive tackle.

So, you know, which is a dream. And, I mean, Jersey is big with football. I know it's big all over the country. But I'm from Union, which is right next to Woodbridge. And we were always a powerhouse when I went to high school in the 80s for football. And so you're playing in a game, October 2010, against Army at MetLife Stadium, and making a tackle, you become a quadriplegic. Yeah, it was.

I mean, you know, which is, I mean, again, that's one of the nightmarish things that can happen in football. Describe what happened. So describe the play and everything. I mean, you know, which is, I mean, again, that's one of the nightmarish things that can happen in football. Describe what happened. So describe the play and everything. I mean. Yeah, I'll take you guys through it. It was October 16, 2010. We were playing at MetLife Stadium, just right across the river from here.

Yeah, big deal. Exactly. They had just opened up the stadium until I think the year before that year. Yeah, brand new at that point. And we were playing the Army Black Knights. We had just tied up the game 17-17 in the fourth quarter five minutes after the game. So it's a great game, too.

Exactly. I'm on the kickoff team, and I remember I'm going down to make this tackle. So this was a special teams thing. Exactly. And I said to myself, how do I want to make this tackle? And everyone who's played football before knows, if you're going to tackle with your head, you've got to keep your head up to make this tackle.

Absolutely, yeah. So I said, I'm going to use my shoulder on this play because I knew it was going to be a big collision. So you're going to lean in. Exactly. So I'm going to use my shoulder on this play because I knew it was going to be a big collision. So you're going to lean in. Exactly. I'm going to make this tackle. My teammate actually got down there about a half a second before I did anything. He tripped the guy up.

And when the guy got tripped up, his body twirled in the air. So the angle of where I wanted to hit him changed. And the crown of my head went right into the back of his shoulder blade. Wow. And he actually broke his collarbone on the plane. Unfortunately, I broke my neck on the plane. That's what was in. So, yeah, the three and four vertebrae.

So, did you pass out? So, you were on the field, passed out. Do you remember being taken off the field? Yeah, so they got me off the field in seven minutes, but I remember being on the ground, and the first thing I tried to do was get up to celebrate with my team. At the time, I could barely even shake my head to the left and to the right. And the last thing I remember feeling was my heels hitting the ground.

Wow. And the trainers come running out. They're like, Eric, is your head or your neck? And I said, I remember, at the time I was laying on the ground, I'm like, I can't breathe. Wow. And then you're like, can you feel this? Can you feel that? Right.

And I'm like, I can't breathe. And then my head coach comes out, and he looks down at me. He goes, E, you have to pray right now. Okay. And when he says that to me. Is that Shiano? Shiano, exactly. Great guy. He says that to me. Is that Shiano? Shiano, exactly. Great guy.

He says that to me, and I'm like, is my life about to be over? I can't move. I can't breathe. And now I'm laying on this field, and now. How scary. Exactly. The scariest moment of my life, man.

I mean, whenever that happens in football, when you see a weird hit like that, and a guy kind of falls. I remember back, I'm much older than you. I think it was 1978, a receiver, a name you probably know because of what you've been through, a guy named Daryl Stingley on the Patriots got hit by Jack Tatum, who was a legendary safety. And he hit him in the back, catching a pass.

And that's the first time. I'm going to tell you why our stories sort of collide a little bit, why we have a lot to relate to. That's the first time I saw somebody go through that. And you hear, you know, someone got paralyzed. And a lot of people give up. And this is why I want to say you're one of my heroes, dude, because God bless you. Just because of how positive you are. My father climbed roofs for a living. He put up, he stole TV antennas. So he working man. And in 1985, when I was 18 years old, he fell off a roof in Millburn, New Jersey, working, fell 30 feet on his head, became a quadriplegic. Now, my dad gave up. He gave up. He was only 42 when it happened,

but he just gave up living. And I watched him slow. I went to Kessler Institute with him. Were you at Kessler? I was at Kessler for five months. Okay. He was there for like 10 months. And I would see a lot of the younger guys with the vertebrae injuries and the spinal cord. And they, you you know they give up like my dad just gave up and four and a half years later i found this out a friend that has helped him commit suicide he decided he didn't want to live anymore and you know no one can blame a guy but that's why you eric i'm telling you man that's why you are so it's so freaking inspirational to see because of what what you represent just the fact I mean

you're a happy you come in here you're a nice guy you're a happy guy you look fantastic and you're positive you're 29 I mean so I mean so we I can relate to what's going on because I watched my father did how how was it in the beginning when you get that news so you sort of when do you realize when does a doctor sell you officially look you're a quadriplegic? When does that happen? Well, actually, they told my mom right from the beginning, right before they took me into surgery, they said, your son has fractured his C3, C4 vertebrae. He'll be paralyzed from the neck down for the rest of his life.

He'll never walk again. He'll never eat solid foods. He'll never breathe on his own. And we're hoping he's strong enough to make it through the surgery. Wow. And my mom being a parent, she's obviously devastated. It's devastating. But I don't know.

And this is a funny story. Is your mom a religious woman? I wouldn't say that to the most part. That's how my mom was here and there. More of my aunt. But yeah, my mom does definitely believe in God. Okay. But I got to tell you, I kind of remember this and I kind of don't.

And I don't remember, I guess it's from the adrenaline flowing from the game, but they let me see my mom before I went into surgery. Okay. And she said the first three words I said was I'll be back. Oh, wow. And when she heard me say that, she was like, I'll be back. And she

knew that. She said right then and there, she goes, okay, whoever sees him from here on out, you got to have a positive attitude. If you go in a room, if you get upset, walk out of the room. Don't let them see you get down. Good for you. Good for her. Honestly, everyone who came into my room after that was so up.

You're like, you're going to be fine. Everything's going to be okay. Yeah. And that's what kind of jump-started everything to my recovery. Right. So from that moment on, seeing your mom and being positive like that, and your mom sort of setting the ground rules. You need a good mother, man. Right. So from that moment on, seeing your mom and being positive like that, and your mom sort of setting the ground rules. You need a good mother, man.

Yeah, my mom, my mom, I'll tell you what, my mom and I have a special relationship. We butted because I always say I'm a grown man and I do what I want, but we all butt heads 25 times a day, but five minutes later, we're just back to normal. She helps take care of me

and she's the one who sacrificed her whole life for me. I'm sure. I mean, and again, that's part of the inspiring part of the story. But you, so, but describe when you first, you come out of surgery and you start to mentally realize what the rest of your life is going to be and how different. I mean, you're an athlete. You're a rock star, you know, and it goes to the, like, how was it those first, that first year of just, or the first few months of getting through this to your head mentally that this is going to be your life?

Exactly. Well, a lot of people ask me, like, what was it like learning that you weren't going to play football anymore? Yeah, that's number one, right? At first, I'm like, I realized I'm not going to play football anymore, but I want to get a life back. Of course. I'm 20 years old. Exactly. not going to play football anymore, but I want to get a life back. Of course. I'm 20 years old.

Exactly. I want to be able to be able to walk again. There's stuff way beyond football. Exactly. I want to have a family, a wife, kids, friends, be able to do things I want to do, have experiences that any 20-year-old would want to have. Of course. So in my head, I'm saying to myself, you know, whatever I got to do, I'm going to do. I'm going to prove these doctors wrong.

I kind of went into that football warrior mindset where they're not going to tell me the answer. Of course. That should make you control. I'm not going to do that. No, I'm going to prove them wrong. And then I started to. And you did.

I started to. I was able to eat a full-size meal that Thanksgiving with my family. Wow. I started to come off the ventilator. Then I started, at the time, moving my shoulders at the time just a little bit to now. Moving all over. So I'm like, they told me I would never do this, this, and that. I'm like, how can they tell me I'll never walk again?

Of course. That's not them. That first year was finding that mind. I said, you know what? I'm proving them wrong. Just fight, fight, fight. I'm going to come back and exactly like, I'm not going to give up because at the time, so many people had started to reach out. Absolutely.

It's a part of me. My story was in the media. Which is another good thing. Another name I'm going to give you that you might know about is a kid named Frankie Woodson from Irvington. I don't know Frankie, but tell me about him. Okay. He was a kid from, I played against him in Little League, and a great athlete.

I think he played all three sports. 1985, in a high school football game for Irvington, he gets hit and becomes a quad, quadriplegic. And, you know, again, my point is his was a big news story, too. Like a lot of kids have these accidents, like a lot of motorcycle accidents, diving into a pool. You had the one advantage of, you know, you had a high-profile case. Rutgers, the university in Jersey, you're a scholarship kid, you know. And so right there and then, a lot of people probably came out and supported you. That was a big deal.

It was. And, you know, when I started to hear from people like Tom Coughlin was the head coach of the Giants at the time. Andy, he came by to see me. Andy Reid stops by to see me. He was with the Eagles. The former coach of the Eagles, right? He comes by.

And then he sends the rookies. That year was Jason Pierre-Paul's rookie year. They all came by to see me. Andy Reid stops by to see me. He was with the Eagles. The former coach of the Eagles, right? He comes by, then he sends the rookies. That year was Jason Pierre-Paul's rookie year. They all came by to see me. So I'm starting to get all this notoriety and all these colleges are sending me stuff.

I'm like, yo, I can't let these people down now. All of a sudden, I'm getting pressure on you. Yeah, I know. I'm like,

all these people are reaching out to me. I'm reaching out to my stories all over the country. I mean, I realize that,

yeah. How can I, I'm just going to say, how am I going to give up now? Like, all these people are going out of their way for me. Like, there's no possible way. And at the time, though, when they came by to see me, those coaches, I still thought I was going to be playing football.

So I'm like, oh, hell yeah, I'm about to be a first-round pick now. Now they know who I am. Of course, as time went along, I realized I wasn't going to be playing football anymore. But now my story had taken off so much. It becomes a different thing. It's on a different level. It's way more important than a message you can give as a football player. Exactly.

And I'm like, I got to take this on as my responsibility now that I'm going to push through this. Whatever's thrown my way, I'm going to handle it. And that's honorable. But let me ask you, does that pressure ever get to you? Because it is pressure. You know, it's like, you know, I mean, look, it's, it's, you have the message of never give up, you know, and that's way more than a football player

can give you. Like, you're, this is life, man. You know, I mean, does that pressure ever get to you a little bit? Like, there's days where you're like, this is, you know, it's a lot on my shoulders, because people do look up to you. I look up to you. I gotta lie to you. For some reason, I perform my best when the pressure is on me in those situations.

You know, I feel like playing football has trained me when things get tough. I don't run away from it. I handle my adversity face on. And at times I do have, you know, bad days if I'm upset and I wish I could have did this or I wish I could do this or have to rely on other people, you know, to do certain things. Sure, sure. Those are the tough times. But then I look, I've been around so many people already now

that I've met over these years that have been in similar situations as me but have nothing. Nothing. They have nothing. You got to be grateful. They don't have the support. They don't have the family. They don't have, and meanwhile, I got a pimped out black minivan.

I got a beautiful house. You know, great friends, great family. Then it puts things into perspective. It puts things into a big perspective. I think that's what the biggest thing I've taken out of this, putting things into perspective. Now, I struggle with drug addiction, and I meet a lot of kids who, again,

I have this career that I'm very grateful for, and I get to talk to people like you, which helps. But, you know, on a much lower level of what you went through, I understand what you're saying. You have to have gratitude, man. You have to have gratitude. I mean, but do you ever, do you,

like, was there a time where you sort of, you're laying there in bed, do you go over that play in your head, if I did one thing differently, did you obsess for that? Because I would obsess about that for a little while. Every day. Every day I think about that play. Every day, still nine years into this injury, where my life would be now if I didn't make that for a little while. Every day. Every day I think about that play. Every day. Still nine years into this injury.

I don't know where my life would be now if I didn't make that touch. Sure. What if I would have missed that tackle and just gotten in trouble by my coach on that play? You know what I mean? Yeah. That type of stuff creeps into your mind, especially right away when it happened. And at first I didn't even want to see the hit. Right.

I didn't want to see it. And it took me a few weeks. Probably about two, three weeks until I said, you know what? You watched the play. I want to watch it. But then I watched the play and I said, oh, at least I went out good. I hit't want to see it, and it took me a few weeks, probably about two, three weeks until I said, you know what? You watched the play. I want to watch it. But then I watched the play, and I said, ooh, at least I went out good. I hit him pretty good. I hit him pretty hard on the play, but, yes, that play still to this day,

every single day, the sickest in my head. Now, what about the kid you hit? Now, did he have any feelings of guilt or like did he? He did, right? That's such a great question. Yes, he did. That's got to be hard. Malcolm Brown.

Let me tell you about Malcolm now. I was going to say, what's your relationship like with him? Malcolm, in the very beginning, he was taken back. He didn't understand why. Like, how come this happened then? It's hard to fathom. Like, he may have broken his collarbone. He said, I broke my collarbone, but that kid's laying in the hospital bed.

Why did this happen to him? And I remember I said to him, I'm like, Malcolm, man, you've got to realize, I tackled you on display, man. You didn't do anything wrong. This was just a football play. Unfortunately, this injury happened. But I'm going to be okay. I'm going to be all right.

And it kind of set him at ease. But the cool thing about it, me and him, we kept the relationship going. Good. That's great to hear. So he played for the Army. So after they're done playing football, they go to serve and protect our country. Exactly. So did he go overseas? He went overseas. The year I graduated from Rutgers was in 2014.

And he was in South Korea at the time. Wow. And he sent me a text message saying, E, congratulations on graduating. I use your words and inspirations and messages to train my cadets that I'm going into war with every single day. What a story, man. And I hear that. I'm just. I use your words and inspirations and messages to train my cadets that I'm going into war with every single day. What a story, man.

And I hear that, I'm just like, whoa, that's like chills that just spawned. He's using me as inspiration to train the people

that I serve and protect our country over them. This is special. Yeah, I mean, that's why, again,

that's just one aspect of a million aspects of your story that makes people feel great about themselves. And how was he doing? Do you still talk to him every once in a while? Yeah, I probably haven't talked to him in a year.

I'm actually just – Okay. And I'm one of those guys where I like to stay in touch. Sure. So maybe I'll go home and send him a text message and see what his life is like. Last I heard that he was living in Denver, Colorado now. Okay, good. With a wife now and everything.

So I should probably touch base and see how he's doing. Now, we talked about religion a little bit. I don't know how spiritual you are and stuff like that, but did you ever feel that, like, you know, God had a bigger plan for you? So this happened, God put me in this space for a reason. There was a bigger plan and a bigger purpose than just playing a game of football.

If I was lucky enough to make it to the NFL, if you watched football, maybe you would know me. But now, people that have never watched a game of football come up to me and say that they've heard about my story. I want to tell you, it's a way bigger deal. It's not even close. I mean, football is... So now, you mentioned Shiano.

Again, Rutgers, like, since you left, a lot of things happened with Rutgers football. You got... They entered the Big Ten. I mean, it's going to be hard to win a game, bro. Going into Michigan, Ohio State, that's another level. How do you feel about Rutgers being in the Big Ten? Well, first, I'm going to say I love it

because when you want to play against the best competition, you can't beat that, but it's good. And that about Rutgers being in the Big Ten? Well, first I'm going to say I love it because when you want to play, it gets the best competition week in, week out. And that's the best, man. Big Ten football. It has been rough over there for my scholar nights. It is. But as you mentioned, the guy, he's back coaching. She now is back.

You know, he had a stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he said he needed that to humble himself. You know, he was doing such a great job at Rutgers the first time around. Right. That Tampa Bay job when he got fired in two years, it humbled him. Absolutely. It made him look back in the mirror at certain things

that he did wrong. And then he gets the job at Urban Meyer at Ohio State as the defensive coordinator. And he learned from one of the greatest coaches of all time. I mean, that's like being a head coach anywhere else. Exactly. At Ohio State, when Urban Meyer's hiring, he does something.

Then a lot of people realized that he got hired by Bill Belichick this past offseason for the New England Patriots, but he left the job in two months, and he said he knew that he was going to be coming back to Rutgers. I think some guys, maybe you disagree, but I think some coaches, they're college guys. Exactly.

I think they like the younger guys because there's so much more. You guys might not go on to play football afterwards. It's molding men. Yeah, you're molding a life. And that's where he best fits. I believe that's where he best fits in college. But you think about the people that hired him. Urban Meyer and Belichick.

That's Ruth and Gary. Exactly. That goes to show you what type of football coach that he is. And now that he's back at the realm at Rutgers, it's going to be a change. We're going to turn the page. We're going to be able to win some games out of Big Ten. And from a recruiting standpoint, I'm sure you helped.

Do you ever meet guys who they're looking at and talk to them about going to Rutgers? You know, there's always Twitter now, so it's so easily accessed. I'm always on there. I got banned on there. I got banned on there. You know what happened? Twitter now, so it's so easily accessed. I'm always on there. I hate Twitter. I got banned on there. I got banned on there. You know what happened?

People bully me, Eric. I let them have it, and they just banned me back in August. You got to be careful. You got to be careful because as soon as you put something out there, it'll... It's out there, man. It's out there. No, but it's weird because, like, number one, but it's like selective outrage in a way because, like, they got chicks showing ass on that. You got all kinds of stuff.

You got to be careful. Psycho stuff on there, really, right? I know. I do social media because I'm a comic and I got to promote stuff, but you got to be careful with it. Oh, yeah. So a lot of guys at Rutgers, because there's a lot of talent right in Jersey, man. If they could keep all the Jersey talent, I mean,

and there's not really a lot of New York teams except upstate New York, like Syracuse and stuff. If they could keep the tri-state area talent, they'd be alright. That's exactly what they harped on right from the beginning. As soon as he got the job two weeks, three weeks ago, he's hopped on and they just signed a really good recruiting class early and they got a lot of Jersey guys.

That's good. Got the guys, big guys up in the big North schools like Bosco and St. Peter's. And now we're going to go now, now working in the South Jersey because South Jersey plays some good football as well. Oh, absolutely. So now we're starting to build that fence around here. And that's all I'm telling you. The great things are coming, man.

I'm fired up as you can see. Well, no, absolutely. It's good. Did you visit any other big colleges? I mean, because you were recruited and stuff. Did you visit? Because, I mean, again, when a young kid goes to Ann Arbor or Ohio State and sees one of those games, or even if you've got to deal with, you know, the Florida schools,

it's hard to go to University of Miami and see that campus and want to go to New Brunswick. But, you know, that's what you're battling against. Well, yeah, I know. Of course, the first college I ever went to was Virginia, and then I went to Rutgers in Maryland. But then the biggest college I went to was Notre Dame. I went on a visit to Notre Dame. The whole world. Exactly.

I got to see the whole campus. I went to was Notre Dame. I went on a visit to Notre Dame. The Holy Grail. Exactly. I got to see the whole campus. I went to the College Football Hall of Fame. I got to, they told me, yeah, we paint our helmets with 24-year code before every game. And, you know, you're 16 years old and you're here now. Yeah. They're like, oh, yeah, I want to come here. No, sure. Then I had planned I was going to go visit.

I was getting recruited by everybody down there at Florida. Steve Adazio was actually my recruiter in the quarter. He just got fired from Boston College. But I was going to go visit Florida, Florida State, and Miami all in one. Recruiting is in this. You're here like this, though. I get a call one day in May of 2007 from Coach Sheano. And he's like, hey, we offered you a full scholarship as a freshman.

We've been big on you. You've been up here a thousand times. Where's your head at with this? And at the time, Rutgers was my number one school. They had just upset Louisville in 2006. I started the field on it.

So you were good, man. You were wanted. I was like, Coach, you know, I think I want to commit. I think I want to come here. And he goes,

listen, we don't go what we think. Men, they give their word and they stick with their word. And I was like, I said, I word. I said, oh, coach,

let me call you right back. And I called my mom. I'm like, hey, I think I want to commit to that. Coach, she had a word. I told her what she was just saying. She goes, hey, if you want to go there, that's 20 minutes away from us. That's what I'm saying. She probably liked it. It was local. Oh, she loved it. I love people like him because you know

where you stand with them. You know what I mean, right? So then I called him back. I'm like, Coach, I'm committed to you. He goes, you remember what I just said? I said, absolutely. I'm 100% committed. And the rest is history.

Now, the injury happens in your freshman year. No, junior year. Junior year. Junior year. Okay. And you graduated in 14. Just the fact that you were able to go back to school, you know, is amazing. So I had only two years completed at the time.

My first two years done, and then I got hurt first semester of my junior year. And I had to, after my injury, I just had to say, what am I going to do now? I got to finish my degree. Right. So I actually started taking classes via Skype that January from Kessler. Wow. From Kessler. Did you go to the West End, Pleasant Valley Way?

I did. I still go there. I was just there yesterday. That's where my dad was. That's why I know it. Yeah, but I was just there. That's my spot. I go there twice a week.

But I was Skyping to a three-hour lecture hall. Somebody would email me over the notes. I would go through the notes. Wow. And then I had to learn to use this software called Dragon Natural Speaking, where I was talking to a computer instead of typing it out. Oh, no. Let me just tell you. It's not easy to type out. A five-page

paper is to talk out, but I was able to finish up four years later and graduate with my degree. Again, perseverance, man. And I believe that shit was not easy. What did you major? Labor Relations. A lot of people don't know. I originally went to school for communications. I always wanted to go

to the NFL, retire, become a sports broadcaster. Oh, okay. I did terrible. Oh, okay. I did terrible. Oh, really? I did terrible. I did terrible. I got a C in my first F of my life, and I had to change my major. I went and I said,

I'm going to do criminal justice, learn all about security and things like that. Oh, nice. When I got hurt, I'm like, I don't think I'm going to be doing criminal justice stuff anymore. So I had to change my major for the third time, and I graduated my degree in labor relations.

You know, again, that's my point, too, about perseverance. When something like this happens to somebody, your life, there's audibles that could call to the line with life. You know what I mean? You got to change up. You got to say, well, maybe this isn't realistic. But just the fact that you keep changing your goals and you achieve them, like that alone.

How many people do reach out to you with a similar injury? Like you said, with social media, it must be constant. All the time on my Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, I believe in comments. People will be like, hey, I know this person who just got hurt. Do you think you can call? You can talk to him, man. And I've been able to be able to build a nice little network with that.

I try to help people initially because in the beginning, your life gets flipped and turned upside down. Oh, absolutely. One day you're doing this, and then the next day, you know, your whole life is changing. You're laying on a hospital bed, and you don't know where life is going to take you. So I've had to talk to a lot of people before who some people have,

unfortunately, passed away. Some people have died too. Some people are pushed through. Not everyone has that mindset. It's not easy. It's not easy to go through something like this. And it's very tragic and life-changing. And some people just give up.

And they don't want to. And you're there for them. You want to support them. And you want to help them. And you can try to show them this in their life. But sometimes they just don't have it in them. Well, that was my father's story. That was my father's story.

And I wish I could dig him up and let him meet you, man, because it would have helped a lot. How many brothers and sisters do you have? I have a sister. Her dad lives in New Jersey as well, as well. My brother-in-law. How many brothers and sisters do you have? I have a sister whose dad lives in Jersey as well, as well, my brother-in-law, niece and two nephews. Oh, God bless you. That's good. Is she older or younger? My sister's older than me, yeah. We're about 10 years apart from each other

here, too. And now the charity work you're doing, you got Team LeGrand, okay, which is, it's connected with the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. Christopher Reeve, of course, the guy who played Superman and became a quadriplegic. So describe, what kind of work do you do with that? What is that?

Yeah, so I've been able to partner up with them. It's a funny story, actually, behind that. So originally, when I got hurt and the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation was reaching out to me, I wanted just for guidance and support, they were there for me and all this stuff. I said, cool, you know, so 2012 comes

and all these people asking, what can we do to help? What can we do to help? And I was like, man, it's time for us to start a foundation. She was absolutely good. The Christopher Dana Reeve Foundation has been reaching out. I remember saying, Ma, I've been hearing about them for two years now. I'm like, who is Christopher Dana Reeve?

And my mom snapped. Well, that's not your generation. She goes, are you kidding me? The original super band in the 70s and 80s? I said, Ma, I was born in 1990. I'm sorry I didn't know, but I researched 80s? I said, Bob, I was born in 1990. I'm sorry, I didn't know, but I've researched

and I was like, oh my God, that's Christopher Reeves and they want me to be a part of this so we joined up in the fall of 2013 and it's been amazing.

In December 2017, we crossed the million dollar mark for Spotify and research. That's a big deal. We want to be able to get to 2.5 million by the end of next year.

You will. Yeah. I think you can do anything you want, man. You can. I really do. You really can. Because you got the power. But Christopher Reeve is an interesting story because not just a guy, an actor who became

a quadriplegic, this was Superman. Yeah. I mean, he was my generation's Superman. And you see how life can just, you know, deal you this card after a while. And you hear the type of man he was and all the great things that him and his wife were able to do. And I got to meet his three kids now and just see the legacy

that he has left on. But like you said, that's what you think about. That was Superman for people that are watching that. It's really like a metaphor for life. I mean, it's Superman. It can happen. It can happen to Superman. It can happen to Superman. It can happen to anybody. Oh, yeah.

Exactly. I mean, look, you know, do you go to the games a lot? Do you like going to the games? I go to all the games on the radio. Oh, you do? Okay, good. I do all the Rutgers games on the radio. I was going to say, you're real articulate.

I mean, you sound good on the microphone. Oh, yeah. You got a good radio. You got a great voice. I've done this a few times here and there, but, yeah, I love being around the games to love football because I always say football has made me into who I am today. And I'm old school.

I love those big bone country hits and people get knocked out. I love that stuff. You still don't have any reservations watching the game? No. There's no animosity built up towards the game of football. It's made me into the man that I am today. And I love being around it. I love watching it.

I still get hyped up and always just like, oh, I need to get it. I want one more. I wish I had one more play. It really is. I want to ask you about how the game has changed. I've got to do a couple of commercials. Just sit tight. And thanks again for coming in.

So much fun. Yeah. Eric, good to see you. Audio Line's halfway house is brought to you by Blue Chew. Mike, you know about Blue Chew, right? It makes you dick hard, yes. Oh, my God. There you go.

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Just the start for your savings. Check back to MyBookie.ag every day during this promotion because there's going to be something new every single day between now and Christmas. You're going to want to take advantage of these deals. That's my bookie, A.G. Use code ARTY to start winning today. We talked about how the game has changed. You talked about how you like to bone crush and hit, which is cool. You're a competitor.

What do you think about the game now in the NFL, the way people are afraid to hit the quarterback? I mean, is there any way to stop a guy from being a warrior in football? Like, how do you stop hitting people, you know? When you're playing a game of football already, you're geared differently. Right. You're putting a helmet on and you're running full speed into somebody. So it is very hard to, you know, pull up from doing certain plays like that.

Yeah, you can't go from 1,000 miles an hour to 20. Exactly. I think what they're doing now, though, they're starting to make these kids now, because when we grew up playing football, is you line up and you run full speed into the guy and you knock him down. Oh, yeah, you want to murder him. Right. You want to knock him down.

Now they're making these coaches become certified and coaches are actually teaching all these different proper techniques on actually how to tackle. So I think as we get older and the next generation comes up, they'll be able to learn those techniques on actually how to properly tackle and keeping your head out of it. Meanwhile, the guys that are playing right now, they grew up the same way we did.

Oh, absolutely. That's the problem, man. And it's the hardest thing for these guys right now. Exactly. It's a different mindset going to tackle. So it's going to be tough for these guys that are playing right now to learn the proper techniques.

I'm sure they know the proper techniques, but just to be able to pull up and keep your head out of a lot of tackles. And the NFL, they're saying they're going to keep on throwing these flags. It's not like they're going to go back on them. I mean, could you imagine even touching Tom Brady a little too hard? Well, we know how that goes, man.

We didn't even need all these other rules that come in for Tom Brady. You know Tom Brady's going to get a flag. You can't hit the rock star. Absolutely. We knew that. Yeah, that's Tom Brady. Yeah, I mean, the constant evolution of the helmet. You see all these different types of helmets, these aerodynamic-looking things.

They look like space helmets after a while. They got that thing in the middle that's soft. Do you think with a different kind of helmet you could avoid? There's no way to avoid it. Because it's such a—unless you make a two-hand touch, there's no way to avoid stuff that happened to you, right? I mean, eventually. Exactly. That's why on each helmet there's a warning sign.

Right. If you're playing this game with this hominon, you can still face paralysis. You can still face concussions. Those are the warning

signs, and that's what you sign up for. Obviously, you don't want them to happen, but that's the risk you take playing a game of football. Yeah.

And these things can happen. It doesn't happen too often, but they do happen, and when it does, you're hoping that it's not a situation like mine, but they do happen. Look when it does, you know, it's just you're hoping that it's not a situation like mine, but they do happen.

Look at what Ryan Shins here with the Pittsburgh Steelers a few years back. He's got an incredible story on where he's at right now. Absolutely. He's joining a fighting back. But they do happen. And, you know, you can make it as safe as possible, but it is a violent game. You've got grown men running full speed into each other. So these injuries will happen, unfortunately, every now and then.

Well, you mentioned you have a niece and a nephew. Would you let your nephew play football? They do. Oh, good. How old is he? 10 and 8. I got a 10 and 8. And they're playing ball.

They're playing ball. My 10-year-old, he loves it. His 8-year-old likes football, but he's a more basketball guy. My 10-year-old nephew, he loves it. My sister loves it. And they understand the risk that it takes to go out there, but they're growing up in these new generation now where they're learning how to properly tackle at a young age.

Well, it's also... They haven't played tackle football since they were four or five years old. Right, but it's also a different mental... Like, mentally, like, a lot of kids are taught to be kinder and nicer and jealous. Political correctness, whatever. Yeah, but that's the mentality. You mentioned the kid who you tackle with the broken collarbone

fighting a war. You want a guy with a warrior mentality. You don't want someone who's gentle. Well, that's the whole difference. You want to talk about generation aspect. I always try to say, I know I was born in 1990, but I'm like that last generation. No, I can tell.

We go to the park every day. I know I was born in 1990, but I'm like that last generation. No, I can tell. The old school. You know, we go to the park every day. We're outside playing. Of course. We're not sitting there texting on our phones all the time. No, nobody has a face in the phone, right? Even though I am a millennial, I still feel like I'm that old school type of guy. No, but in the end, you ended them. Actually, you're right towards the end, absolutely.

I mean, but now you mentioned your niece and nephew. They're 8 intelligent. Absolutely. I mean, but now you mentioned your niece and nephew. They're eight and ten. As they're growing up and they're close with you, do you have a discussion of why you're different to them? I mean, you know, does that come up? I'm glad you actually brought that up because to them, I'm Uncle E who's in a wheelchair. Now they're so accustomed to me being in a wheelchair

because that's really all they know. When I got hurt, my nephew, he was 15 months. Well, no one was yet. He was only 15 months. So he doesn't remember me outside of being in a wheelchair. So they're so accustomed to me climbing up on my lap. They know Uncle E got hurt playing football. Uncle E got hurt playing football.

That's what they know. But it's kind of because it takes them out of their comfort zone of not seeing somebody with a disability. They look at me and they'll see somebody else in a wheelchair. And to them, it's just normal. They're more evolved than other kids.

Yeah, they're normal. They want to help. They always want to ride on the back, push me. And I kind of think, I'm like, wow. As a kid,

when I was their age, I didn't think of anybody. Of course. No one does. I see somebody in a wheelchair, you kind of like stare at them.

To them, it's normal. I think that's really cool and really unique. In a way, they're probably more appropriate. They're more kind, compassionate with everything like that. Exactly. And willing to help at any moment. That's what I really like about it. That's what I meant about God having a bigger cause for you.

Because it's like even the way you're helping raise two kids, and probably a better way than most kids are raised, just because of your unique situation. It is. And I get to like, they know Uncle Lee as a,

my sister's funny. She's always like, yeah, you know, my kids, they always think that you're famous and all this.

I'm like, I'm her little brother. I'm like, I'm just Eric and I'm here to help guide them to become, you know,

have a great life and just, you know, be an inspiration to them because, you know, they make me go. I love watching them grow up and seeing how now the 10-year-old, he's going through his puberty stage. His little brother is, like, annoying him now. He thinks he's starting to get to that cool stage. Like, little stuff like that. You don't take those moments, you know, for granted when you get to hang with those family. Now, is your dad in your life?

So my dad actually grew up, my mom and my dad separated when I was five years old. Okay. He lived in the town next to me, Carteret. I know Carteret, absolutely. I lived in Avondale, he lived in Carteret, and he was always a part of my life. He was at all my games and stuff like that from the time I was- Was he at the game when you got hurt? He was at the game when I got hurt

and you know he was at all my all my sporting events and I said you know we had a unique relationship you know my mom and dad

didn't live together if I ever needed something my dad was there That's good He was in your life He was in my life I always say you know

my dad was there for me and this and that I said my mom my mom raised me my mom turned me into the man that I am. Me too. Same thing with my mom. You need a strong woman, man.

Oh, yeah. My mom is no stronger than that. They're super strong. They're like warriors. And when I acted up back in the day, I got my whoopings. Oh, me too. I'm still getting them from that day. My dad was there.

He was there when I needed him. I'd never have any ill will towards my dad. But my mom raised me. You talk about gratitude and what you have in your life. How different do you think your life would be without someone like your mom? I mean, not even close, right? Yeah, I honestly don't know where my life would be

without my mom from pre-injury, you know, growing up, all the sacrifices that she made to raise two kids as a single-parent mom, and then afterwards to just giving up her whole life so she can learn to take care of a quadriplegic Well, that's what my mom did with my father, too. My mother is such a special woman. I have a similar story.

My dad, you know, he, I mean, it's constant care in the beginning. But that's what you, you seem insanely independent now, too, though. I mean, you're out of the house a lot. You're out of, which is just great. It's great that you leave the house, you go to the games, you go to the games, you come to play. How often do you do stuff like this where you go out and do an interview and, you know, get the message out there? Pretty often, which I enjoy.

People always ask me, what is a day like at Eric LeBron? I'm like, it's always different. Some days I got therapy. Some days I'm doing a radio show like this. Some days I got different events. Or some days I'm, you know, just doing other different things, which is pretty cool speaking in English. You got an incredible spirit. Most people, I hate complainers and whiners.

There's so many of them. Exactly. You know what I mean? It fucking annoys me. I'm sorry. There's so many. You're right. There's so many other things. Negativity.

There's so many I think they'd be concerned about. Complainers and whiners. It's like. You're complaining about something compared to what? Exactly. Compared to what? That's part of your message, too. But how compared to what?

Because some people. I know. That cliche saying of some people are praying for what you have right now, what you're complaining about. Absolutely. Some people are praying for that, and that's so true. With the brain, you can overcome anything. People don't realize how powerful. Well, if you're smart and you're strong like you are, but a lot of people who don't have that sort of fortitude, it helps to hear about you.

You know, I want to talk a little bit. You say you got the pimped out van. What exactly? Give me the details on the van. What do you got there? So I had to get a van because obviously my father too, I remember that. At the time, I was because I had the first one, I had the Volkswagen.

I had that for about two years. I was 22 going on 23 and I'm like, I got to get a new van. So I got this black town and country. I'm like, I got this town and I'm like I gotta get a new van so I got this black town and country I'm like I got this town and country but I gotta make this thing I'm like if I'm riding around in a minivan

I gotta make it look good so I went to I went to Unique Rides got the whole thing blacked out my seats got my Team LeGrand logo in the seats

my rims are all blacked out with my 52 number right in the middle of the seats I had lights on and everything, lights in the wheel wells and then under

which have gotten scratched off now over the years. I had that thing pimped out, man. Sweet. How old were you as a van?

I got Jesus back in 2013. Okay. It's going to be time for a new one coming up soon because I'm coming up on about 90,000 miles

on the boat. Yeah, man. I'm going to ride that thing until the wheels fall off. But like you say, it's great that so your foundation helps people who don't have

the advantages you had with it to maybe get, you know, a nicer vehicle. I remember how important that was with my father because you need the comforts that you need, you know?

That's our motto at the Christopher and Anna Reeve Foundation is today's care, tomorrow's cure. Yeah. Where, of course, we're funding the cure.

We want to find a cure for paralysis, but you got to educate the people that are going through this injury. You got to be there to support them. Be there to show them about different clinical trials that are going on, different rehabs that they could be able to go into. Well, technology is constantly evolving. Technology is so good.

So that's why you got to take care of the people that are going through these injuries now. And as we meanwhile, we're going to keep on funding to find a cure for it. Well, you see you got the phone there and everything. At home I actually have a device as you said technology.

Eric how do you like the internet? The internet is cool. Exactly. I love the internet. Yeah so I have like a device where these microphones

are hooked up to the side of my chair and it brings my phone by my face. I have Velcro on the back of it. I have Velcro right by my face

on the clamp and I put a stylus pen in my mouth. And that's how I answer you back on Twitter. That's how I do my emails. Oh, wow. And I'm pretty good at typing. I have a stylus pen in my mouth. So you don't do the voicing when you talk it out.

If I'm lazy, I'll do all you Siri and things like that. Oh, no. But most of the time, yeah, I'm texting with the stylus pen just like you're using your fingers. Wow. Siri should pay you the of times, right? Oh, my God, tell me about it. But that's a whole thing you had to learn, too.

I mean, that took me, you know. When I first started, I had to get my autograph in my mouth. Oh, that's hilarious. Oh, my God. It was like, eh, eh. Oh, no. Now I got it right there in my hand. Because I know, honestly, that's a good point you bring up.

Because when you go to games, it must be a constant thing. Like, people want to talk to you, get your autograph. So you got a sharpie in your mouth all the time. Most of the time, I'm just like, hey, that's a good point you bring up because when you go to games, it must be a constant thing. Like, people want to talk to you, get your autograph, so you got a sharpie in your mouth all the time. Most of the time, I'm just like, hey, let's take a picture because you can't be sitting there signing for hundreds of people at a time. You're better off. You're better off. I have horrible handwriting. I'm like, my handwriting sucks to begin with.

It's horrible. I write like when you first learned how to write script in third grade. Me too. That's how I write. You got to do it. You know, something else I want to talk to you about that was a cool thing in your life. You won the Jimmy Valvano Award at the ESPYs. So, describe that.

That's a big deal. That's another inspirational guy, man. Honestly, that's when my story went from, you know, being local to really national and international. Really? International? Yeah, you were reversal at that point. Yeah, because millions of people were watching that day. And, you know, I got, you know, when they chose me to win the award, I was all fired up about it.

But when I got to go on stage, you know, you look down and the first people I see, I remember, were Tebow, Eli Manning, and Kenny Chesney. The country singers? That's an odd coupling. The first three people I look at, I'm like, whoa. Like, I'm on the big stage now. Three goofy white guys. And I got Timo, Eli, it's Kenny Chesney. So I get to share my story.

I just started flowing and sharing my story. And it's funny because after that, I go to the after party because there's an after party for all the celebrities and all that. And everyone wanted to be around me and take my picture. I don't know. Right. And that's what I was saying. I was with the Gronk brothers. And everyone wanted to be around me and take my picture. I don't know. Right. And I was with the Gronk brothers. I remember that one time. Yeah, Gronkowski?

And then my friend came back with a shot. Came back with a shot for me and my other friend. And I remember we took a shot. And Gronk looks at me and goes, wait, you can drink? I'm like, yeah. Of course you can drink. And he goes, yeah. And he screams to all his brothers.

And they all come over and we start doing shots together. That's hilarious. Insane. Insane. Yeah, well, let me tell you something. I'm talking about head injuries, Gronkowski. I mean, what do you think about guys like that? Andrew Luck gets out of the game, Gronk.

I mean, they're like, look, I don't want to risk it. What do you think about stuff like that? Just think about how much pain those guys probably are in. Gronkowski has had every injury. They go hard. They play like this. They go hard. Every injury possible.

Their knees, their shoulders. And then Andrew Luck, lacerated spleens and stuff. Well, you got to be careful. When you start getting stuff like that, it's all right. Maybe it's time for me to walk away from the game because they make such an impact. And we love watching them. But like we said, there is a life after football. And guys like that, like that, hopefully they find

other careers for themselves because those are no joke injuries. Those are injuries where you can kill you with some of those injuries. What now in the beginning, I don't know if you were given painkillers and stuff. Did you ever get worried about

addiction and stuff like that? Because that's something else. I will have to say, with my injury, I've been very fortunate because a lot of pain comes with neuropathy. So it's neuropathy, like burning sensations and stuff. My father had that in his stomach, a burning sensation. Burning sensations. And I had those in the very beginning, but I would say after the first two months, they went away. Right. And I haven't really had any pain.

I'm thankful because I've met tons of people that have had them, and they'd do anything just to get away from it. So I never really had to get any pills or anything for that. But my point is, forget the physical pain. You're being honest. There's a lot of people, like Mike was talking about whiners. I mean, you can't judge anybody, but they would just realize anybody in your position

could probably get whatever he wants drug-wise. All he's got to do is bitch about it. And then you just want to be high. So the fact that that's not a part of your story. You're a really quality person, man. I got a lot of things that are going on for me where I really don't have time

to mope around. And so many people don't have these issues. That's all he does is mope around. I got my sports broadcast. I got to complain. I'm very high. I got my sports broadcast. I got my motivational speaking.

I've wrote a book before. Right now, I just started a new clothing line. That really keeps me excited. Is that a role model that you do? Like I wore today. I wore one of my hoodies. It looks good. So I came up.

It was December time. I was on the side of my house. I wanted to come up with a clothing line for myself. I believe 52 has been my motto but I wanted something that's going to make a big impact and I was like you know what role model, everyone calls me a role model but I don't want to spell it R-O-L-E

I want it to be exactly like me so R-O-L-L Keith Manger was like E you got to put the handicap sign as the O and I was like that's gold and they've taken off. I got to get you. I'm going to get you guys some gear.

I do like it. I wear it on the show. I wear it all the time. I would love to promote it. But yes, Shop 52 launched in August, and we've been sending them out to a bunch of celebrities, and it's been amazing. Congratulations. I'll wear it whenever I can.

Me too. Because let me tell you something. I can't overstate this enough. You're a bigger role model than Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. Because of your story is bigger than football. It's what life is. It's the essence of life. It's getting through adversity.

Because I don't care who you are. You grow up a rich kid. I remember I always hated rich kids. Then I moved to Los Angeles and I met a lot of rich kids. And you find out they have struggles too. It's different than when I grew up in Jersey, whatever, a little more blue collar. But, you know, people go through struggles. And then when someone goes through a struggle on your level and gets through it with your attitude, that's life essentially.

So you said that too, man, about the struggles. I say everyone is going to deal with some sort of adversity whether you're 5 years old or 65 years old there's just different levels how you handle it ultimately defines you it ultimately defines you no matter what

at what level what age somebody's going to deal with some adversity some bigger some more than others some less but how you handle it

ultimately will define you yeah but there's some people that bitch about the fact that the train was too many I know their shoes don't fit properly when it comes to that, traffic,

those type of complaints, I say that's just us being human. Oh, yeah. That's just us being, we're going to have those, everyone's going to have those complaints. Everybody does, right?

But there's bigger things where people start complaining about all, like, oh, I hate my job. Well, if you hate your job, then do something about it. Yeah, exactly. You can do it.

Change your page. But again, using you as an example, I want to tell people out there because people, you know, hit me up on social media all the time. They're dealing with issues, addiction, this, that, the other. Such little things are bugging them. Close your eyes and think about Eric LeGrand.

Think about him, and you will get through the day. And that is what God had in mind for you, bro. Oh, yeah. I mean, just close your eyes and think about what Eric is doing every single day. Eric, I have a thing to say about God. He's the boss, and we're just loyal employees. Yeah, exactly. Without him, we would not be where we are today.

And if people knew the process that it took for me to get here just in two hours in the morning. That's what I'm saying. Getting ready with my nurses, getting up, getting showered, going through a whole bowel program routine, getting back in bed, getting my nurses getting up, getting showered, going through a whole bowel program routine. Yeah. Getting back in bed, getting dressed, getting in my wheelchair two, two and a half hours this morning just so I can get up and get ready to come here. People have no idea.

Think of the bowel program. When they roll out of bed real fast, go to the bathroom, take a dump, brush their teeth. Of course. Showering and then you're done in a half hour. They crankish their eggs burn. Think of the bowel program night goes through every morning. It's way worse. Real quick,

in closing, who did you grow up with? Were you a Giant fan growing up? I'm actually a diehard Denver Broncos fan. Wow, how did that happen? Just because you were an Elway guy or something?

I was Terrell Davis when I was seven, eight years old. I remember watching him on TV. That guy was amazing. I was watching him on TV and I was like,

I like that number. I like him. I'm going to follow this, you know, I'm like, ooh, I like that number. I like him. I'm going to follow this team. And here I am at 29. Die hard Denver Broncos. He was 29 or 31. He was number 30. Number 30.

That's right. Right in the middle. Well, listen, dude. Again, thanks for coming in. I can't stress this enough. Do you have anything you want to plug? What's your foundation again? Sure, yeah.

You can go to my foundation. Twitter and all that stuff. TeamLeGrand.org. You can see me on Twitter, Instagram, at EricLeGrand52. Go to my foundation Twitter and all that stuff teamlegrand.org you can see me on Twitter Instagram at ericlegrand52 go to my new clothing line at shop52

yes it's written out S-H-O-P-F-I-F-T-Y T-W-O and then follow me on Facebook and be a part just be a part of my movement

ericlegrand52.com you can book me for a speaking engagement right I'm just so happy to be here and the opportunity to come speak with you guys about my story

I also want to commend you for what you're doing now, man. Being able to go through what you're doing through to hear where your body's come from. Well, listen, man. It's honorable. I appreciate it, but it's not even in your league, buddy. And I can't stress enough how consider this show a friend if you need to get the word out any way possible. Just let us know. And you're always welcome here.

It means a lot to me. I'll see you at the games. I'm going to try to go. I'm going to be a jerk. Oh, you better. You better get on now, man. I'm going to support this guy. I got his back. I got his back. And we'll see you over there. Mikey, thank you. Thank you. Everybody go to Eric's Foundation. Buy his clothing. He's a great man and a great friend

to us. God has a plan for him and you guys are in it. There you go, Mikey. The great Eric LeGrand, thank you. We'll see you next time on Artie Lang's Halfway Out. That was awesome. We'll see you next time.