I feel  bad now. I harped on Lofton this past season for his inconsistency and marking him as a little overrated as a playmaker.

Turns out Lofton was recovering from testicular cancer.  Wow … all apologies.

He was diagnosed with cancer only a few days after Tennessee ended its 2006-07 season with a Sweet 16 loss to Ohio State in San Antonio. Miraculously, the cancer was discovered after Lofton was picked randomly following the first-round win over Long Beach State to submit to an NCAA-mandated drug test. The results turned up positive, and Tennessee officials weren’t notified until the day of the Ohio State game.

What nobody knew at the time, at least for certain, was that what actually showed up on that test was a tumor marker.

It’s a test that might have saved Lofton’s life.

The story goes on to say how Lofton had “secretive surgery” a few days after the Ohio State loss and Pearl even showed up at the hospital in a quasi disguise to avoid any sort of attention. Lofton told almost no one of the cancer — not even his family, just his roommate.

Imagine playing with that and not telling anyone? Recovering from cancer, seeing your game decline and not telling anyone why this was happening? Lofton also said that he’d never cried so much in his life than over the past 12 months.

It’s a fantastic read and one that you should take eight minutes out of your day to look at.

Tennessee’s Lofton Quietly Faced and Beat Cancer {ESPN.com}

Friday, May 2nd, 2008 @ 10:27 am Off the Court News
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