Blindsided by your parents

      Imagine having your parents walk in, and steal all your money...that's how Tyron Smith feels.

                                        Tyron carrying on with his life happily with his girlfriend.
                                                                          Source: ESPN

    In this passage by Tim Keown, a writer for ESPN, wrote about NFL all pro offensive lineman Tyron Smith. ESPN is very reliable because it's the nations leader in sports coverage. What's interesting about Tyron is he was nearly bankrupted by his parents.

             Tyron was a very hard-working child, and he grew up in a very poor family. Tyron was an abnormally big kid growing up. And ever since he's been big he's felt like more of an asset than a person. Tyron said "my parents didn't really start caring about me until I got into football". When Tyron was in college an analyst projected him to be a top ten pick in next years response, and his families response was all about how much money they would get from him.

              When Smith got his first pay check he bought his mom a car, and payed off the family debt. This is start of Smith's family life collapsing. Smith stated "that's all I thought I owed my parents." Apparently the money Smith gave was spent on something else, and this angered Smith and caused him to have trust issues.

              Then Smith accomplished something great in the football world, he was moved from right tackle to left which is big for an O-lineman. When he told his family this, they all asked how much money he'd be making. Smith said "I felt like a human Santa list." Then when Smith found out he gave his parents 1 million dollars in a year he cut off all contact with his parents. This was when life got hard for Smith.

              When Tyron's family found out they made death threats on him and his sister, so he ordered a protective firm against his parents, and sisters. This was a change Smith had to make in his life, and now he is living with his girlfriend free from his family. Smith has a dream of traveling across the country telling top recruits about his story, and how it's ok to stand up to your parents and friends. This is the story of Tyron Smith, and how he was able to overcome his shaky relationship with his parents.

FUTURE RESEARCH:
1. Have have other athletes been blindsided by their parents?
2. What hurts more the money or family loss?