Team Mort needs you

ROGERS -- Team Mort probably added a few more prayer warriors Thursday at Cross Church in Rogers.

Chris Mortensen told his story about his fight with Stage 4 throat cancer.

Mortensen is ESPN's senior analyst for the NFL. More importantly, he's a resident of Northwest Arkansas.

After living most of the last decade in Bella Vista, Mortensen and wife, Micki, recently moved to a farm near Tontitown with their six horses.

For the record, I'm a long-time member of Team Mort. I quickly joined when the Mortensens moved from the Atlanta area after their son Alex signed to play quarterback at Arkansas in 2004.

It was soon after that I met Chris in the parking lot in front of the Broyles Center as he dropped by to watch a practice. That was a 15-minute conversation. There have been many great visits since. Generally, he begins by asking about family.

Chris is all about relationships, something I learned quickly. I started to get notes about some of my work at Hawgs Illustrated. He had become a subscriber.

We've pooled resources on Arkansas stories of national interest. We've traded notes, sometimes more for background than anything else. I remember asking one deep question that had some big news hooked to the end. I was looking for confirmation. He replied, "That's all I can tell you, Clay." That told me a lot.

There were no secrets Thursday during his hour-long Q&A with pastor Ronnie Floyd. The lunch started with a standing ovation for Mort. Quickly, he put everything out there.

There was humor, some of it a little dark. When his closest colleagues at ESPN -- and that is about everyone -- began to ask what doctors at MD Anderson told him, he said, "They say I'm going to die." He realized that was too harsh and followed up, "You are going to, too. We all are going to die."

That did bring a few laughs at the church Thursday.

"I probably told some too much," he said. "I'm a glass half-full guy."

Maybe, but he's not scared because he knows his salvation has been won. He's full of faith. He's long walked with God. You learn about the faith of that family whether you are around Chris, Micki or Alex.

Mortensen learned his cancer diagnosis in early January 2015. He's undergone extensive treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. There's been good progress in recovery, but there was a scan in November that revealed some cancer in a few nodes of his left lung. Mortensen revealed that he's started amino acid therapy.

"It's not lung cancer," he said. "I'm in the fourth cycle of this treatment. The nodes are reduced.

"I've got pretty good energy. I'm living life."

More than that, he hopes he's got a few more chances to do more for everyone he touches. How he thinks he's not been the ultimate mentor, friend and colleague is beyond me.

"When I was really in a bad spot, curled up in a bed at MD Anderson, I'd pray," he said. "It was a selfish prayer: Let me finish the race."

To borrow a phrase from coaches, Mort wants to elevate his game. There's a burst of energy after hearing so much praise from friends.

"I've gotten some awards," he said. "You get awards when you get cancer. It's been kind of like going to your funeral. No one is saying any bad things."

There's nothing bad to say. I know of nothing.

All I see is someone trying to help others. He revealed the way patients locked arms to pray for each other at MD Anderson.

"I had lots of family, lots of friend with me most of the time," he said. "But not always. There are times you are alone. And there are times I saw others alone and scared. I'd go ask if I could pray with them.

"You'd have a good day, maybe where you could go outside on a nice warm day and sit on a bench. There might be someone next to you shivering. You get cold when you are taking those treatments. I'd go inside and bring them a blanket."

That's Mort. He's always looked for ways to hand out warm blankets.

Over a decade ago I was at his favorite Mexican restaurant with my wife. He came in with Alex. Mort was tanned from two weeks on the beach in Maui, his annual vacation after the Pro Bowl.

I revealed that I'd just booked a second honeymoon, really our first. It was five months before a trip to Pearl Harbor, then six nights at the Westin Hotel in Maui.

"Oh, no, I can help you with the Ritz-Carlton just up the road," Mort said. "Jean Ann, you'd love it there. Clay, I know you love golf. I'll get you on the Kapalua courses. My friend is GM at the Ritz."

The next day -- still months from our vacation -- came an email from the GM. I'd have golf privileges at the Plantation and Bay courses during my stay. Five months later when I checked in at the Westin, there was a note with instructions. Just show up at the starter 45 minutes before I wanted to play, at either course. I couldn't pay.

The note said, "If you are Mort's friend, you are Kapalua's friend."

Mort told about breaking the cancer news to family. Micki lost it, as would most. There were crying fits.

"I kept trying to reassure her I wasn't just about to die," he said. "She'd cry, run outside, come in, cry again. It went like that until we looked out the window and saw that the horses had gotten out. That helped. We had to stop to get the horses back in."

Then there was figuring out how to tell Alex. A graduate assistant under Nick Saban at Alabama, Alex was in Phoenix for the first national title game against Clemson.

"That's the one they won," Mort said. "I flew out there. I wasn't going to tell him before the game, and I wasn't going to tell him right after it, either. If they won, I didn't want to ruin the celebration. If they lost, it would be like another kick in the gut."

The game was on Monday. He finally told Alex on Thursday.

There were details about his cancer fight. Fight is the right word, too.

"I hear all of these stories, people say, 'I'm going to kick cancer's rear end,' but that's not what happens," Mort said. "Cancer kicks your rear end. The good news is that God's healing power and grace fights it for you. You get so weak, you do get closer to God.

"At your weakest, you finally realize that His grace is sufficient. It's at that moment that I'd pray, 'Did I run the race the way I should?' I hit the wall in July and had some pity parties. I wondered if I might have only four more months. But I got stronger, thanks to the prayers of others. I just want to run the race better."

Really? I don't know if it's possible. I will say that there is plenty of life in Mort's eyes. I checked Thursday after a big hug. It followed a similar embrace between Mort and Bo Mattingly, my radio partner.

"You look good," Mort said to both of us.

Well, Mort is a little on the thin side, but he's got the same sparkle in his eyes. He promised Bo there would be a resumption in a weekly radio spot on Sports Talk. He said his goal is to be at the NFL draft later this spring.

Mort has helped Bo in many ways. There were introductions at ESPN that led to a long list of radio guests for his show. He has helped others in Northwest Arkansas, headlining banquets.

I was honored when Bo began my introduction at the Arkansas Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame with a note from Mort. He was at the Manning Camp and apologized for not attending. Really? He mentioned a recent column on fly fishing, my passion.

Mort can appear at any time and it's generally grand. Texts arrive at interesting moments. There were a few last fall when the Arkansas baseball team played three games at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Mort wanted me to share his suite at the game.

"Are you here?" Mort's text said. "The Astros set me up. Join me."

Remember, he was a beat writer for the Dodgers and then the Braves before moving to the NFL. The story on that is that after Alex arrived, the baseball travel was too much. He was not going to miss a thing.

That's the reason for the move to Northwest Arkansas. Most assumed the Mortensens wouldn't be here after Alex finished with the Razorbacks. Wrong. He's as much of an Arkansan as any. You probably will see him at a Razorbacks baseball game this spring. He was there for opening weekend.

You can be in a conversation about the Hogs and he might say "we" as things develop. Just know that when the talk gets to the end, he's probably going to ask you to join him in prayer. You can join Team Mort.

I played one round of golf at Kapalua with the CEO of Pacific Life. We played in a twosome. On the first tee he asked why I was there. I explained that I was the guest of Chris Mortensen, the ESPN man. I explained that I was a journalist in Arkansas, where Mort lives. He said, "Oh, he's the best in your field."

Yes, indeed.

At the end of the day, my playing partner shook my hand and asked for my business card. He wanted to find me "on the Internet." Then, he said, "You are with what team?"

I have a new way to answer that question. I'm with Team Mort.

Sports on 02/25/2017

Upcoming Events