People doing good · Sports

After Vikes fans reward sportsmanship, Saints punter to return to Minnesota

Bob CollinsBob Collins Jan 18, 2018
4

Not since Cleveland Indians fans bought nearly the entire wedding registry of a young pitcher who had just won a playoff game (he was marrying a woman from Rochester, Minn.) have we seen such generosity from fans in the euphoria of victory.

Vikings fans noticed that Thomas Morstead, the punter for the Saints, quickly returned to the field for a meaningless extra-point attempt, after his team was beaten in Sunday’s game against New Orleans. Somebody had to.

That kind of sportsmanship — Morstead was injured earlier in the game — counted for someone on Reddit who looked up his charity and encouraged Vikings fans to donate to it.

They did. Contributions to his What You Give Will Grow Foundation rocketed. It started with small donations but then companies, including the Minnesota Vikings, joined in.

Morstead thought the money should stay in Minnesota, however, and vowed that if people contributed at least $100,000, he’d fly back to the Twin Cities to present the money to Children’s Hospital.

Mission accomplished.

“You guys should all be proud of yourselves. That’s a group effort, and it’s going to affect everyone in your community in a positive way. I’m just totally humbled by this. I may be forced to root for you guys all the way through the Super Bowl now. I’m just totally blown away,” he said.

He plans to return to Minnesota during the week before the Super Bowl.

Hey, as long as we’re on the subject…