Frisco, TX (Sports Network) - So many areas have reached out to the community
of Newtown, Conn., in the last three weeks that what Chris Rogers encountered
over his holiday break was not out of the ordinary.
In fact, when the Sam Houston State starting center visited his old high
school, he stepped into the gymnasium and saw a group of people -- including
his brother-in-law, a teacher there -- making posters and goody bags to send
to the devastated community of Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Rogers' high school, though, is no ordinary high school.
He is a 2009 graduate of Columbine High School in Littleton, Col.
It was at Columbine on April 20, 1999 that two masked gunmen shot and killed
12 students and one teacher, and injured another 21 students, in a massacre
that few could have fathomed, or later believed would happen again.
It only got worse on Dec. 14 at Sandy Hook, where a gunman's rampage took
the lives of 20 first-graders and six educators to leave our nation
heartbroken.
For Rogers, who was in second grade at the time of the Columbine killings, the
Sandy Hook tragedy hit home in a particularly hard way.
"I understand the pain that they went through, I understand where they're at,"
said the hulking senior at Friday's final NCAA press conference before the
title game.
"It's sad to see that, it's sad to feel what they're feeling. I feel for them
that way we felt for our brothers and sisters and family all throughout the
area. But it can either impact you in a negative way or it can impact you in a
positive way. What happened happened, you can't get nothing back. I'm sure
they will come together and pull together. That's best thing that we had done
as a community; we're as tight-knit of a community as they come.
"I was in second grade, we were about two miles down the road at the
elementary school. All I remember is my teacher locked the door. Really, the
big difference for me was we usually walked home and mom came to pick us up
that day."
The name "Columbine" stirs the emotions unlike few other schools, something
Rogers has learned since leaving a high school in which he was a four-year
letterman and a three-time all-conference offensive lineman, and helped lead a
Colorado state championship season.
The 5-foot-11, 270-pounder went on to attend Iowa Central Community College,
where he starred as well for two seasons, but saw the dumbfounded reactions of
others when he told them about his background.
After his second straight season as an All-Iowa Conference selection, he sent
out game film to various schools and basically recruited Sam Houston State as
much as the other way around. He eventually gained a scholarship offer from
coach Willie Fritz and his staff in the summer of 2011.
Rogers played guard as a reserve, with three starts, on last season's FCS
national runner-up squad. This season, he's back as a season-long starter with
the Bearkats in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Game, seeking
redemption on Saturday against defending champion North Dakota State.
Rogers and his teammates will spend all of their energy to try to give Sam
Houston State its first FCS national title.
But Rogers will be the Bearkat who walks onto the FC Dallas Stadium turf with
a firmer perspective on reality and the priorities in life.
"I live 200 yards from the (Columbine) school and I never would feel safer
living anywhere else in the world," he said. "It's as beautiful of an area as
you can live. A couple people can ruin a lot for a lot of people.
"We always say, 'We are Columbine.' And that is what I hope, that (Newtown
residents) one day become what we are."
The Sports Network