Curie players remember Quaashi Chandler
Written by DJ Special Blend from Chicago on September 12, 2009
CHICAGO, IL – Tevin Buchanan was wearing his best friend’s old No. 11 Friday night when he and his Curie teammates took the field a week after teammate and friend Quaashi Chandler collapsed on the sideline in Bolingbrook and later died when mucus blocked the airways to his lungs.
Buchanan, a junior, was Chandler’s godbrother and got Chandler’s mother’s blessing to honor her son.
“We’ve been through so much,” Buchanan said. “He might be gone, but [wearing his number] means that I’m still carrying his spirit.”
The number will be retired after the season, according to Curie coach Tyson LeBlanc, who briefly contemplated whether to have his team on the field for the 41-20 loss at Andrew.
“There was for about one second [a hesitation] from me,” LeBlanc said. “I didn’t know if we should play this game. Then I thought about it, and the football field is our sanctuary. The field is a place where you can release all the ills that affect your life.
“I spoke with Quaashi’s mother and she said that’s what her son would want.”
There was a moment of silence for Chandler following the national anthem, after which both teams met at midfield to exchange sympathies and hugs.
