East Michigan News

The Eastern Michigan University (EMU) football program hosted its annual Victory Day event on May 21 at the EMU Indoor Practice Facility in Ypsilanti, Michigan. This year marked the 11th edition of the event, which welcomed a record 265 participants with cognitive and physical impairments to engage in a day of football activities alongside EMU players, coaches, and staff.

Participants began their day by walking through a tunnel formed by EMU football players and the cheer and dance teams. Following this entrance, EMU Head Football Coach Chris Creighton addressed the participants with a welcome speech before they commenced the football activities.

The attendees were divided into ten groups to rotate through five different stations supervised by EMU players and staff. The stations included throwing nets, agility bags, tackling drills, touchdown scoring, among other activities. Some participants also practiced routines with the cheer and dance team members.

After completing all station activities, Coach Creighton and his team awarded each participant with a medal. A group photo was taken as they concluded the event with an enthusiastic "Go Eagles!" chant. The day ended with lunch served at the George Gervin GameAbove Center featuring popular food items.

Victory Day was initiated in 2010 by Aaron Segedi, a teacher from Trenton and varsity football defensive coordinator. Segedi started this tradition after being diagnosed with cancer due to primary sclerosing cholangitis in 2005. He aimed to emphasize character building along with teaching sports skills through this initiative. Over time, Victory Day has expanded beyond its original scope and is now celebrated by schools across Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.