SPOKANE, Wash. — The Big Sky Conference Kickoff was full of front-facing events from the hall of fame ceremony to a kids clinic to media day. But what went on behind the scenes was perhaps even more powerful.
Players, coaches and administrators who attended the event left Spokane with preseason accolades, new memories and a fresh dose of perspective. The latter was thanks to the message from a special guest speaker who has walked a similar path.
The Big Sky Conference invited Great Falls native and former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf to speak to attendees on Sunday. Leaf shared his story of addiction, recovery and prioritizing mental health.
“This is my conference. This is what I grew up in. From my love of the (Montana State) Bobcats and growing up watching Kelly Bradley to watching my hero, Dave Dickenson go off and win a national championship at at Montana,” Leaf said. "So this is my conference. And when I was asked, I thought it was just an absolutely, humbling ask to make it about this conference and these players.”
His message to the players was simple.
"You can't ever tell a kid what to do or what not to do. They're going to do whatever the hell they want to do. You know, you just have to make them understand that it's their choice. And there's negative and positive consequences that come to what that choice is,” Leaf said.
"And so, my hope is that they’ll hear this and know that there is a path to both directions and you control the effort, the behavior and ultimately the attitude going forward with it."
The appearance came about thanks to Jon Kasper, the senior associate commissioner of the Big Sky. Leaf and Kasper were teammates at Great Falls CMR High School in the early 1990s, and Kasper even caught Leaf’s first-ever touchdown pass. But Kasper’s connection to Leaf's story was more personal.
"Obviously, Ryan has a complex past and a complex legacy that hasn't always been positive, and that includes my feelings about him and my relationship with him. I haven’t spoken to him much in the last 25 or 30 years, but I have been paying attention and I think he has a really strong, powerful message,” Kasper said.
"And opiate addiction is something that I care about. It has impacted me greatly. One year ago this week, while I was at this event, my 33-year-old sister passed away. Her body was ravaged by addiction and she was addicted to opiates. It’s not something I love talking about. But I just encourage people to not look at the past and look at the things that have happened with Ryan, but focus on the positives and what he's doing with his life."
And the positives are starting to overtake the negative. When Leaf asked players if they’d ever heard of him, the majority of them had but mostly through his current broadcast career. To Leaf, it shows that change, growth and re-writing narratives are possible. You just have to take accountability and keep moving forward.
"I think you live in a world where that's been an anchor for so long that I don't think you realize. So it shocked me when they raised their hands. They knew the name and they knew the name because of positive things,” Leaf said. "I’ve had a lot of dads that have come up to me and say their kids know me as a broadcaster now from my time on Good Morning Football or calling games.
"And I think it just goes to show you just have to breathe, just be patient and try to do the next right thing. And like anything else, this too shall pass and you'll be in a place you can be proud of."
Leaf’s next stop is the Montana State Prison on Wednesday to speak with inmates involved in the Last Mile program. The visit will be his first time in the facility since his release in 2014.
“It's not about me, it's about these men that are still incarcerated," Leaf said. "They're with the Last Mile and that's going to give them the education they need for when they get out to be the best possible versions of themselves.
"I’m reminding myself that this has nothing to do with me. No one cares that I'm walking back to a place that I left 10 years ago. What everybody needs to care about is what these men are doing to try to better their lives and make it forward."
