At Least You'll Be Remembered For Something

I was watching the 60 Minutes interview with the Duke lacrosse players who were recently exonerated and one of them, I think it was David Evans, said that one thing he thought about was his obituary. He said he thought that no matter what he did, where he went and how he lived the rest of his life there would be a line in his obit that made reference to the fact that he was once accused of rape while a lacrosse player in Durham.

I thought of that interview when I came across the news of Jake Rocker's death after he was hit by a car in Warner Robins, Georgia. The only reason I saw the news, of course, is that Jake was the father of John Rocker, ex-Braves closer and all-around good guy. The following line jumped out at me while reading the brief AP dispatch.

John Rocker had 38 saves for Atlanta in 1999, but his career took a dive after slurs against New York City subway riders were published in an interview with Sports Illustrated.

At least the negative note in Evans' obituary will have something to do with the subject of the article. Imagine what it will say when Pacman Jones' mother shuffles off the mortal coil.

Shirley Jones, 79, of College Park, GA died Thursday after a brief illness. She was the mother of former NFL defensive back Adam "Pacman" Jones who returned four punts for touchdowns in his first two years. His career took a dive after he "made it rain on some bitches" at a Las Vegas strip club and touched off a shooting that left one man paralyzed. Ms. Jones was an avid gardener, enjoyed "Oprah" and was credited as making the best pecan pie in all of College Park.