Handing off a football gives a team a chance to move forward, to gain another yard. But what if the actual act of handing the football off allowed for something else?

What if it allowed you to say thank you, or reassure someone they aren't alone in their journey?

Cornell junior tight end Nick Bland found out a football could do all of that, and in doing so, changed his teammates' varsity experience as well. Bland's simple, thoughtful gift to a family friend has made an impact that has already touched hundreds in the Big Red football circle – and many that previously were outside it.
 

In October of 2013, Bland's sophomore season with the Big Red, his mother Nancy called to let him know the news that a close family friend, Chris Crowley, had passed away unexpectedly, leaving behind a wife and two young children. Bland's thoughts turned to the family's 9-year-old son, Wilson.

Thinking of how devastating the loss of a parent would have been for him, especially at that age, he knew he needed to do something. At the same time, he felt helpless. What could he do that could make any impact and turn the tide on a wave of heartache?

Bland understood he couldn't change the reality or fix what was wrong, but at the same time realized he could use his position as a college football player to good use. Wilson loved football, cramming all 53 inches and 66 pounds into a red New Canaan uniform while playing in the local youth league on weekends. When Bland thought of what might lift his spirits, he settled on what he knew Wilson would love.

"Wilson's a football player. He might not be the biggest guy on his team, but you can tell he has a lot of heart," Bland said of his young friend, who also plays tight end.

So Bland picked up a football. Then he passed it around to his teammates and asked them to sign it. Whoever was around at the time did – Bland estimates he collected 50 or 60 signatures on the ball.

With the Columbia game set a few weekends away and just about an hour's drive, Bland hoped Wilson and his family would be able to attend – but basketball called. Wilson had a hoops game that November Saturday, so instead, Bland brought the ball and delivered it to his parents, who in turn made sure it would be passed off.

Bland played in that Saturday game in New York City, helping his teammates to a 30-27 victory over Columbia, the team's lone win of the season. He celebrated with his squad, sang the fight song, hurried to the locker room, saw his family and delivered the ball to his parents.

 

Wilson and his family went through Nick's mind often over the final weeks of the season, but eventually life settled in – classes, exams, winter break. He got a picture of Wilson with the ball, and it made him happy to have been able to provide some amount of comfort. Wilson worried about protecting his football, so he brought it to school and knitted it a scarf in art class to keep it warm while he wasn't home.

The full view of how deeply it impacted the young man, however, wasn't understood until Nick and his family attended a memorial service later that summer in Chris Crowley's memory.

"It was incredible to see the reaction his closest family members had and to see the impact this ball had on Wilson's life," Bland said." I guess there was a specific moment when Chris' parents came up to me and said how much it had meant to Wilson, when it struck me what it really meant to be a Cornell football player. I had really been on my own path – worried about getting good grades, playing – and it made me take a step back and realize what all this was all about. Coach Archer preaches influence and the impact you can have on others' lives. Really, the connection I established with Wilson was something I couldn't put into words. He meant so much to me that I wanted to share this experience with other guys."

So Bland thought long and hard about how to share what he felt with his teammates. He spoke with his parents about the idea and brought what he come up with to head coach David Archer '05 – an idea of purchasing a new football for every member of the team and the coaching staff to have the ball signed and then give to someone important in their lives, much like Wilson had become to him. Archer was immediately and overwhelmingly supportive.

"The number one rule on our team is to be a positive influence, so the number one criteria was to give that ball to someone who was a positive influence on you or to give that ball to someone who might need a positive influence in their life." Archer said. "As a coach, I was so proud of Nick and told him, 'at a really young age, you just figured out the secret of life – and that secret is giving to others.'"

Bland secured funding for the footballs and the "Wilson Project" began.

The idea behind the project was simple enough. Get some footballs, sign them and send them. The reality, however, was overwhelming.

One hundred and fifty footballs, packed tightly and wrapped in protective plastic arrived at the equipment issue room in Schoellkopf Memorial Hall this past August.  From there, all that needed to be done was organizing more than 100 players to sign them. Collect addresses. Write and print letters. Distribute the footballs – packing, shipping and scheduling. Making sure they were received.

"It was really cool being in the locker room that day," Bland said of picture day, when everyone arrived to find a new football in their locker.

A letter from Coach Archer in an official Cornell envelope was included to let the recipients understand the project – that each player got one football. Each player addressed a private letter to their chosen person, explaining the impact they had on the Big Red player's life. The football was a pigskin-wrapped, team-signed hug handed off as a thank you and more.

The only thing Cornell football asked the receivers for in return was for a picture of them with the ball, to see the fruits of their labor – to see who the football was touching.

The actual work involved was more than Bland anticipated. The response, however, made every moment worth it.

Not long after the balls started being distributed, the pictures and emails came pouring in.
 

First came his teammates and their heartfelt thanks – everyone had someone who had helped them become a collegiate athlete at one of the most prestigious universities in the world. Many chose their parents ("I don't blame them. If I were choosing one or two people who have been influential in my life, I'd choose my parents. I wouldn't be where I am in my life without them," Bland said), but others singled out different inspirational figures in their life. Former coaches, teachers, family friends. Some players shared the individual stories of who they chose to gift the ball to with their teammates. Others decided to keep their reasons private. All, however, were grateful to Bland for starting a project that brought the team together in their understanding that none of them stood alone – each had made an impact on others and also had an impact made on them. 

Then came messages from the recipients of the footballs, which came trickling in. Many players shipped footballs around the country, and a couple even went outside the United States. Others kept their ball to deliver it in-person, many at Cornell's early games of the season. All included a letter from Coach Archer explaining the project, why they were given the ball and asking in return they send in a picture of them with the ball so the Big Red program could document the impact and reach. Each also included a letter from the player – a dedication coming in their own words.

"After every game I look out and I see three or four guys handing their footballs to someone special in their lives," Bland said.

"The ripple effect of this is immeasurable," said Bland's mother, Nancy. "We have families who come up to us in the stands and share their stories. It warms my heart."

Some footballs helped start long overdue conversations. Some delivered healing. Some brought tears of joy and others provoked smiles. Every football meant something different to the recipient. Every gift meant something different to the giver.

"It gives me the chills every time I hear the stories, every single time. It doesn't stop. There's no amount of money in the world that I'd trade this feeling for … somehow, throughout this whole process, I've become more involved in the life of all these people," Bland said.

Nick is hoping to expand the program to other sports, giving others the opportunity to touch the lives of others and say thank you in a meaningful way.

"The influence I like to think I've had on Wilson's life, multiply that by a hundred and that's what I get," Bland said. "This whole project is in hopes that people on our team could develop the same sort of connection I have, and the stories are incredible."

How does a football change the course of a relationship? A program?

Ask Nick Bland and Wilson Crowley. Ask anyone connected to Cornell football. 

Ask the footballs that have traveled across the country, around the globe. They all have their own unique and heartwarming stories to tell. We'll tell some of those stories.