Article published August 19, 2008
Tragedy won't stop Wauseon's Mealer
Wants to play at Michigan, as planned
By JOE VARDON
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
ANN ARBOR - Talking about it rips Elliott Mealer's heart out.
But reliving the Christmas Eve auto accident his family was involved in that killed his father, David, and girlfriend, Hollis Richer, is something Mealer does often.
Even when there's no one to talk to.
Mealer, a Wauseon High graduate and freshman
offensive lineman at Michigan, fielded questions for more than 15 minutes about the tragic ordeal Sunday at the Wolverines' media day.
Questions about the crash. About losing two loved ones. About his brother, Brock, who is still fighting to walk again after suffering a crushed lower vertebra in the accident.
Questions about football. About moving on.Mealer didn't flinch. He barely paused.
He's been conducting the same interviews in his head for almost nine months.
| SCHEDULE |
• Aug. 30 - UTAH, 3:30 p.m., ABC
• Sept. 6 - MIAMI (OHIO), noon, ESPN or ESPN2
• Sept. 13 - at Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m., NBC
• Sept. 27 - WISCONSIN, TBA
• Oct. 4 - ILLINOIS, 3:30 p.m., ABC
• Oct. 11 - TOLEDO, TBA
• Oct. 18 - at Penn State, 4:30 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2
• Oct. 25 - MICHIGAN ST., TBA
• Nov. 1 - at Purdue, TBA
• Nov. 8 - at Minnesota, TBA
• Nov. 15 - NORTHWESTERN, TBA
• Nov. 22 - at Ohio State, TBA |
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"I consider myself a pretty good actor now," Mealer said. "There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about my dad or my girlfriend, Hollis. Bringing it up isn't always something that's easy to do, but I think about it all day, every day."
Mealer wore his blue No. 57 jersey and maize pants. He talked a lot about God. There were more than a few smiles.
He spoke of his surgically repaired right shoulder, which was injured in the accident. He suffered a torn rotator cuff and had surgery Jan. 17, and expects to begin practicing soon.
Mealer said he accepts that he will likely be redshirted this season, and if so, will be ready to go next year. It wasn't too long ago that he wondered if he should quit playing football for good.
"There were times I was thinking maybe football's not for me, not just because of my injury, but because of the things I've been through," he said. "Maybe God could use me in another way? I thought about it a lot, and every time I'd come back up here [to UM] I'd realize the opportunity is huge and I can't be that selfish [not to play]."
The university has been there for the Mealers almost from the start.
Coach Rich Rodriguez had barely been on the job with the Wolverines when the accident happened, yet Mealer said
Rodriguez and his staff immediately reached out to the family.
Brock Mealer continues to undergo rehabilitation for his injuries at the UM Medical Center. And Elliott Mealer said it was Rodriguez who came to him with "Bowling for Brock," a charity bowling event tomorrow in Ann Arbor featuring the Wolverines players and coaches to help pay for some of Brock's medical costs.
"Anything that they were able to do, they've tried to do," Elliott said.
Last week Rodriguez spoke about Mealer not wanting to be treated differently than any of his teammates.
Those same teammates have noticed Mealer's resolve.
"Definitely a terrible story to hear, but Elliott's a great guy. He's a strong kid," said Stephen Schilling, the Wolverines starting right tackle. "He doesn't let it affect him at all."
That's where the acting thing comes in.
Mealer said he thinks about the crash daily. He remembers when the family's sports utility vehicle collided with a car driven by a 90-year-old man authorities say ran a stop sign on State Rt. 2, just north of Pettisville, in western Fulton County.
In an early January interview with The Blade, Brock Mealer described the crash vividly. He recalled being trapped in the vehicle. His mother, Shelly, was screaming, and Elliott was telling him it will be OK.
Christmas music played on the radio while all of this was going on. The Mealer family - minus another son, Blake - was on its way to church.
Memories like these - and worse - race through Mealer's mind.
"I remember everything," Mealer said. "It's like in flashes. Going back, it kind of rips my heart back out again."
On Sunday, Mealer wore a chain around his neck with a cross and a ring attached.
The cross was a Christmas gift from Hollis that she didn't get to give him herself. The ring was one in a set of three Mealer gave his girlfriend as an early Christmas present.
On each wrist he wore a wristband - one was green and the other pink - ordered up by the boys and girls basketball teams at Wauseon in honor of David Mealer and Hollis Richer.
Inscribed on the wristbands are the words hope, faith, joy, and forgiving. Mealer said they best describe his dad and girlfriend.
"Football is a way for me to make my dad and my girlfriend proud," Mealer said.
Contact Joe Vardon at:
jvardon@theblade.com
or 419-410-5055.
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