Troy Kenneth Aikman

Troy Aikman is my all-time favorite football player. He was born on November 21, 1966, his parents are Kenneth and Charlyn Aikman. He also has two older sisters, Tammy and Terri.

When he was just eight months old his parents took him to Dr. Bill McColl (a former Chicago Bears football player) because they noticed his legs slightly bowed below his knees and his toes curled under his feet. Dr. McColl informed Mr. and Mrs. Aikman that their son had a mild form of clubfoot. Troy then had to wear casts on his feet that were changed every two weeks and he wore them up until he was thirteen months old. He even learned how to walk in the casts.

After the casts were removed, he had to wear special shoes until the age of three. Troy had to wear these shoes all day and night. His heels were even strapped together when he slept.

Troy was born, and grew up in Cerritos, California, until the age of twelve. His dad worked in pipeline construction.

His main hobbies when growing up were hunting, fishing, and especially playing sports with friends. When Troy was in second grade, he and a group of friends were getting ready to play boys versus girls basketball. He kept goofing around with the ball and a neighborhood bully got really pissed and threw a rock at him cracking one of his front teeth.

Troy Aikman learned a lot from his parents. They were the main role models in his life while growing up. One lesson his mom taught him was good sportsmanship and a good attitude while participating. His substitute tee-ball coach put in this kid from outfield onto second base. Troy didn't exactly agree and yelled out, "Don't put him there, he's no good." His mom just glared at him and after the game, grabbed him by his shirt to their car. Troy's mom then said, "If you ever do that again, I will pull you off the field and that will be the end of sports." He never did it again.

His biggest fear when growing up was death. His grandfather died when he was just ten years old and that frightened him greatly. To get over his fears, he would crawl into his parent's king-size bed to help ease the nightmares.

Troy always wanted to play professional baseball (shortstop or pitcher). He and his friends dreamed of playing baseball at the University of Southern California and then going onto the majors. Troy would sit in his room and practice signing his name to be ready for the day someone asked him for his autograph. When he got older, he began to enjoy football even more. His favorite team was the Dallas Cowboys and one of his favorite players was Roger Staubach. Troy also played center in basketball.

He and his family left to Henryetta, Oklahoma, when he was twelve years old. They lived on a 172-acre ranch with cows, pigs, and chickens. Troy hated it and even began to resent his parents. He especially hated feeding slop to the pigs.

Troy went for the junior high team. Since he played quarterback all during peewee football, he wanted a change. His coaches put him at football and he hated it, he almost even quit. He went to his dad for advice. He told Troy to just keep trying and not give up so easily, to not quit so quickly. He kept with football.

He started his first varsity game as a 14 year-old sophomore. His team was the Henryetta High School Fighting Hens. He won that game and they ended the season 4-6.

His junior year they went to state playoffs although only winning two games. Their slogan was, "Two and eight and going to state."

Troy was an all-around great guy in high school. He never gave into peer pressure, even when it was his friends doing the pressuring. He first job was with his dad in welding. His dad taught him that a positive attitude meant almost everything: "If you want something in life, if you're willing to pay the price, you can accomplish anything." He also worked in an auto shop when not working in the fields.

He also got decent grades, mostly B's. His best class was typing. He even won a regional typing contest typing seventy-five words a minute. Even though he got teased for being the only boy in the competition, he was still proud. He never let other people's thoughts prevent him from success.

Many colleges wanted Troy to play for them. One was Jimmy Johnson, the coach for Oklahoma State. He turned down Johnson and went to play at the University of Oklahoma coached by Barry Switzer.

After he had made his decision to play at Oklahoma, a scout for the New York Mets asked him how much he'd want to play baseball for him. He asked for a lot of money, for he already knew the dream he wanted to accomplish.

Troy's experience at Oklahoma was horrible. In 1984, he had to start as a freshman due to injuries to the other quarterbacks ahead of him. He got quite better for the second season at Oklahoma. During the fourth game (they were 3-0 at the time) against the Miami Hurricanes, Troy got tackled and broke his ankle. Switzer then changed the offence and Troy knew he was ready for change. He transferred to UCLA with Terry Donahue as his coach.

Unfortunately, Troy had to sit out his first season at UCLA due to NCAA regulations. He played in two bowl games with UCLA. The first was the Aloha Bowl in Hawaii. They won 20-16 against Emmitt Smith and the Florida Gators. The second was the Cotton Bowl where they beat Arkansas 17-3.

Troy was the number one draft pick of 1989 signing an eleven million-dollar deal with the Dallas Cowboys.

His first season was more than tough. He lost his first four games and in the fourth he broke a finger missing six weeks. The Cowboys only had a 1-15 record that year. He got a lot of negative and hostile attention. One headline even referred to him as "Ache-man."

The following year, Troy got some help in the backfield, Emmitt Smith. They had a 7-9 season.

In 1991, they even make it to the playoffs. Their season ended at 11-5 against the Detroit Lions.

The next year in 1992, they started good and ended the regular season 13-3. They went to the playoffs. First they took out The Philadelphia Eagles 34-10. In the NFC championship, the Cowboys took out the 49ers, a team that has beaten them six straight times in the past twelve years. They went to they Super Bowl and stomped the Buffalo Bills 52-17. Troy completed 22 of thirty passes with a total gain of 273 yards. He was also named the Super Bowl MVP.

Troy Aikman and the Dallas Cowboys again went to the super bowl in 1993. They won Super Bowl XXVIII against the Bills with a score of 30-13. This time, Emmitt got the MVP honours.

The following year, in 1994, the 49ers took out the Cowboys. Steve Young got his chance at the Super Bowl defeating the San Diego Chargers. They Cowboys again won the Super Bowl in 1995 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Winning the Super Bowl three out of four times is really good. Their 96 and 97 seasons weren't quite as good.

During the 96 and 97 seasons, the Cowboys began their controversy. Troy was stuck in the middle of it all. Michael Irvin and his drug use, the sexual assault charges, other drug problems, injuries, and more all contributed to the hatred of the Dallas Cowboys.

Troy hasn't been able to keep much of his personal life personal. The media always seems to butt in. Women have been hounding on poor Troy. He has been stalked and everything. Troy can't even go to the grocery store and has even made arrangements with local department stores to open up after business hours so he can shop in peace. One day around mid-night, Troy came home and there were two women eating pizza on his back patio. They hopped his fence and he was not in the mood to deal with them. After he threatened to call the police, the women left. Later, he received pictures of the women. It turned out that the they were there all day, swimming and "having the time of their lives." Men have even sent him engagement rings.

Aikman has appeared on talk shows like Letterman, The Tonight Show, Regis and Kathie Lee, and Oprah. He also played himself on an episode of Coach.

He is a very sweet man with good values. "I have an idea of marriage as being a sharing type of deal. If I build a house, I want her involved. I want her to have some say in the decision," said Aikman to SI. Troy has high expectations on the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with. He has every right, for he signed a fifty million-dollar contract with the Cowboys a few years back. He dated country singer Lorrie Morgan for a bit. He and Sandra Bullock talked a little and people blew it out of proportion and, when he wished Nancy Kerrigan luck in the Olympics, people began spreading rumors that he sent her roses and her fiancé is pissed.

Even through all this, Troy Aikman has remained my favorite player. Not because he's a great player, but because he is a great role model. Troy has been my hero since the 4th grade, when he won his first Super Bowl.

Troy Aikman's actions and attitudes have showed me being a strong individual is not a bad thing. That following your dreams is possible and not to ever let anyone get in the way of them. To not let change destroy your future. That your parents are a major influence on your life no matter how much they happen to drive you insane. When my life seems to change and fall apart, I read his book, Things Change, for encouragement. I think it would be the greatest experience ever to get the chance to meet him.