By Ryan
Features on the Tuesday, Aug. 25 (7pm ET) edition of ESPN’s sports newsmagazine series E:60:
Plaxico Burress — Former N.Y. Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress, will talk in detail with correspondent Jeremy Schaap in an exclusive E:60 interview, Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 7 p.m. ET, about the early morning hours of Nov. 29, when he accidentally shot himself in the leg with his own gun at the Latin Quarter nightclub in Midtown N.Y., and about the two-year jail sentence he now faces. Burress pleaded guilty Thursday, Aug. 20, to the weapons charge and avoided what would have been a mandatory minimum sentence of three years for second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He will head to prison when he is officially sentenced Sept. 22, and will be eligible for release after serving a little more than 20 months. The NFL has suspended Burress but will reinstate him once he completes his sentence. Burress previously had a license to carry the gun in Florida, but it had expired nearly seven months before the shooting.
Yankee Boy — Growing up with cerebral palsy, 11-year-old Tom Ellenson could not walk or speak. But his father created a device that allowed him to communicate as a kid his age would, and his “voice” inspired a little league baseball team in New York City to excel. Ellenson’s magic touch with the team got the attention of the New York Yankees, who gave Ellenson and his teammates a day they will never forget. ESPN’s E:60 was given exclusive access to document Ellenson’s day spent with the Yankees, including a ceremonial first pitch different than any other first pitch in Major League Baseball history.
Parkersburg — The small town of Parkersburg, Iowa, was nearly destroyed by a tornado in 2008 and was rocked again on June 24, 2009, when beloved high-school football coach Ed Thomas was shot to death in the Aplington-Parkersburg High School weight room by Mark Becker, one of his former players. Compounding the tragedy was the fact that the Thomas and Becker families had been friends for more than 30 years. In a town where high-school football is king, Thomas had produced four current NFL players, and the community rallied around the coach after the tornado to get the school’s football field ready for its season-opening game. ESPN reporter Steve Cyphers and E:60 follow the story of a family and a community trying to deal with the loss of their leader, with the opening of the 2009 football season quickly approaching. The report includes exclusive interviews with members of the Thomas family, who speak about their loss, the power of their faith and the importance of embracing Scott Becker, Mark’s younger brother, and a senior lineman on the team.
