“I want all of you to know that while this is a sad and solemn time, it’s also a time to celebrate the life of Brad Van Pelt,” said Harry Carson, a member of the College and Pro Football halls of fame and a former Giants teammate of Van Pelt.

“You look at titles — All-State, All-Pro, Pro-Bowler, No. 10 — but all these guys standing here are part of his extended family. We’re all part of a fraternity of men who played together. It’s not so much about the tackles, interceptions or touchdowns. It’s about the relationships, and that’s what I value.”

Carson closed by paying tribute to the family that so many friends and family said Van Pelt loved and cared for dearly.

“Mom,” he said to Van Pelt’s mother, Bette, “I want to tell you — you and dad raised a really good son.”

Former teammates of the three-sport letter winner gathered in the school’s gymnasium where Van Pelt allegedly once pulled down 42 rebounds and began his illustrious career that would ultimately land him a pro football contract and in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Referred to as a modern-day Jim Thorpe, Van Pelt was a three-year starter on the MSU football team, played two seasons for Gus Ganakas on the MSU basketball team and had a 4-3 career record with a 2.10 ERA in 64.1 career innings in two seasons with the MSU baseball team.

A member of the 1971 Big Ten Championship baseball team, Van Pelt was a second-team All-Big Ten selection in 1972 after striking out a team-high 84 batters. He threw four complete games and two shutouts, posting a 2.07 ERA.

Van Pelt was a two-time All-American safety and became the first defensive back to ever receive the Maxwell Award as the nation’s best college football player.

Though he was drafted on five occasions by pro baseball clubs, his selection in the second round of the NFL draft by the Giants in 1973 led to a 14-year career and All-Pro selection five years in a row.

Van Pelt was inducted to the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000, the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001 and the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.

Old jerseys hung in the gymnasium among flower arrangements with a banner behind the podium commemorating Van Pelt’s achievements. In the halls, there were displays of old newspaper clippings, photos and portraits of the hall of famer.

“There was a hope inside of him that was
bigger than the game, bigger than the statistics, bigger than the interceptions,” said Pastor Garry Barton, a longtime friend of Van Pelt’s who would have become his brother-in-law with the impending marriage between Van Pelt and his fiancée Deanna Ireland.

“My heart is broken today because so suddenly he is taken from us and so many people love him. To hear his brothers talk, to hear his sons talk, Brad truly was a great, great man.”

Friends shared stories of the generous and compassionate family man who remained humble in the New York City lights and illuminated a room with a warm smile.

“Brad Van Pelt has run a good race,” Barton said. “He played an outstanding game and has received his reward.”

Said to have preferred playing in front of a crowd of fewer than 100 in his hometown
in favor of a crowd of thousands in New York City, the crowd left Van Pelt with one last rendition of a gesture he’d received on multiple occasions through his storied life — a standing ovation and a final round of applause.