On March 2nd, 2007, a bus carrying the Bluffton University Baseball team to spring games in Florida got on to an off-ramp in Atlanta they were not supposed to take. The bus drove through the wall of the overpass and fell to the interstate below. Five players and the bus driver and his wife lost their lives because of the crash, and others like head coach James Grandey were seriously injured.
“I remember very little, because of my injuries,” says Grandy. “I remember hearing the bus driver scream. I remember a little bit from the roadside and being put in the ambulance. That about it for that day.”
While he can’t remember much what happened, the impact of that day has stayed with him.
“When I think about the day, I think about the loss, obviously the loss of life, the promise of that season. Obviously, the lives of the men that were all affected. None of us are quite where we would be if that wouldn’t have happened to us,” states Grandey.
The Bluffton University and the baseball team got a lot of support following the accident and the years since from across the country, to offer not only to help but prayers too.
“It’s really hard to try to thank everyone that has supported us over the years,” adds Grandey. “So you feel overwhelmed, but you feel internally grateful for the support, because we wouldn’t be here today, or where we are at without all of it.”
The 2007 team decided to continue to play the rest of that season in memory of the teammates they lost. Since then, dozens of new players have stepped on to Bluffton University’s field, not only learning about the game from Grandey, but about life, because of a what happened in 15 years ago.
“We talk about how baseball is a very important thing in our life, but it’s not the most important thing. There are other things in our life that we need to make sure we take care of every day. Whether it’s our family, obviously our academics here at the college and also preparing as a baseball player. So, it does mean a lot to us, because it’s a daily reminder, of how fleeting life is,” says Grandey.
