The image was lasting and the message was clear: Mike Sadler lived on.
“No moment was too big for Mike, not even death,” Father Jake Foglio said in his closing prayer and blessing. “And he’s alive.”
Sunday afternoon, Spartan Stadium had its regular jeers, cheers and chants of gamesmanship substituted with tears, laughter and powerful speeches from those close to Sadler for the late MSU graduate and former football player’s memorial. Thousands of people gathered on the field and into the west stands to mournfully hear the memories of family members, friends and teammates eulogizing the 24-year-old, fan-favorite punter from 2010-2014.
Sadler died last weekend in Waukesha, Wis. when his car lost control on wet pavement and collided with a tree. Nebraska punter Sam Foltz, 22, was also killed in the single-car accident and was remembered at the event.
“As you know, Mike was no ordinary guy, and this is no ordinary funeral,” Karen Sadler, the mother of Mike Sadler, said in an impromptu address of the crowd. “In fact, it’s extraordinary.”
Through the 13 speakers giving eulogies, the pronounced celebration of Mike Sadler’s intelligence, optimism, humor and devotion rung clear. Football was secondary for the time-being.
“He just competed at everything,” former teammate and NFL cornerback Darqueze Dennard said. “He looked at the classroom as competing with the teacher. He wanted to make the teacher look dumb.”
Sadler enrolled in MSU after graduating high school with a 4.17 GPA and obtaining a 32 ACT score. Academics were something that by all accounts Sadler valued most highly, as exemplified by his 3.97 undergraduate GPA and his standing as the first four-time Academic All-American in MSU football history.
“I said, ‘You a sophomore?’” Dennard said to a response of laughter, recounting his first interaction with Sadler upon enrolling at MSU. “He said, ‘Yeah.’ I said, ‘How did that happen?’ He said, ‘I took some AP classes.’”
Head coach Mark Dantonio could relate.
“He used to use a lot of big words for me too, Queze,” Dantonio said.
Dantonio shared a letter from the Big Ten commissioner and the thoughts of Nebraska head coach Mike Riley on Mike Sadler’s passing, offering a moment of silence for both.
Emotionally choking through his final thoughts, Dantonio offered an excerpt from a poignant poem.
“This is Michael- ‘Class can walk with kings and keeps its virtue,’” Dantonio read.
Although the event was sorrowful, interjections of comedy from Sadler’s record of wit were warmly greeted.
“And he was a great dancer,” Connor Cook, quarterback for much of Mike Sadler’s tenure, said. “I would know. I went to prom with him back in 2014.”
Katie Sadler, Mike Sadler’s sister, took the stage and proceeded to list off countless examples of foolery and pranks from her brother, including a random appearance at his high school career fair only wearing a Speedo, swim cap and goggles.
“I was a mile away from school when it hit me: the clock on my dashboard read 3:25 a.m.,” Katie Sadler said, relaying another story about her brother winding forward her clocks to scare her into frantically rushing to school in the middle of the night.
Thomas Helderop, a friend of Mike Sadler’s from the age of three, had many stories as he qualified Mike Sadler’s “enduring love for his friends and his unrelenting humor.”
“He went so far as to sign his credit card receipt as ‘Batman,’” Helderop said to complete a story of Mike Sadler costuming for the premier of The Dark Knight and step-for-step mimicking the Christian Bale character.
While Mike Sadler’s memorial was a “celebration” of his life, his noticeable imprint and absence on the community was preeminent.
“Mike, because of you I am strong... and because of you, I know I will be okay,” Katie Sadler tearlessly said in her closing remarks.
Helderop remembered all of the trials that his 21-year friendship with Mike Sadler had endured, issuing a resolute confirmation of their bond.
“I spent the last three years in California, 3,000 miles away, and that didn’t diminish our friendship,” Helderop said. “This won’t either.”
Once again, speakers took to pledging that Mike Sadler’s eternal and indelible impact was alive more than ever.
“You look behind me here, and these are the trophies that he helped us win,” Dantonio said, signaling to the podium behind him lined with the rewards that included a Rose Bowl and Big Ten memorabilia.
While the loss of “the most incredible son in the world” cannot be fixed for Karen Sadler, the representation of Mike Sadler in the community reception was of great comfort.
“This is the ultimate definition of what it means to be family and what it means to be Spartan family,” Karen Sadler said to the crowd before the final slideshow of symbolic photos and videos accompanied by Frank Sinatra’s “My Way.”
As stated by numerous speakers, dedication to family was a defining characteristic of Mike Sadler, and that afternoon, Karen Sadler’s family grew, as each football player bestowed upon them a rose that represented a lifelong commitment to help through the hardship.
“Karen and David, you gained a son,” Dennard said, facing the family. “Katie, you gained a brother.”
