Heisman trophy sells at auction for record price
We can only hope that this will finally bring Rashaan Salaam peace.
The former Colorado running back took his own life back December 2016 after battling depression, a frequent symptom by chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.
As The Wildcard reported last month, Salaam’s 1994 Hesiman Trophy was being auctioned to raise money for CTE research.
JUST IN: Rashaan Salaam’s 1994 Heisman Trophy sells for $399,608 by @SCPAuctions. New record price for a Heisman. Previous record was Bruce P. Smith’s 1941 trophy for $395,240. Money from Salaam auction goes towards CTE medical research in memory of Salaam. pic.twitter.com/5K4xEXN1Ki
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) January 21, 2018
Saturday night, the trophy went for a record amount of $399,608 in an online auction performed by SCP Auctions of California.
Salaam’s brain was never examined for CTE because Muslim law prohibits the defiling of bodies after death. But his brother said the former Chicago Bear showed “all the symptoms” of the disease.
The 1994 Heisman winner shot himself in the head on Dec. 5, 2016.
Investigators determined Salaam had been using marijuana and drinking heavily before his death.
Toxicology reports had his blood-alcohol level at 0.25.
But, like so many of these stories, there’s another layer.
Salaam’s mother, Khalada, told CBS Sports that she believes the trophy was stolen from her son.
“It didn’t pop up.”
ESPN’s Darren Rovell reports that Salaam had originally sold his Heisman to a memorabilia dealer in 2014, then it was re-sold to a real estate investor that same year.
The price of Salaam’s Heisman edged out the $395,240 that Bruce P. Smith’s 1941 tophy garnered.
For comparison’s sake, O.J. Simpson’s 1968 Heisman went for $255,000 and Paul Hounung’s 1956 trophy collected $250,000.
The late running back also sold his Heisman ring for about $8,000 in 2011.
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