Whether he knew the Bears full name or nothe just referred to Charles Tillman as Tillmanthe cornerback will happily accept his name being mentioned by the then- and since-re-elected President of the United States.
Barack Obama was interviewed at halftime of last Monday nights Philadelphia-New Orleans game and specifically mentioned Tillman and his play at the level of Defensive Player of the Year.
I think its a huge honor, Tillman said. Im happy he won. I wish congratulations to him and his family. It was a great honor.
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If only Tillman had gotten to hear it. Hes, you know, like, this really, really old guy, so he already was in bed and asleep by the time the President mentioned him, so he had to get the news the next day.
I go to bed early -- four kids, Tillman said. I was asleep, but I had a bunch of text messages that morning when I woke up. I definitely thought it was cool to get mentioned from our Commander-in-Chief.
And to the Big Guy: Thanks for the shout-out, Tillman said.