Openly gay football player Sam kisses boyfriend Vit0 on ESPN after getting drafted by the St. Louis Rams.
Who could have predicted that the 249th pick taken in the last round of the 2014 NFL Draft would make history before he even stepped onto the playing field! But that’s exactly what gay football player Sam did when he decided to live an honest and open life as a gay man. Overwhelmed with emotion at receiving the call, Michael Sam surprised the Press and quickly made history again by repeatedly kissing his boyfriend Vito—on camera.
While this news has been making headlines, it is not the whole story. Michael Sam was the 2013 SEC Defensive Player of the Year and a Consensus All-American defensive lineman for the Missouri Tigers. After his coming out in February, some sports critics claimed he was risking his chance at getting drafted, but supporters of Michael Sam knew better. They knew a college football player of his caliber would get drafted by an NFL team, but nobody knew which team until Michael Sam’s football dreams came true on May 10, 2014 when he got the history-making call from the St. Louis Rams.
Just days prior to the big Michal Sam kiss, he received the prestigious Arthur Ashe Courage Award from ESPN. In his acceptance speech Sam said he didn’t think he really did anything courageous, but for those who still fear coming out of the closet, Sam did do something courageous. If his courage off the field is any indication of his character on the field, St. Louis Ram football fans should expect Michael Sam to be a game-changer at defensive end this season. I can’t wait for football season to see what football player (not just gay football player) Michael Sam will bring to the playing field.
