Broncos Connect with Community

Boise State

football players

visit Ryan House

By B.J. Rains

The first question during a Q&A asked what color his underwear was. A few minutes later, he was being asked to go get donuts from the store.

Boise State safety Chanceller James had no idea what he was getting into Monday when he and a group of teammates visited the Ryan House in Phoenix. But he couldn’t have been any happier that he got the opportunity to go.

                                                                                                                                                                                       ADAM ESCHBACH/IPT

     Boise State safety Chanceller James shares a laugh with Cade Ellsworth, 14, during a visit with other 

     players to Ryan House in Phoenix. Ryan House provides respite, palliative and end-of-life care to 

     children with life-threatening conditions.

“It warms my heart coming out here and seeing these kids and hopefully making a difference in their day and their life,” James said afterwards. “Knowing that God has blessed us with these gifts and put us on this platform to come and share it with everybody, it’s just awesome.”

The Ryan House provides respite, palliative and end-of-life care to children with life-threatening conditions, and families can live at the house with their kids while they receive treatment. The house is one of only two in the country offering such services for pediatrics, and it’s the only one in the Southwest.

And on Monday, a group of injured Boise State players who won’t be playing in Wednesday’s Fiesta Bowl got to tour the facility and interact with several of those staying there.

But the day was arguably more meaningful for James and defensive tackle Tyler Horn than it was for the kids.

James is recovering from his second torn ACL in as many seasons, while Horn is redshirting after tearing his ACL in his first game of what was supposed to be his senior year against Ole Miss.

“Two ACL tears is nothing compared to what they have to deal with,” James said. “Just putting my life into perspective and theirs, it’s really a blessing seeing them and being here.

“For them to be happy and just to see a smile on their face despite what they are going through, it’s just amazing. You get injured and get down, but what I go through and other guys that get injured playing football go through is nothing compared to what they are going through in their everyday life.”

James was the subject of several funny jabs and jokes from 14-year-old Colby Ellsworth, who lit up the room with his sense of humor and outgoing personality despite being in a wheelchair.

Ellsworth asked James what color his underwear was and later drew big laughs when he told the group of about 10 players that they should send him to the store to bring back some donuts.

Cade Ellsworth, Colby’s 14-year-old twin brother, sent the room into laughter when he spoke up from his wheelchair about which player was the smartest.

“You look smart,” Cade Ellsworth told safety Dillon Lukehart. “But I can’t say the same about the rest of you.”

James and Horn led a group of injured players or redshirts on the trip that also included freshman defensive tackle Dereck Boles, safety Taylor Loffler, Lukehart and defensive tackle Justin Taimatuia.

The group visited the Ryan House while the rest of the team practiced at nearby Pinnacle High School in Scottsdale in advance of Wednesday’s Vizio Fiesta Bowl against No. 10 Arizona.

“Many of our kids haven’t had this experience, so today was a great day,” Ryan House team leader Pam Roman said. “That’s what Ryan House is about, just enjoying every day that we have and doing fun things with our kids that they haven’t experienced before.

“The boys were asking when the players were getting here, and we said about 1, and they were all looking at the clock and waiting around the front door for them to come in. It was a great treat for them.”

Players gave the kids T-shirts and orange Boise State footballs during the 45-minute encounter. They chatted about their favorite types of ice cream, what a safety does, and why the turf inside Albertsons Stadium was blue.

But both sides left with something special. For a group of football players trying to overcome their own adversity, it served as a needed reminder about life’s priorities.

“It definitely puts things in perspective,” said Horn, who will return as a senior in 2015. “It’s crazy to see what these kids are going through, and they are cracking jokes and not skipping a beat. It’s definitely made me look at things a little bit differently.

“I mean this knee injury is tough on me, but looking at this, it’s nothing. I’ll be over this injury in a couple more months, and seeing these kids going through stuff like this, it’s tough to see. But they are staying positive, and I wasn’t expecting them to be this happy and funny, so it was good to see.”

Boise State and Arizona will play at 2 p.m. Wednesday on ESPN.

Reprinted with permission from the Idaho Press-Tribune.