You want to know how much Brian Dawkins meant to former Eagles coach Andy Reid? Big Red chartered a plane from Kansas City Chiefs training camp to see Dawkins get his gold jacket Friday night at a special Hall of Fame dinner. Reid had to fly back after the ceremony because he had to be back to lead an 8 a.m. practice. Time's yours B-Dawk.
"I love Brian Dawkins," Reid said, "and what he stands for. Pound for pound he is the toughest guy I've ever coached."
Dawkins' former Eagles teammates were thrilled to see Reid and they reminisced about those teams with Weapon X. Hugh Douglas said he and Ike Reese couldn't stop talking about the fact that "we played with a Hall of Famer."
Douglas revealed he also went through some tough times like Dawkins, and B-Dawk was there for him.
"I went through a dark time in my life, and he was a rock," Douglas said. "He was there for me. I talked to him a lot."
Brian was their emotional and passionate leader. And they always witnessed the transformation from Brian off the field to "Idiot Man" on the field.
"Before games, he would walk around, he was a zombie," Douglas said. "When he put that helmet on, he became a different guy."
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When he got his Hall of Fame jacket Friday night, Dawkins cried while leaving the stage.
"To see that same emotion he showed on the field, it was awesome," Reid said. "He's so quiet. The juices get going with him."
Eagles fans, we are in for a passionate epic speech Saturday night (see story). Dawkins says he has 30 minutes ready. I've got the over in the amount of times he will get choked up.
