Duerson knew ‘something wasn’t quite right,’ so he donated his brain to science.
CTE is a major problem in football. A number of players have died with the disease, and some died by their own hand. But we also have players who’ve major significant contributions to studying the disease. Perhaps nobody made a more significant contribution than Dave Duerson.
Dave Duerson (photo, The New York Times)
Duerson grew up in Indiana, where he played high school football, basketball, and baseball. He was especially good at the gridiron sport, earning the 1979 Indiana Mr. Football award. Then it was on the college–not far from home, either–to the University of Notre Dame, where he became a star player, earning All-America plaudits in 1981 and 1982.
The Bears picked Duerson in the third round of the 1983 NFL draft, and he served the team proudly. He played in four consecutive Pro-Bowls and made it to two Super Bowls–one with the Bears and another with the Giants.
He retired from the game in 1993. After football, Duerson opened three McDonald’s and started his own company, Duerson Foods.
What few knew at the time is that Duerson was afflicted with CTE, a disease that eventually took over his life. In 2011, Duerson committed suicide by gunshot.
The tragedy offered hope to others. Knowing something wasn’t right, Duerson asked that his brain be donated to science. It was. Researchers identified what we know today as CTE.
