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{{Infobox military person
|name=Pat Tillman
|born= {{birth date|mf=yes|1976|11|6}}
|died= {{death date and age|mf=yes|2004|4|22|1976|11|6}}
|placeofbirth= ]
|placeofdeath= ], ]
|placeofburial=
|placeofburial_label= Place of burial
|image=]
|caption=Pat Tillman
|nickname=
|allegiance= ]
|branch= ]
|serviceyears=2002–2004
|rank=]
|unit= ]
|battles=]<br/>] (OEF-A)
|awards=]<br/>]
}}
{{NFLretired
|image=Pat Tillman statue.jpg
|caption=Tillman's statue outside of ]
|width=200
|position=]
|number=40, 42
|birthdate={{birth date|1976|11|6|mf=y}}
|deathdate={{death date and age|mf=yes|2004|4|22|1976|11|6}}
|debutyear=1998
|finalyear=2001
|draftyear=1998
|draftround=7
|draftpick=226
|college=]
|teams=<nowiki></nowiki><!--This forces MediaWiki to recognize the first bullet. Kind of a workaround to a bug.-->
* ] (]-])
|stat1label=]
|stat1value=390
|stat2label=]
|stat2value=3
|stat3label=]
|stat3value=2.5
|nfl=TIL573494
|highlights=<nowiki></nowiki>
* ] ] selection (2000)
* ] retired
* ] retired
}}
'''Patrick Daniel "Pat" Tillman''' (November 6, 1976 – April 22, 2004) was an ] player who left his professional sports career and enlisted in the ] in May 2002 in the aftermath of the ]. He joined the ] and served multiple tours in combat before he was killed by ] in the mountains of ]. Details about the circumstances surrounding his death have been the subject of controversy and military investigations.

He is the second professional football player to be killed in combat since 1970; the first was ] of the ], who died in the ] in 1970.

==Football career==
Pat Tillman was born in ], ]. He started his college career as a ] for ] in 1994, when he secured the last remaining scholarship for the team. Tillman excelled as a linebacker at Arizona State, despite being relatively small for the position at five-feet eleven-inches (1.80&nbsp;m) tall. As a senior, he was voted the ] Defensive Player of the Year. Academically, Tillman majored in ] and graduated in three and a half years with a 3.84 ].

In the ], Tillman was selected as the 226th pick by the ]. Tillman moved over to play the ] position in the NFL and started ten of sixteen games in his ] season.

At one point in his NFL career, Tillman turned down a five-year, $9 million contract offer from the ] out of loyalty to the Cardinals.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/03/27/MNGP4OSGB71.DTL&type=printable |title=In football and in life, Tillman was determined, independent |work=Matthew B. Stannard |publisher=SFGate.com |accessdate=2007-07-31}}</ref>

'']'' football writer ] (Dr. Z) named Tillman to his 2000 NFL All-Pro team after Tillman finished with 155 tackles (120 solo), 1.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, 9 pass deflections and 1 interception for 30&nbsp;yards.

Tillman finished his career with totals of 238 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3 interceptions for 37&nbsp;yards, 3 forced fumbles, 2 pass deflections, and 3 fumble recoveries in 60 career games. In addition he also had 1 rush attempt for 4&nbsp;yards and returned 3 kickoffs for 33&nbsp;yards.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/T/TillPa20.htm |title=Pat Tillman}}</ref>

In May 2002, eight months after the ] and after completing the fifteen remaining games of the ] season which followed the attacks (at a salary of ]512,000 per year),<ref>{{cite news |url=http://asp.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/salaries/playerdetail.aspx?player=2307 |title=Pat Tillman |work=Salaries Database |publisher=] |accessdate=2006-11-23}}</ref> Tillman turned down a contract offer of $3.6 million over three years from the Cardinals to enlist in the U.S. Army.<ref name="MSNBC_20060426">{{cite news |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4815441 |title=Ex-NFL star Tillman makes ‘ultimate sacrifice’,Safety, who gave up big salary to join Army, killed in Afghanistan |publisher=MSNBC |date=April 26, 2004 |accessdate=2006-11-23}}</ref>

==Military career==
He enlisted, along with his brother ], who gave up the chance of a career in professional baseball. The two brothers completed the ] in late 2002 and were assigned to the second battalion of the ] in ]. He resided in ] with his wife before being deployed to Iraq. After participating in the ] of Operation Iraqi Freedom, he graduated from ].

==Religious and political beliefs==
According to speakers at his funeral, he was very well-read, having read a number of religious texts including the ], ] and ] as well as ] authors such as ] and ]; his younger brother Rich stated that he "is not with God... He was not religious."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/05/04/SPG5K6FD091.DTL |work=San Francisco Chronicle |title=True hero athlete}}</ref> Another article quotes him as having told then-general manager of the ] Bob Ferguson in December 2003 that "you know I'm not religious".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/2005-04-16-tillman-opportunity_x.htm |work=USA Today |title=Fallen Ranger Tillman turned down NFL overtures for 2004 season}}</ref>

The September 25, 2005, edition of the '']'' newspaper reported that Tillman held views which were critical of the Iraq war. According to Tillman's mother, a friend of Tillman had arranged a meeting with author ], a prominent critic of American foreign and military policy, to take place after his return from Afghanistan. Chomsky has confirmed this.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051024/zirin |work=The Nation |title=Pat Tillman, Our Hero}}</ref>

==Death==
Tillman was subsequently redeployed to Afghanistan. On April 22, 2004, he was killed in a friendly fire incident while on patrol. The specific details of his death and its aftermath are currently being investigated by the ].

The Army initially claimed that Tillman and his unit were attacked in an apparent ambush on a road outside of the village of ] about 25&nbsp;miles (40&nbsp;km) southwest of ], near the Pakistan border. An Afghan militia soldier was killed, and two other Rangers were injured as well.

The ] initially claimed that there was an exchange with hostile forces. After a lengthy investigation conducted by ] Jones, the ] concluded that both the Afghan militia soldier's and Pat Tillman's deaths were due to friendly fire aggravated by the intensity of the firefight.

A more thorough investigation concluded that no hostile forces were involved in the firefight and that two allied groups fired on each other in confusion after a nearby explosive device was detonated.

On July 26, 2007, the AP received official documents stating that the investigating doctors performing the autopsy suspected that Tillman was murdered.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003617692 |title=Was Pat Tillman Murdered |publisher=Associated Press |date=July 26, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref>

===Controversy surrounding Tillman's death===
A report described in '']'' on May 4, 2005, (prepared upon the request of Tillman's family) by Brig. Gen. Gary M. Jones revealed that in the days immediately following Tillman's death, ] investigators were aware that Tillman was killed by friendly fire, shot three times to the head.<ref>{{ cite web |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/07/01/afghan.probe/index.html |work=CNN |title=U.S. military probes soldier's death |date=July 1, 2006 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref> Jones reported that senior Army commanders, including Gen. ], knew of this fact within days of the shooting but nevertheless approved the awarding of the ], ], and a ].

Lt. Gen. ] approved the Silver Star citation on April 28, 2004, which gave a detailed account of Tillman's death including the phrase "in the line of devastating enemy fire", but the next day he sent a P4 memo warning senior government members that Tillman might actually have been killed by friendly fire.<ref>{{cite news
|title=General's memo voiced doubts in Tillman's death
|author=Scott Lindlaw and Martha Mendoza
|publisher=Associated Press
|date=August 4, 2007
|url=http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0804Tillman-Split0804.html
}}</ref> Top commanders within the U.S. Central Command, including former Commander of the ] (CENTCOM) General John Abizaid, should have been notified by the P4 memo,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070803/ap_on_re_us/tillman_p4|title=Text of Tillman P4 memo}}</ref> which described Tillman's "highly possible" ], four days before Tillman's nationally televised memorial service during which he was lauded as a war hero for dying while engaging the enemy.<ref>{{cite news
|title=New questions raised over timing of Army's disclosure of killing by friendly fire
|author=Robert Collier
|publisher=San Francisco Chronicle
|date=April 11, 2007
|url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/04/11/MNGAVP6GKF1.DTL&type=printable
}}</ref><ref name=krakauertillmanbeast>{{citation|title=Gen. McChrystal's Credibility Problem|website=The Daily Beast|first=Jon|last=Krakauer|date=October 14, 2009|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-10-14/gen-mcchrystals-credibility-problem/?cid=hp:mainpromo3}}</ref>

Jones reported that members of Tillman's unit burned his ] and uniform in an apparent attempt to hide the fact that he was killed by friendly fire.<ref name="armyWithheld">{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/03/AR2005050301502.html |title=Army Withheld Details About Tillman's Death:Investigator Quickly Learned 'Friendly Fire' Killed Athlete |author=Josh White |work=Washington Post |page=A-3 |date=May 4, 2005 |accessdate=2006-11-23}}</ref> Perhaps most tragically, his notebook, in which, according to author ], Tillman had recorded some of his thoughts on Afghanistan, was also burned, a blatant violation of protocol.<ref name="coverup">{{cite news |url=http://www.alternet.org/world/142692/inside_pat_tillman's_life,_and_the_bush_administration's_cover-up_of_his_death/?page=entire |title=Inside Pat Tillman's Life, and the Bush Administration's Cover-Up of His Death |author=Sarah Seltzer|work=Alternet|date=September 17, 2009 |accessdate=2009-09-17}}</ref> Several soldiers were subsequently punished for their actions by being removed from the ].<ref name="armyWithheld"/> Jones believed that Tillman should retain his medals and promotion, since, according to Jones, he intended to engage the enemy and, in Jones's opinion, behaved heroically.<ref name="armyWithheld" />

Tillman's family was not informed of the finding that he was killed by friendly fire until weeks after his memorial service, although at least some senior Army officers knew of that fact prior to the service.<ref name="armyWithheld" /> According to author and journalist Jon Krakauer's book ''Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman'', the extensive cover-up that followed his death included the military ordering Tillman's comrades to lie to his family at the funeral.<ref name="coverup"/> Tillman's parents have sharply criticized the Army's handling of the incident; Tillman's father charges that the Army "purposely interfered in the investigation" because of the effect it could have on their recruiting efforts, while Tillman's mother charges that "this lie was to cover their image".<ref name="tillmansParents">{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/22/AR2005052200865.html |work=Washington Post |title=Tillman's Parents Are Critical Of Army |author=Josh White |date=May 23, 2005 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref>

His mother Mary Tillman told ''The Washington Post'', "The fact that he was the ultimate team player and he watched his own men kill him is absolutely heartbreaking and tragic. The fact that they lied about it afterward is disgusting." Tillman's father, Patrick Tillman, Sr., was incensed by the coverup of the cause of his son's death, which he attributed to a conscious decision by the leadership of the U.S. Army to protect the Army's image.

{{cquote|After it happened, all the people in positions of authority went out of their way to script this. They purposely interfered with the investigation; they covered it up. I think they thought they could control it, and they realized that their recruiting efforts were going to go to hell in a handbasket if the truth about his death got out. They blew up their ].<ref name="tillmansParents" />}}

He also blamed high-ranking Army officers for presenting "outright lies" to the family and to the public.<ref name="Gottlieb">{{cite web |url=http://ambivablog.typepad.com/ambivablog/2005/05/pat_tillman_its.html |title=Pat Tillman: It's Even Worse UPDATED |author=Annie Gottlieb |date=May 5, 2005 |accessdate=2006-11-23}}</ref>

Later, Tillman's father suggested in a letter to ''The Washington Post'' that the Army hierarchy's purported mistakes were part of a pattern of conscious misconduct:

{{cquote|With respect to the Army's reference to 'mistakes in reporting the circumstances of &#91;my son's&#93; death': those 'mistakes' were deliberate, calculated, ordered (repeatedly), and disgraceful — conduct well beneath the standard to which every soldier in the field is held.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/27/AR2005052701265_pf.html |work=Washington Post |title=Failures and Blame In Pat Tillman's Death |author=Pat Tillman Sr. |date=May 28, 2005 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref>}}

These complaints and allegations led the Pentagon's Inspector General to open a further inquiry into Tillman's death in August 2005.<ref name="sfGate2005">{{cite web |url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/09/25/MNGD7ETMNM1.DTL |work=San Francisco Chronicle: |title=Family Demands The Truth |author=Robert Collier |date=September 25, 2005 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref>

On March 4, 2006, the U.S. Defense Department Inspector General directed the Army to open a ] of Tillman's death. The Army's Criminal Investigative Division will determine if Tillman's death was the result of negligent homicide.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/03/04/tillman/index.html |work=CNN |title=Army to open criminal probe of Tillman death}}</ref>

On March 26, 2007, the Pentagon released their report on the events surrounding Tillman's death and coverup. The report reads in part:

{{cquote|...we emphasize that all investigators established the basic facts of CPL Tillman's death -- that it was caused by friendly fire, that the occupants of one vehicle in CPL Tillman's platoon were responsible, and that circumstances on the ground caused those occupants to misidentify friendly forces as hostile. None of the investigations suggested that CPL Tillman's death was anything other than accidental. Our review, as well as the investigation recently completed by Army CID, obtained no evidence contrary to those key findings.<ref name="IGR"> March 28, 2006</ref>}}

On April 24, 2007, his brother ], testifying at a congressional hearing, stated, "The deception surrounding this case was an insult to the family: but more importantly, its primary purpose was to deceive a whole nation. We say these things with disappointment and sadness for our country. Once again, we have been used as props in a Pentagon public relations exercise."<ref name="mercuryNews">{{cite web |url=http://origin.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_5527484 |work=Mercury News |title=Family blasts latest investigation of Pat Tillman's friendly fire death as `shamefully unacceptable'}}</ref>

After Kevin's testimony ], acting ] stated to reporters, "We as an Army failed in our duty to the Tillman family, the duty we owe to all the families of our fallen soldiers: Give them the truth, the best we know it, as fast as we can."<ref name="mercuryNews"/>

Tillman's diary was never returned to his family, and its whereabouts are not publicly known.<ref>{{cite web |author=Monica Davey |coauthors=Eric Schmitt |title=2 Years After Soldier's Death, Family's Battle Is With Army |work=The New York Times |date=March 21, 2006 |url= http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/21/politics/21tillman.html?ei=5090&en=fccabd7478e61e52&ex=1300597200&adxnnl=1&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=print&adxnnlx=1185554875-gZxiz4QfsOk2xD0BdXVNIg}}</ref>

One investigation of the autopsy report and photographs by two forensic pathologists in November, 2006, concluded that Tillman was most likely killed as a result of fire from a ], previously designated the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW). The M249 uses the same ] as the M16 but is capable of a substantially higher rate of fire. The higher rate of fire would have allowed for a competent user to place three bullets within a several inch target from forty or fifty yards away, even from a moving vehicle.<ref> Krakauer, Jon (2009). Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman. Doubleday (September 15, 2009); Page 317. ISBN 978-0385522267</ref>
On July 26, 2007, ] reported on '']'' that Tillman's death may have been a case of ] - specifically that the bullet holes were tight and neat, suggesting a shot at close range. Matthews based his speculation on a report from the doctors who investigated Tillman's body. The following day the Associated Press reported that a doctor who examined Tillman's body after his death wrote, "The medical evidence did not match up with the, with the scenario as described,"<ref name="newDetails">{{cite news |url=http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-07-26-tillman-friendly-fire_N.htm |title=AP: New Details on Tillman's Death |author=Martha Mendoza |publisher=Associated Press |date=July 27, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> also noting that the wound entrances appeared as though he had been shot with an ] from less than {{convert|10|yd|m|-0.1}} away. A possible motive, however, has never been identified. According to one of his fellow soldiers, Tillman "was popular among his fellow soldiers and had no enemies".<ref name="sfGate2005"/>

In addition:<ref name="newDetails" />
* There has never been evidence of enemy fire found on the scene, and no members of Tillman's group had been hit by enemy fire.
* The three-star general who withheld details of Tillman's death from his parents for a number of months, told investigators he (the general) had a bad memory, and could not recall details of his actions on more than 70 occasions.
* Army attorneys congratulated each other in emails for impeding criminal investigation as they concluded Tillman's death was the result of friendly fire, and that only administrative, or non-criminal, punishment was indicated.
* Army doctors told the investigators that these wounds suggested murder and urged them to launch a criminal investigation<ref name=brits>] </ref>
* It has been revealed that there were never-before-mentioned US snipers in the second group that had encountered Tillman's squad<ref name=brits/>

===Congressional inquiries===
On April 24, 2007, Spc. Bryan O'Neal, the last soldier to see Pat Tillman alive, testified before the ] that he was warned by superiors not to divulge information that a fellow soldier killed Tillman, especially to the Tillman family. Later, Pat Tillman's brother Kevin Tillman, who was also in the convoy traveling behind his brother at the time of the 2004 incident in Afghanistan but did not witness it, testified that the ] tried to spin his brother's death to deflect attention from emerging failings in the Afghan war.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/04/24/tillman.hearing/index.html |title=Soldier: Army ordered me not to tell truth about Tillman |work=CNN}}</ref>

Thereafter the committee sought further information. The Bush administration turned over thousands of documents, described as "mostly press clippings," but refused to release others, citing "executive branch confidentiality interests." The committee's chair, ] ], and its ], ] ], wrote a joint letter describing the disclosure as "inadequate," saying, "The document production from the ] sheds virtually no light on these matters."<ref>{{cite web|last =Associated Press|authorlink =Associated Press|title =Lawmakers: Bush Withheld Tillman Documents|publisher =]|date =July 13, 2007|url =http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/13/politics/main3057506.shtml?source=RSSattr=Politics_3057506 |accessdate =2007-07-29}}</ref>

On August 13, 2007, '']'' reported that twenty U.S. military veterans who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan asked the NFL commissioner, ], to help secure the release of all documents relating to the death of Pat Tillman.<ref>{{cite web|last =Associated Press|authorlink =Associated Press|title =Military vets ask Goodell to help release Tillman report|publisher =]|date =August 13, 2007|url =http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/football/nfl/specials/preview/2007/08/13/tillman.veterans.ap/}}</ref>

On July 14, 2008 the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a proposed report titled "Misleading Information from the Battlefield: The Tillman and Lynch Episodes".<ref>{{cite web| last = House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform| authorlink = United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform| title = Misleading Information from the Battlefield: The Tillman and Lynch Episodes | publisher = ]| date = July 14, 2008| url = http://oversight.house.gov/documents/20080714111050.pdf| format = pdf | accessdate = 2008-07-15}}</ref><ref>{{Citation| last = Seibel| first = Mark | title = Bush officials' 'lack of recall' thwarted Tillman, Lynch probes| newspaper = ]| date = July 14, 2008| url = http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq/story/44191.html}}</ref> The committee stated that its "investigation was frustrated by a near universal lack of recall" among "senior officials at the White House" and the military. It concluded:
<blockquote>The pervasive lack of recollection and absence of specific information makes it impossible for the Committee to assign responsibility for the misinformation in Corporal Tillman’s and ]’s cases. It is clear, however, that the Defense Department did not meet its most basic obligations in sharing accurate information with the families and with the American public.</blockquote>
tillman will be greatly missed in the hearts of many fans,family,and freinds.RIP

==Reactions to Tillman's death==
===Memorials and tributes===
]
After his death, the Pat Tillman Foundation was established to carry forward its view of Tillman's legacy by inspiring and supporting those striving for positive change in themselves and the world around them.

A highway bypass around the ] will have a bridge bearing Tillman's name. When completed in September 2010, the ] will span the Colorado River between Nevada and Arizona.

] has established the Pat Tillman Scholarship in honor of Tillman. Tillman's father, Patrick Kevin Tillman, earned his Juris Doctor from Lincoln in 1983.

On Sunday, September 19, 2004, all teams of the ] wore a memorial decal on their helmets in honor of Pat Tillman. The Arizona Cardinals continued to wear this decal throughout the 2004 season. Former Cardinals quarterback ] requested to also wear the decal for the entire season but the NFL turned him down saying his helmet would not be uniform with the rest of the ]. Plummer would later grow a full beard and his hair long in honor of Tillman, who had such a style in the NFL before cutting his hair and shaving his beard off to fit military uniform guidelines. Plummer, now retired from the NFL, has since gone back to cutting his hair short but maintains the beard.
]

In 2005, ] of the ] switched his uniform number to 40 in honor of Tillman.

The Cardinals retired his number ], and Arizona State did the same for the number ] he wore with the Sun Devils. The Cardinals have named the plaza surrounding their ] in ], Pat Tillman Freedom Plaza. Later, on November 12, 2006, during a Cardinals game versus the Cowboys, a bronze statue was revealed in his honor. ASU also named the entryway to ] the "Pat Tillman Memorial Tunnel" and made a "PT-42" patch that they placed on the neck of their uniforms a permanent feature.

Pat Tillman's high school, ] in San Jose, California, renamed its football field after him.

In 2004, the NFL donated $250,000 to the ] to build a USO center in memory of Tillman. The Pat Tillman USO Center, the first USO center in ], opened on ] on April 1, 2005.<ref>Landers, Jim, "Tillman's Legacy Lives On At Center", '']'', January 18, 2009, p. 22.</ref>
] Tillman is close to the ] border, near the village of Lwara in ], Afghanistan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hotzone.yahoo.com/b/hotzone/blogs2908 |title=The Last Outpost}}</ref>{{Dead link|date=November 2009}}

On Saturday, April 15, 2006, more than 10,000 participants turned out for Pat's Run in ]. The racers traveled along the {{convert|4.2|mi|km|1|sing=on}} course around Tempe Town Lake to the finish line, on the {{convert|42|yd|m|0|sing=on}} line of ]. A second race took place in San Jose. Sponsored by the Pat Tillman Foundation, a total of 14,000 runners took part. In 2005, about 6,000 took part in a single race in Tempe.

Just south of San Jose, California, in the small community of ] where Pat Tillman grew up, a memorial was constructed near the ]. This memorial was dedicated in September 2007 during the annual New Almaden Day celebration.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mercurynews.com/valley/ci_6543559 |title=Memorial to honor Pat Tillman, a kid New Almaden knew well, San Jose Mercury News, August 4, 2007}}</ref>

The skateboarding ] featured on ] and in an ] ] commercial was named after Tillman.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wygt6L_3L5Y |title=Tillman the Skateboarding Bulldog}}</ref>

Two books about Tillman were published in 2009. ], best-selling author of '']'' and '']'', chronicles Tillman's story in '']'', published by Doubleday on September 15. Meanwhile, Tillman's mother, Mary Tillman, also wrote a book about her son, '']'', which was released in April.

Following Tillman's death, the Ohio State Linebackers Corp consisting of ], ], and ], as well as center ] grew their hair in tribute to Tillman, imitating Tillman's trademark locks.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/draft/2006-03-08-osu-lb-feature_x.htm |title=Lot of bang from the Buckeyes, USA Today, March 8, 2006}}</ref>

In September 2008, Rory Fanning, a fellow Army Ranger who was stationed with Tillman in Fort Lewis, WA, began his "Walk for Pat" — a walk across the United States in an effort to raise money and awareness for the Pat Tillman Foundation. The stated fundraising goal is $3.6 million — the value of the contract Tillman turned down when he decided to enlist in the military.

The ] football defensive player of the year is named in his honor.<ref>, ''Pac-10.org'', December 7, 2009</ref>

===Controversial criticisms===
After reports of Tillman's anti-war views became public, ] who had previously written a comic calling Tillman a "fool" and "idiot", said that he was wrong to have assumed Tillman to be a "right wing poster child" when Tillman regarded the invasion of Iraq as illegal.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tedrall.com/2005_10_01_archive.html#112880323465427889 |title=Pat Tillman Redux |author=Ted Rall |date=October 8, 2005 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web
| title = Family demands the truth: new inquiry may expose events that led to Pat Tillman's death
| accessdate = 2008-06-03 |date=2005-09-25
| author = Robert Collier | publisher=San Francisco Chronicle
| url = http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/09/25/MNGD7ETMNM1.DTL
}}</ref>

Lieutenant Colonel ], Regimental Executive Officer at Forward Operating Base Salerno on Khowst, Afghanistan under which Tillman was serving at the time of his death, and who led the second investigation into Tillman's death, has made controversial statements about the Tillman family’s search for the truth based on Tillman's apparent agnosticism. In comments to ], Kauzlarich said: "These people have a hard time letting it go. It may be because of their religious beliefs" and "When you die, I mean, there is supposedly a better life, right? Well, if you are an atheist and you don’t believe in anything, if you die, what is there to go to? Nothing. You are worm dirt. So for their son to die for nothing and now he is no more... I do not know how an atheist thinks, I can only imagine that would be pretty tough."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20060728_worm_dirt/ |title=Playing the Atheism Card Against Pat Tillman’s Family |author=Stan Goff |date=July 28, 2006 |accessdate=2007-07-28}}</ref> Lt. Col. Ralph Kauzlarich conducted the second investigation into Tillman's death which lasted a week, from May 8, 2004, to May 15, 2004.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=tillmantimeline |title=Pat Tillman Timeline |author=Mike Fish |date=Spring 2006 |accessdate=2007-07-31}}</ref> Brigadier General Rodney Johnson, the Commanding General of the United States Army Criminal Investigations Command, testified before Congress that he found these statements "totally unacceptable." Acting Department of Defense Inspector General Thomas Gimble also testified that he was "shocked" that Lt. Col. Kauzlarich would make these statements.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://oversight.house.gov/documents/20070517170253.pdf |format=PDF|title=Letter to General Ham |author=Henry Waxman and Tom Davis|date=May 16, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-31}}</ref> According to AP analysis, Kauzlarich may be one of three lower level officers expected to be punished whose names have not yet been released by the military. Tillman's mother continues to reject the Pentagon's characterization of the officers' offenses as "errors" in reporting Tillman's death, because several officers have said they made conscious decisions not to tell the Tillman family that friendly fire was suspected.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-07-26-tillman_N.htm |title=Report: General faces demotion in Tillman case |author=Associated Press|date=July 26, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-31}}</ref>

==See also==

* ] - NFL player, US soldier in Vietnam
* ] - Retired NFL player killed in action during the ]
*] - former NBA player who left his professional sports career and enlisted in the United States Army in September 12, 2008.
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]

{{portal|United States Army|United States Department of the Army Seal.svg}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Books==
* {{cite book
| last = Krakauer
| first = Jon
| authorlink =
| year = 2009
| chapter =
| title = Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman
| publisher = Doubleday (September 15, 2009)
| location =
| isbn = 978-0385522267
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Tillman
| first = Mary
| authorlink =
| coauthors = Narda Zacchino
| year = 2008
| chapter =
| title = Boots on the Ground by Dusk: My Tribute to Pat Tillman
| publisher = Modern Times
| location =
| isbn = 1594868808
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* , Sports Illustrated's list of 26 other NFL players who died in war.
*
*
*
*
* , a song written by ].
* {{cite web |url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/05/04/SPG5K6FD091.DTL |title=True hero athlete&nbsp; — Day's theme: Challenge yourself |author=Gwen Knapp |date=May 4, 2004 |work=San Francisco Chronicle |publisher=SFGate.com |accessdate=2006-11-23}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/05/04/tillman.death/index.html |author=Mike Mount |title="Report: Evidence destroyed after Tillman's death" |date=May 4, 2005 |accessdate=2007-07-31}}
* {{cite web |url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=tillmantimeline |title=Pat Tillman Timeline |author=Mike Fish |date=Spring 2006 |accessdate=2007-07-31}}
* {{cite web |url=http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=tillmanpart1 |title=An Un-American Tragedy |publisher=ESPN |author=Mike Fish |accessdate=2007-07-18}}
** {{cite web |url=http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003627404 |title=ESPN.com Tillman Coverage Wins Top Military Reporters Prize |publisher=Editor and Publisher |author=Joe Strupp |accessdate=2007-07-18}}
* {{cite web |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/magazine/09/05/tillman0911/ |work=Sports Illustrated |title="Remember His Name" |author=]|date=September 5, 2006 |accessdate=2008-12-04}}
* {{cite news |url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061109/ap_on_re_us/inquest_for_a_warrior |title=Startling findings in Tillman probe |author=Scott Lindlaw and Martha Mendoza (Associated Press) |publisher=Yahoo News |date=November 9, 2006 |accessdate=2006-11-09}}
* {{cite web |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/football/nfl/04/20/tillman/index.html |author=SI.com |title="Lawmakers question Army's information lockdown" |date=April 20, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-31}}
* {{cite web |url=http://antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=11367 |author=]|work=] |title="Who Killed Pat Tillman? And why?" |date=July 30, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-30}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=4018
|work=Office of the US Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) |title="Information regarding the death of Pat Tillman" |date=July 31, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-01}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/07/31/tillman.friendly.fire.letter.ap/index.html#cnnSTCText |work=Pete Geren, Under Secretary of the US Army |title="Text of letter censuring general in Tillman case" |date=July 31, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-02}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-10-14/gen-mcchrystals-credibility-problem/?cid=hp:mainpromo3 |date=October 14, 2009 |title=Gen. McChrystal's Credibility Proble |author=Jon Krakauer}}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/11/MNGAVP6GKF1.DTL |title=New questions raised over timing of Army's disclosure of killing by friendly fire |author=Robert Collier (San Francisco Chronicle) |publisher=SFGate.com |date=August 1, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-01}}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_6523534?source=rss |title=Key events in the weeks following Pat Tillman's friendly fire death |author=Associated Press |publisher=Mercury News |date=August 1, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-02}}
* {{cite web |url=http://oversight.house.gov/investigations.asp?ID=256 |work=US House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform |title="The Tillman Fratricide: Investigation Chronology" |date=August 2, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-10}}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.kansascity.com/news/nation/story/227548.html |title=Mild reprimands in Tillman case won’t be in officers’ records |author=Associated Press |publisher=Kansas City Star |date=August 10, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-11}}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.federalnewsradio.com/index.php?nid=80&sid=1246450 |title=2 Soldiers Who Wrote Op-Ed Died in Iraq |author=Monica Rhor (Associated Press) |publisher=Federal News Radio |date=2007-09-12}} Deaths of Sgt. Omar Mora and Sgt. Yance T. Gray
*
{{Arizona Cardinals Ring of Honor}}
{{Arizona Cardinals Retired Numbers}}

{{Persondata
|NAME=Tillman, Pat
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=American soldier
|DATE OF BIRTH=November 6, 1976
|PLACE OF BIRTH=]
|DATE OF DEATH=April 22, 2004
|PLACE OF DEATH=Sperah, Afghanistan
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tillman, Pat}}
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Revision as of 03:12, 18 January 2010

til man was a good man