'He is truly a great man' - Jacksonville Jaguars' Tony Boselli overwhelmed by HOF message from dad

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The moment he saw his father's face and heard his voice, Tony Boselli dropped his head into his hands.

«I was in no… I wasn't ready to go there at that moment in front of everybody,» he said.

The first draft pick in Jacksonville Jaguars history kept his head down as everyone else in the room watched the giant screen and listened as Tony Boselli Sr. talked about how tough his son was as a player, how hard he worked and how proud he was of the man he had become.

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Those were words that «Little Tony» had heard often from «Big Tony.» This time, however, it was hard for Little Tony to listen, because his father had died nine months earlier. Hearing his dad's voice at this moment, in a room full of family, friends and colleagues, while celebrating the fact he would be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was just too much.

So Little Tony blocked most of it out.

«It was emotional,» Boselli said. «It caught me by surprise. I didn't even know how to react.… I think about my dad and not being there, and you kind of reflect, and those are moments of looking back on the fond memories, a little bit of sadness that he's not here to experience it with me. But those are good moments.

»Those are special moments because it means someone important in your life, even if they're not there, cares about you, and you can think back on the great memories that you had and how that individual, in this case my dad, helped me get to where I was."

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