Mark Barron: Leader On the Field, Caring Gentleman Off

It was once said the true quality of human being comes out when you do something good for someone when nobody is watching and there's no reward for doing it.

Mark Barron must believe that.

One of the great things about covering the Crimson Tide is getting to interview them and perhaps getting to know them a little too.

Today I remembered something I was both lucky enough to witness and fortunate enough to catch on video.

Just as the game was over, I wanted to talk to Eddie Lacy for a moment, and we talked about his special team play and how it seemed to me that enjoyed laying the wood on opposing players during the punt and kickoff plays.

He laughed and said he was glad I noticed and that yes, laying the wood on people was a lot more fun that getting it laid on you as a runner.

We continued talking as we walked near the tunnel, I thanked him and kept the video running as I walked toward the locker room door.

There with very no "civilians" around to speak of, except there was a young boy with blond hair, his face full of freckles and, through a crack in the fence and privacy barrier, he yelled out to Mark Barron, "Mark, you're my favorite player!"

Barron stopped walking and looked around to see where the voice had come from, saw the young boy and walked over and handed him his game gloves and simply said "thank you" and walked into the locker room.

I stopped to watch the watch the expression on the young boy's face about the time the camera cut itself off. The boy stood for a second, watched Barron disappear and then clutched the gloves to his heart and could only muster a small, "Wow!"

He then ran off to rejoin his parents. I would have loved to have gotten his name, where he was from and what he planned on doing with those gloves, but I was on the wrong side of the fence to do that and he was gone too quickly.

Somewhere in Alabama is a young man who I would venture has shown those gloves to everyone he knows, who sleeps with them at night and puts them on when he throws a football in the backyard and dreams of being an Alabama hero himself.

Later I had the pleasure of interviewing Barron in the press room and after I talked to him on camera, I turned off the video and said, "I saw you give your gloves to the small boy tonight."

He smiled and simply said, "Hey, before I was a player, I was a fan too."

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the kind of men we have on this team.

Those are the kind of men that I am proud to have in my family as an alumnus, a fan and a reporter who covers Alabama.

Mark might be annoyed to have a private moment shared to the public, but I hope he understands. Being the kind of man he is, I'm sure he will forgive me.

No man stands so tall as when he bends over to help a child. Mark Barron stands tall.