CHESAPEAKE, VA (WTKR)- Friends and family of Kenny Easley have been mourning since the former Oscar Smith great's passing on November 14, leaving a hole in the community and beyond.
"It won't leave us," longtime friend Jimmy Reece said of his grieving. "I miss my brother every day. I really do."
"I know that he did everything that he was sent here to do," added Easley's sister, Patricia Sivells.
Those who had the opportunity to see Easley play remember him well. Nicknamed "The Enforcer," he brought the crowd to its feet during high school football games under the Friday night lights, becoming the first player in VHSL history to run and pass for one thousand yards in the same season.
"He would ask my mom 'how many touchdowns do you want?,'" Patricia recalled. "She would tell him how many touchdowns and, low and behold, he would get that amount of touchdowns."
"He played every minute of every game," Reece pointed out. "He was the kicker, the punter, the kick returner, the punt returner, the [defensive] back and an All-State quarterback as well."
Easley brought a desire to dominate to everything he did. Whether it was football, basketball, or, as Patricia told us, any game at the area rec center, he possessed the strong will to win. The former Tiger would play his college football at UCLA before being selected with the fourth overall pick of the 1981 NFL Draft by a little-known team out of the Pacific Northwest- the Seattle Seahawks.
"When Ken got drafted by the Seahawks, I was like 'who are the Seahawks?'" laughed his sister, who admits she's a Steelers fan at heart. "We all just kind of rallied around the team and took them on as our team."
"They were only five years old when he got drafted and started playing with them," Reece added. "The day that he got drafted, I said 'looks like I'm a Seahawks fan,' just like that."
It was there Easley would etch his name into gridiron greatness. Among his long list of accomplishments, he was the 1984 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, a five time Pro Bowler, was enshrined into the Seahawks' Ring of Honor and in 2017, the Chesapeake native was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Six days after his passing, the team announced that it would fix Easley's number 45 onto players' helmets for the remainder of the season.
"They didn't have to do it," said Patricia. "People leave this earth all the time, but to have celebrated my brother like that, it just touched our hearts."
"They just love Kenny Easley and it's showing now," Reece noted. "That 45 sticker meant a lot to all of us who are close to him."
A lot of things are leading to a fantastic season in Seattle, but could the power of number 45 be contributing? Since adding the sticker to their helmets, the Seahawks have rattled off nine straight wins and have not lost a game. The team will take on the Patriots in Super Bowl LX next Sunday, one that hits a little bit differently this year for those close to Easley.
"I'll be wearing the jersey and this will be on the back of a chair," Reece smiled, referencing a jacket given to him by Easley. "I'll have all the hats and everything else I have Seahawks will be in the room, trust me."
"I'm going to sport my jersey," added Patricia, chuckling that she hopes her Steelers friends will understand. "I'm repping my brother."
There's certainly a sadness that has come with the legend's passing, but he leaves behind a legacy that will never die, one that can be celebrated even more with a Seahawks victory on the Super Bowl stage.
"I'll break down, I'll tell you that right now," said Reece. "Without reservation, I'll break down in joy, but still missing my brother."
"I wish he was here to physically see it, but I know he's watching," Patricia remarked.
Before his passing, Easley and Reece penned the Hall of Famer's autobiographer, The Enforcer, which will be released soon.
