Super Bowl LVI: Former Clemson Tiger Will Be Playing for His Dad

Thanks to his dad, D.J. Reader gets to live out a childhood dream

D.J. Reader can talk about his dad and smile. He can recall how great his father, David, was and what he has meant to him in his life.

“He was truly a hero in my eyes,” D.J. said. “Everybody has their version of Super Man. My dad was that for me.”

David Reader passed away on June 30, 2014, from kidney failure, the day before D.J.’s 20th birthday. For a time, it took Cincinnati’s star defensive tackle some time to talk about what happened to his father.

For more than a year, D.J. refused any counseling or therapy, as he let his emotions fester inside, eating away at him. He refused to let himself grieve, while also being haunted by the last time he spoke with his dad earlier that summer.

“I was out of it,” D.J. said in an interview with ESPN back in 2016. “Wasn’t a great person. ... Losing my dad, he was like my best friend, my rock. I never had to seek male attention before because I had a male figure in my life. Not having that was real hard for me because I didn’t have anybody to talk to. At least I felt like I didn’t. I did, but I pushed them away.”

Those he pushed away were his Clemson teammates and coaches at the time, along with his mother and brother.

“My values were down, everything was down,” D.J. said.

Eventually, because he was getting too bad, Clemson mandated he seek counseling. It turned out to be a blessing for D.J.

By opening up his feelings and discussing his last conversation with his father, D.J. finally got the pain out. He eventually started getting back to his old self and was finally getting the opportunity to honor his father’s life the way he always wanted to.

“The things he left me with, will never be forgotten,” Reader said to the media on Friday, as he and the Bengals get set to play the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday. “As a 19-year-old kid, about to turn 20, I was really, really lost in this world. I feel like he is with me every day, talking to me about this life thing.

“I thank my mom all the time, every single day. She could not have married or chose a better man to raise a person in this world, in my opinion.”

Back in Greensboro, N.C., David Reader was a devoted father, teacher and coach. He always wanted to help others, even when his bout with rheumatoid arthritis was making it difficult for him to do the things he loved to do.

His arthritis eventually forced him out of the classroom and away from coaching sports, but he continued to teach D.J. and other neighborhood kids from his home.

“He was the smartest guy I ever met in my life,” Reader said. “Like I told you, I had a national hero in my house every day. The way he touched kids from around my neighborhood and other neighborhoods, tutoring kids, watching him do SAT prep for free with kids. He was just a true blessing.”

Eventually, the medications David was taking for his rheumatoid arthritis started to damage his kidneys. He needed a transplant, but he would not accept one from D.J. or D.J.’s mother, Felicia.

Even after it was discovered D.J. was a match, David would not allow his son to give him a kidney because he wanted D.J. to play professional football, knowing he was going to need both kidneys to continue to play such a violent game.

“He was really adamant about what he wanted,” Felicia said in the interview with ESPN. “He said he was here to protect D.J. and he was here to protect me at all costs. And he meant that.”

David would not even allow Felicia to get tested, telling her she needed to stay as healthy as she could because D.J. was going to need her more than ever. He could not risk something happening to her and D.J. losing both of his parents.

“Tried, but I knew it wasn’t going to work,” Felicia said. “A very giving man, a very loving man, a very stubborn man. When it was something that would impact D.J. or Felicia, it was no moving. Nobody could’ve moved him.”

All David wanted was the best for his son. He wanted D.J. have the opportunity to get his education and play football at the highest level. D.J. graduated from Clemson in 2015 and after helping the Tigers play for a national championship, he was drafted by the Houston Texans in the fifth round of the NFL Draft.

After spending his first four years in Houston, D.J. signed on with the Bengals in March of 2020. On Sunday, he will be living out every little boy’s dream who played football, playing on Super Bowl Sunday and one win from winning a Super Bowl.

“It just gets your heart racing thinking about it,” Reader said. “This is just an exciting moment. Everybody thinks about it forever, so I am excited for the opportunity to go out there and play.”

And that is all David Reader ever wanted for his son.

The odds of the Bengals winning the Super Bowl is currently +166, and the Rams are currently at -198 according to Fanduel.