Post-Tribune-Judge Alan Page; From The Gridiron to the Supreme Court

Former Minnesota Vikings star Alan Page, Supreme Court Justice for the state of Minnesota: nndb.com

(Story reported by Mike Hutton for the Gary, Indiana Post-Tribune)

There are some people in life, when you are in their presence, that make you think harder, prepare longer and perform with an acute sense of awareness of just what is possible if only you could figure it out like they did.

There are some people in life that are walking, living inspirations that deserved to be treasured and used like your favorite pair of jeans because they have that much value.

There are some people in life, who, when you address them, the hair on the back of your neck stands up.

The Honorable Alan Page, Supreme Court Justice for the state of Minnesota and former Bears and Notre Dame star, is one of those persons for me.

Alan Page, Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, bottom left: Minnesota.publicradio.org

One of my top five favorite sports statistics of all time:

In his final game as a defensive tackle in 1981, Page had 31/2 sacks against the Denver Broncos for a stink bomb of a Bears team that finished 6-10. The Bears won 35-24.

All Pro Defensive Tackle and NFL Hall of Famer, Alan Page of the Minnesota Vikings: bestsportsphotos.com

Just three years earlier, the Vikings had discarded the Hall-of-Famer like a used gum wrapper because he had defied conventional football wisdom, dropping 45 pounds from his hulking 6-4, 270-pound frame. No one -- not even in 1977 -- played on the defensive line at 225.

He lost the weight for the simplest of reasons over a couple of years.

Page started jogging because it gave his active mind the freedom to ruminate about big ideas.

(Click here to read the full story on the Post-Tribune website. Below is video of The Honorable Alan Page on Ed Schultz's MSNBC news show, "The Ed Show")

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