Pat’s Run has special meaning to those who honor Tillman

TEMPE – Saturday’s Pat’s Run was a sea of gold on the streets of downtown Tempe. Runners wore commemorative gold T-shirts to honor the late Pat Tillman. 

The race has come to represent even more than Tillman, however, as former service members run, including some in wheelchairs.

“It’s not just Pat, there’s a lot of guys and women who serve, and maybe they did not come home to do something like Pat’s Run anymore,” said Ralph Arvizu, a Gulf War veteran who took part in the event. “It’s to memorialize them and to remember them.”

Most sports legends are known for their achievements on the field. For Pat Tillman, it was as much what he did off the field as his accomplishments on it that made him an Arizona icon.

Tillman played linebacker at Arizona State, helping the Sun Devils reach the 1997 Rose Bowl. The Arizona Cardinals selected him in the seventh round of the 1998 NFL Draft and he played for four seasons with the team as a defensive back. 

But it was Tillman’s decision to walk away from a three-year, $3.6 million contract offer from the Cardinals to join the elite Army Rangers in the wake of the 9/11 attacks that defined his legacy.

Tillman served in Iraq and Afghanistan and was shot and killed by friendly fire near the village of Spera in Afghanistan on April 22, 2004. He was only 27 years old.

Soon after his death, some of his friends and family gathered to create an event to honor him. They settled on a 4.2-mile run that would finish on the 42-yard line of Frank Kush Field to honor him, as he wore the number 42 as a Sun Devil.

Now, each year, thousands of people from across the country gather to run or walk in Tempe, raising funds to support the Pat Tillman Foundation to raise money for Tillman Scholars – scholarship recipients who have served the country. Saturday’s Pat’s Run marked the 22nd annual event.

There are different aspects of Tillman’s career and life that stand out to people. Most admire the fact that he decided to forgo his NFL career to serve his country after 9/11. But others note that he did not do so blindly.

“What makes him (Tillman) really stand out is his moral fiber,” said Thomas Burch, who served for five years in the Army.  “He saw that what was going on in Iraq was maybe not the right thing. He was willing to speak up at the time.”

Tillman inspired Burch, who looked up information about Tillman to learn about him while Burch was in the Army. He was impressed by what he learned.

Arvizu served in the Air Force for four years and was participating in his ninth Pat’s Run this year. He comes back to the school he graduated from because he likes to see the campus and community.

Zach Wargo is a graduate student assistant in the Sun Devil Athletics media relations department who serves as the sports information director for ice hockey, swimming and diving, and women’s tennis. 

“I’ve learned that he is one of the most genuine, caring human beings on the football team and one of the greatest student-athletes that we’ve had,” Wargo said.

This was Wargo’s fifth Pat’s Run. He started running the race as a student at Arizona State before he began working in Sun Devil Athletics. 

Wargo learned that Tillman was passionate about football and serving his country and heard firsthand stories about Tillman from his boss, Doug Tammaro, the senior associate athletic director at ASU, who was working in sports information when Tillman was a rising star for the Sun Devils. That 1997 team, under coach Bruce Snyder, reached the Rose Bowl and contended for a national championship.

Tammaro was among those friends who came up with the concept for Pat’s Run.

Corona del Sol teacher Dave Leonard holds a Pat Tillman Day at the Tempe high school every year on the Friday before the race and teaches his students about Tillman’s legacy. He has found that all of his students want to learn more about Tillman.

“I ask kids, ‘How many of you know somebody who has done a Pat Tillman run?’” Leonard said. “About half of their hands go up,”

People want to pass down Tillman’s story, and one way to do that is for families to run the race together. 

Connor Banks of Phoenix ran his first Pat’s Run on Saturday while pushing his two kids in a stroller. He was still among the first runners to finish.

“I thought it would be a great way to bond with the kids, out supporting a good cause,” Banks said. “I think it’s really cool to come honor him in this race.”

Banks and his kids liked running into Mountain America Stadium to end the race. Tillman played his four years of college ball and all four years of his professional career in Mountain America Stadium – then called Sun Devil Stadium. 

Leonard has run every race and saved every shirt from each race. He was wearing the 2007 shirt on Saturday. His wife has run all but the first edition of the race, and their son has run every Pat’s Run since he was born.

Wargo ran the race with his mom and dad. This was the fourth year in a row they have run as a family.

“It just means a lot to leave it all out on the course, and to be able to remember Tillman in the best way possible,” Wargo said. 

Wargo plans to continue running Pat’s Run after he graduates from Arizona State in a month, no matter where his job takes him. 

Burch, who is from Fayetteville, Arkansas, raced with fellow veterans and got to see his old friends again. It was the first time he had run in the race. 

Leonard only laces his running shoes up for one occasion. Pat’s Run.

“I’m not a runner,” Leonard said. “I hate running, but once a year I’m running this race because of what Pat did.”

Some runners, like Burch, wore their military uniforms and a handful of firefighters wore their gear. A few donned costumes such as an American flag morphsuit and a Sonic costume. Others carried flags as they ran, with the most popular being “Old Glory.”

This race is not just significant to everyday people; comedian Rob Riggle was the honorary starter for the race and ran in it. The Sun Devils’ mascot, Sparky, also ran the race.

The total number of runners was estimated at just under 30,000.

There are also Arizona State alumni chapters across the country who organize local Tillman Honor Runs, with most occurring on the same Saturday. And there are often Tillman “shadow” runs on military bases around the world.

Through the years, the event has expanded in popularity and includes a  0.42-mile kid’s run. And after the race this year, there was the Tillman Tailgate for runners to enjoy.

A lot has changed since the first Pat’s Run in 2005. The Sun Devils baseball field, Packard Stadium, and golf course, Karsten Golf Course, are gone. Those teams now play off-campus, northwest of the old sites.

Hockey’s Mullett Arena has been built. Other assorted buildings, such as apartment buildings, campus buildings and new shops have sprung up along the way, changing the look of downtown Tempe. 

The racecourse has also changed and corrals had to be arranged to send runners off in waves to get so many of them onto a 4.2-mile course. “We’ve seen a lot of change on this campus,” Leonard said. “But this race is always here.”

One thing remains the same about Pat’s run: honoring his legacy. It’s one that can be defined as being passionate in what you do, while being kind and caring to others, expressing gratitude and therefore representing yourself in the best light possible.

“Whenever I see the number 42, I think of Pat Tillman, I think of Jackie Robinson,” Leonard said. “Pat Tillman’s a little bit closer to home for me, but what those guys did for that number 42, it’ll live on.”

In today’s society, issues such as politics can be divisive. Even in sports, there are rivalries, such as Arizona State and Arizona. 

Those who participate in Pat’s Run set the rivalries and politics aside – at least for a day.

“You see everyone come together with one purpose; it’s very special,” Arvizu said.

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