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January 29, 2004
Mangum has mixed emotions for game
It's been 10 years since tight end's father fell ill on Super Bowl Sunday
By John Delong | JOURNAL REPORTER
HOUSTON
Kris Mangum grew up in a football family, so Super Bowl Sunday has always been one of the biggest days of the year.
Nowadays, it carries other significance, too.
Ten years ago, Mangum's father John suffered a stroke the morning of Super Bowl Sunday that sent him to the hospital, never to return home. He suffered another stroke the following week while in the hospital and died of heart complications two months later, at age 52.
So when the Carolina Panthers face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVIII Sunday night at Reliant Stadium, Mangum, the Panthers' veteran tight end, will no doubt experience mixed emotions.
"I know he's here, and he's watching," Mangum said as the Panthers took time for another one-hour media session yesterday. "Ten years it has been like that. I think he knows what is going on. It's been a good ride."
There's more.
It turns out that before John Mangum returned to his native Mississippi to start a family and coach high school football, he played professional football - for the Patriots, back when they were the Boston Patriots.
"The whole thing is kind of ironic," Mangum said. "It's my first Super Bowl and it comes 10 years after he passes away, and it's against my father's ex-team. It's a little spooky."
Mangum, a 6-4, 249-pounder in his sixth season with the Panthers, started 10 games during the regular season and has started throughout the playoffs. Blocking is his forte, but he caught 17 passes for 199 yards during the regular season and caught one in a win over Dallas on wild-card weekend.
He was a sophomore at the University of Mississippi in January of 1994, when his father suffered the stroke at the family home in Magee, Miss., on the morning of Super Bowl XXVIII.
Mangum had come home for the weekend to watch the game with his father - a 300-pounder who played defensive tackle with the Patriots and went by the nickname of "The Big Giant."
"It was probably about 10 o'clock in the morning when my mom came back to my bedroom, and she said there was something wrong with your father," Mangum recalled. "You have to understand, my dad was a massive guy, and when I saw him, I knew something was seriously wrong with him. He obviously had a stroke, because his equilibrium was all blown and he couldn't stand up. He said everything was spinning. I'd never seen him father like that.
"I called 911 and got the ambulance there, and the next thing you know, in the house I grew up my whole life, my father was getting wheeled out on a stretcher to the hospital."
Mangum and his father watched the Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills 30-13 from his father's hospital room.
But things got worse with time.
"He never made it back home," Mangum said. "Two months later, with all the complications, his heart just gave out on him."
Still, Mangum is quick to say that he looks at Super Bowl Sunday in a positive way, as a joyous occasion.
It's not merely the day his father had a stroke - it's a day that symbolized how much football meant in the family.
His father wasn't just a former NFL player, he was a legend of sorts as an ultra-successful coach at Magee High. And Mangum's brother, John Jr., had a brief stint with the Chicago Bears after a standout career at Alabama.
"You had a father and two sons who grew up in a small town and all played in the NFL," Mangum said. "I mean, football was our life. Growing up, that's all I knew was football. I grew up eating, drinking and sleeping football. So the Super Bowl has always been one of the biggest days of the year to me.
"That's never changed. Sure, it's a reminder of the past, but time heals all wounds, as they say. I've always loved watching the Super Bowl, and I always will."
He's going to enjoy playing in it even more.
"This is what it's all about," he said. "This is what you dream about your whole career. It's ironic that it's going to be against my father's old team, and it's ironic it's here in Houston, too. I was a Houston Astros fan, and we used to come to Houston once a summer, to watch Jose Cruz play.
"Obviously I can't wait to get out there and play. We just have to make sure we come away with a win."
• John Delong can be reached at jdelong@wsjournal.com