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06-27-2010, 10:59 AM
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FRANK SCHWAB
The Gazette

ENGLEWOOD • Brandon Stokley got to spend some time back home before his
father’s death earlier this month, even though Alzheimer’s disease had already
robbed Nelson Stokley.

The two men didn’t throw the football around, like they would when Brandon
Stokley was young, or go golfing, which was typical when Brandon was an
adult making his living in the NFL. But Brandon, a receiver for the Broncos, got
to say goodbye before Nelson Stokley lost a three-year battle with
Alzheimer’s, a progressive brain disease and common form of dementia, on
June 5.

“He wasn’t coherent at that time, but it was just good to be in the room with
him,” Stokley said.

Because of the experience with his father, Stokley has partnered up with
Alzheimer’s Association. Stokley hosted a golf tournament for the charity at
Lakewood Country Club on Monday.

“It’s a tough situation to watch a person go through Alzheimer’s,” Stokley
said. “When you see it firsthand and see someone deteriorate like that — to
me, there’s nothing worse.”

This has been a difficult offseason for Stokley. Between deaths in the family
— there were a couple on Brandon’s wife Lana’s side of the family this spring
too — and an injury, Stokley missed most of the Broncos’ offseason camps.
Stokley said he is healthy and will be prepared for training camp, ready to
fight for a roster spot for a 12th NFL season, but he still has the emotional
pain of the past few months.

“It’s been the toughest offseason I’ve ever been through,” Stokley said.

Stokley chuckled a bit when asked whether he would be in the NFL without his
father’s influence, because the answer is obvious: no way. Not for the
reasons one might expect from a coach’s son. Nelson Stokleycoached at
Louisiana-Lafayette for 13 seasons, but Stokley made the NFL because his
father didn’t push him to play football.

Stokley quit football after his freshman year in high school. He was very small,
and playing quarterback even though he couldn’t throw well. He wanted to
play baseball and basketball, but didn’t want to tell that to his father.

“I remember being real nervous to tell him, ‘Dad, I don’t want to play football
anymore,’” Stokley said. “I told him, and he was so supportive. He stood
behind me and said whatever I wanted to do, he would support me.”

Through high school there was no pressure to rejoin football, and when
Stokley decided he wanted to play his senior year, his dad offered
unconditional support. Nelson told him if he tried football again and still didn’t
like it, at least he would know.

“If he would have been that pushy father, I think I would have pushed away
from football and not gone back to it,” Stokley said.

That decision affected Brandon Stokley’s life in countless ways. Of course, he
has made a great living as a NFL player. He also got to spend five special
years with Nelson Stokley, his college coach.

“It’s been a great relationship for me and, hopefully, for him,” Nelson
Stokleytold the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 1997. “Being a coach, you don’t
get to see each other as much as you’d like while he’s growing up.”

“That was the best five years of my life, being able to play for him,”
Brandon Stokley said.

Even as Stokley was becoming a star in the NFL, his father didn’t meddle.

“Whether I did good or bad, he wouldn’t critique me or point out things to
me,” Stokley said. “He was just a normal dad, even though he was a football
coach.”

Nelson Stokleyhad early-onset Alzheimer’s, and BrandonStokley said he lived a
regular life for a while with the disease. They golfed together last offseason
(“He was still a pretty good golfer,” Brandon said) and Brandon spent some
time with his father in January after Denver’s season ended. His condition
worsened and by the end of January he was in a nursing home.

Stokley said he is ready for training camp. Life hasn’t been easy since last
season but he said he wants to get back to football.

“It has given me more motivation to enjoy what I have right now and
appreciate opportunities I have and take one day at a time,” Stokley said.
“Don’t look too far forward, because you don’t really know. That’s what I’ve
gotten out of this offseason: you never know. Just enjoy life and enjoy your
family and be thankful for everything you have.”

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