OT - Cullen Finnerty, former Grand Valley State QB, missing from fishing trip (3-time D-II National Champ)
3-time D-2 national championship winning QB Cullen Finnerty of GVSU has gone missing during a solo-fishing trip in the woods outside of Baldwin, Michigan.
Freep is the only news source that has developed the story beyond a few paragraphs.
http://www.freep.com/article/20130528/NEWS06/305280057/gvsu-quarterback-cullen-finnerty
Seems as if his disappearance may be linked to a mental illness/condition, presumed by some to have been caused by football related concussions, per the Grand Rapids Press via MLive. God willing, there will be a non-tragic resolution to this very strange and sad story.
“Finnerty was having what his family describes as an episode and (they) say he was scared and wandered into the woods. … His family says he suffered several concussions in his career and they are concerned it may have triggered this episode.”
http://www.mlive.com/lakers/index.ssf/2013/05/cullen_finnerty_scared_and_had.html
if the AP post explained a little more on what exactly a 'nervous episode' means. Does he suffer from mental illness? Or is this some type of drug-induced problem? Is this guy safe to approach? Did he have a weapon on him when he walked into the woods
A "nervous episode" sounds like anxiety attack. I would say that he has had prolonged anxiety since he has shown signs to family members. Obviously, I don't know the level of which he is suffering, but it is not unreasonable to postulate that he may harm himself.
OTHER POINTS:
Barring drug-induced problems, he is probably safe to approach, as his mental state is likely inwardly reflected.
Drugs? Maybe. Those only make any mental health problem worse.
No idea about the weapon, but I hope not. People suffering from these sorts of risks tend to make rash decisions.
Sorry for the long post. Hope it adds some insight. This is a very real problem that a huge amount of people are dealing with (concussions aside), so it kind of hit a nerve for me.
EDIT: If, in fact, it is not an attack, it could be a problem that he has not told anyone that was either exacerbated by the concussions, or induced.
Missing from fishing trip makes it sound like he fell into water and was lost. He ran into the woods, while having an "episode". After reading the article I feel a little better about the chances this ending well.
My son called me last night...he heard that it sounded like he was getting chased...Cullen was always kind of a kid who was not afraid to back down
he is found as is OK. Prayers for this kid and his family.
Hopefully they find him safe and can get him some help for both his sake and his family.
This is terrible. A good friend of mine from HS played at GVSU and was really close with Cullen. I never would have guessed he had problems like this, he was always such a great guy. I pray that this ends well and he gets the help he needs.
I remember when he QB'd at Brighton, right on the heels of Drew Henson. He has young kids, too. This is an awful situation regardless of how it resolves, though some resolutions are obviously worse than others.
is a real shithole too... wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't captured by some hillbillies.
Hope he's safe and is recovered soon.
what my son (part of childhood friends) implied happened...no idea where he got this...but he implied it!
the Baldwin area makes one think of the movie deliverance. Not cool.
I was thinking as well. There are definitely people one needs to steer clear of up there. Not in any "Deliverance" sense necessarily. The DuValls of Mio come readily to mind. To me, this is just as likely a scenario - even moreso even - than some undefined mental "episode".
Well yeah, except it seems to be the family saying he had some kind of "episode" with the implication this isn't the first time.
I have a feeling that football is going to undergo some fundamental changes in the next ten years. This kind of stuff used to fall through the cracks, but the internet age has made it difficult for anything to happen "under the radar" anymore.
Players have gotten too big and too strong, while equipment gives the illusion of impunity. Meanwhile, the macho culture still makes it a badge of courage to play with a concussion, and an indication that one is a "wuss" if he comes out of a game after getting his "bell rung."
Sadly, the most resistance to change is going to come from people who complain about how the game is supposed to be "tough," when the most exercise they get is getting up from their couch or chair to go to the fridge.
after reading this I had to throw my two cents in.
I have worked with Cullen as recently as a few months ago, riding with him on sales calls for the better part of a day. What a fantastic guy. I really hope this ends well. My prayers to he and his family.
-UNCWolverine
I grew up playing soccer with Cullen and his brother. Great guy and great family. Praying for all involved.
make this end well.
to him and anyone who knows him. I sure hope this ends well also.
But a lesson to be learned here...don't go anywhere, hiking or fishing or climbing, wherever...solo without telling someone else where you're going and when you expect to be back. Safety first.
Kind of a strange story. It'll be interesting to see how this turns out. I'm going to guess it was alcohol or drug related.
I played soccer one season with Cullen back in Brighton. Granted it was some 15 years ago and it wasn't much exposure, but back then the kid was a dick. I hope he's found and gets help, but I don't like this annoying habit that society has with making everyone who has something bad happen to them appear to be a good human being.
just didn't like you.