Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/433715
thing in business but I didn't know what facet. I've had surgeries from injuries since I was younger, so I knew football wasn't going to last forever. "When I played with the New Orleans Saints in '03, I contracted a staph infection. I've always been somewhat of a germa- phobe going back to college. At Penn State we had our own towels. When I got to the pros everyone was sharing towels, and I bought the whole team towels so we didn't have to share. Then when I was with New Orleans, about 10 of us con- tracted a staph infection. Back then, there wasn't much hoopla about it and bacteria, and the media wasn't focused on it like it is now." After leaving the Saints, Carter became nounced a diagnosis of ALS. Only 30, he is among the youngest of a growing number of former football players to be diagnosed with the progressive neu- rodegenerative disease; there's no de- finitive cause of the disease, and no known cure. But for Shaw, and for his best friend, there is every reason to fight. Not long after Shaw broke the news to him in a Skype call, Omekanda de- cided to create Best Man Tim. The nonprofit is dedicated to raising funds and awareness in the fight against ALS, and for Omekanda, a connection to his and Shaw's alma mater was vital in this endeavor. The football team, letterman's club, and men's soccer and field hockey programs are already on board. As Omekanda puts it, "Best Man Tim will be his legacy at Penn State." Shaw was on the sideline for the Ohio State football game in October, and he's expected back on campus in January for the Nittany Lion basket- ball team's annual Team Ream game, in honor of Shaw's former teammate Brandon Ream, who died last year of cancer. For Shaw, for so many reasons, the motivation to keep living is intense and ever-pre- sent. He recent- ly finished his MBA, holds an ownership stake in a number of businesses in the Nashville area (where he spent his final NFL seasons with the Ti- tans), and shortly after his announcement, he joined his father on a 10-day mission trip to Brazil. Knowing his friend bet- ter than most, Omekanda isn't sur- prised by Shaw's relentless positivity; if anything, it's Shaw's spirit that in- spires him. "What can I say? He really is the best man," says Omekanda, who is working toward a law degree at Western Michi- gan. "When you hear people talk about Tim, they talk about his character, what sort of man he is. He's the best man for the job right now, and it isn't an easy job. But he's also my best man—I'm getting married in 2016, and I'm fighting for him because I want him to be there, in health. I want him to be alive." ■ GOAL ORIENTED Shaw, right, lettered for the Lions from 2004-06. After he was diagnosed with ALS, Omekanda, above left, launched the Best Man Tim Foundation to fund ALS research. For more in- formation about the foun- dation's work, visit bestmantim.org. Annemarie Mountz Best Man Tim Foundation