Eli Herring
Eli Herring made the news because he turned down an offer to play for the National Football League. He sent a letter to each of the 30 NFL teams explaining to them that he would not pursue an NFL career because of his religious beliefs, but he was drafted in the 6th round by the Oakland Raiders; one of the few people to get drafted in the NFL after declaring an intention never to play. The Raiders even dispatched the personnel director and an assistant coach to Provo with a three-year, $500,000-a-year offer, but Herring told him with characteristic politeness: "Money is not the issue here.”[1]
- Raider linebackers coach Fred Whittingham, a BYU alum, [Latter-day Saint], and Provo resident, invited Eli and Jennifer to his house to discuss the situation. Whittingham asked: "What about Steve Young? What about Todd Christensen (the former Raider tight end from BYU)?" Herring replied, "That was fine for them, not for me."
- ”I came away with an immense respect for Eli," Whittingham says. "Whatever he decided is between him and the Lord and we support him. Our door will be open if he ever decides to play.”[2]
Herring, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, had decided not to play for the NFL because games are on Sunday. And it was more important to him to honor the Sabbath day.
Instead, Herring finished his bachelor’s degree in mathematics at Brigham Young University. He is a math teacher and assistant football coach at Mountain View High School in Orem, Utah. He and his wife, Jennifer, have seven children.
While at BYU, Herring played offensive tackle during the 1987 and 1991–1994 seasons. He earned honoarable mention All-WAC in 1993 and second team All-WAC honors in 1994. He was selected to the Hula Bowl squad during his senior season He was also a member of the BYU track team. By his senior season he stood 6 feet 8 and weighed 330 pounds.
During his years at Springville High School, Herring participated and lettered in football, basketball, wrestling and track. He earned All-Region and All-State honors in football and wrestling, while also setting two state records in track and becoming the Utah state champion in the shot put and discus. He was the captain of the football team, and was a member of the 1985 team that won the state championship[3] He was recruited to play football by BYU, the University of Utah, Utah State University, Stanford University and the University of Washington, but enrolled at BYU in 1987 because it was the only school that did not withdraw a scholarship offer when he announced his plans to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).[3]
He served a mission to Argentina for the Church of Jesus Christ from 1988 to 1990. While he was there he read about Erroll Bennett, a professional soccer player in Tahiti, who withdrew from his team after joining the LDS Church and deciding not to play on the Sabbath.[4] “He was willing to give up this thing he loved to do,” Herring recalled. “He was better than anyone in his country, but he was going to walk away from that. I thought it was amazing. Not only that, they changed the day they play soccer because of his decision. I’ve never forgotten that.”[5]
- Herring also noticed during his mission how little weight sports and riches carry in the eternal perspective. Nobody in Argentina cared about American football. Plus, he was there during a time when Argentina was caught in the throes of hyper-inflation and he saw people struggle each day trying to feed their families after losing all that they had.
- “As I considered that NFL decision,” Herring said, “that factored in there. I realized that I could make a lot of money, but things could happen. Money might not be something I could depend on. The Lord makes very clear promises that He will provide for His people who keep the Sabbath. I figured, well, I can take that to the bank.”[6]
- Twenty years after making a decision that shocked the National Football League — and plenty of other people — Eli Herring wants the world to know he’s been abundantly blessed. And he’s happy.
- “There was never a regret,” he said this week, just days before the start of the 2015 NFL draft, which will transform college kids into multimillionaires.[7]
“There were people who took offense at my decision because they sensed that when I chose to not work on Sunday, I was condemning them,” he explained. “That was professional athletes and run-of-the-mill folks who weren’t professional athletes. I had correspondence from people who were angry. I said it then and I’ll say it again: for me, that was the decision I felt like I needed to make in my life. I’ve got tons of friends who played pro ball. I love them. We’re friends to this day and I have tons of respect for them. They’re great men. But for me, that’s what I needed to do. The evidence that I’ve obtained in my life since then has confirmed to me that for me, it was the right decision. I believe the Sabbath is an absolutely important law. If a person decides they need to work on Sunday, fair enough. I’m going to say, understand that I believe the law of the Sabbath is important. We have doctors and policemen and firemen that work on the Sabbath and thank heavens that they do. The Sabbath is important, I believe that.”[8]
