USF freshman Ford loses father

Freshman running back Mike Ford has overcome much to earn a football scholarship to USF, and the 20-year-old endured a personal tragedy during a difficult time last week as his father, Robert Ford Jr., died suddenly and unexpectedly at age 46.

Robert Ford Jr. was at a social event with friends Friday night when he died, and there still are no answers as to a cause, said Mike Ford's mother, Dondra Walker. Friday had been a tough day for Mike Ford, who had turned himself to Sarasota police early that morning on an outstanding warrant for missing a court appearance relating to traffic citations.

A couple of things to clarify: Ford was released at 6:06 p.m. Friday, about 18 hours after he turned himself in to Sarasota police. He was not required to pay any kind of bond and was released by a county judge on time served. Ford, who had been cited three times since March 2006 for driving without a registration or valid license, had missed a court date on June 12, which caused the warrant to be issued. According to the arrest report, he approached Sarasota police and notified them of the outstanding warrant. The report goes so far as to say that Ford was "very respectful and polite to the officers."

Ford's mother said he had a class at USF the day of his court hearing and "completely forgot," saying that his license had been suspended because he had gotten a ticket and not paid the fine. "He did something stupid, but he wants to put it in the past," she said. His off-field problems are unlikely to result in any significant disciplinary action from USF coach Jim Leavitt.

Services for Robert Ford Jr. will be held Saturday morning in Sarasota. For a better glimpse into his life and how much his son's success meant to him, please read this great story from Chris Anderson of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. I can't find the story itself on the paper's website, so I've linked to a posting on a message board from two years ago. Our thoughts and prayers go to his family and friends.

Comments

[Bullsfan]

Greg

Thanks for the story. So many people were crucifying the kid on different boards. I hope those idiots over at UCF realize what jerks they are. They are so envious od USF that theystoop as low as you can go

[AnhVu Nguyen]

Thanks Greg for getting this detailed story. The tribune did not have any of this and we did not know the true story behind Ford's arrest. Touching story on Ford's father and I hope the best for Mike. I have not seen any of the UCF comments but I hope Mike runs all over them this year.

[Claudel]

Thanks for the update Greg. Very informative information compared to your competitors.

[Brian]

Greg: You shouldn't be allowed to take off of work anymore. When you are on vacation all good USF reporting ceases :)

[Jim]

Great story Greg and thanks for being accurate in your reporting. I wish the best for Mr. Ford and his family. He has a bright future in front of him if he just works hard and lets his talent show.

[Ari]

How do you get caught dring without a license 3 times greg?

Come on buddy.

3 times! He got into a car and drove without a license.

What would have happpened if he got into an accident and hurt someone?

The green and gold glasses crew, ceases to amaze me.

God Bless his father.

Still greg, 3 times he got caught driving without a license.

The question is, why didn't he just go get a stupid drivers license.

A little soft on the offense greg.

[Ari]

I guess -- Who needs a drivers license when you are one of the top high school running backs in the state of Florida.?

[G.A.]

Ari, absolutely, any driver should have a license and registration any time they get into a car. And three times is certainly excessive. It's still ultimately a traffic citation, and if he shows up for his court date last month, none of this is ever newsworthy enough to put in the paper. This is a lot like the incidents with Jenkins, Williams and Grothe in the spring: they show bad decisions -- sometimes a series of bad decisions even -- more than they show any terrible, unforgiveable crimes. I don't know if what I've written is too soft or too hard; I hope it's accurate.

[Claudel]

Ari,
No one knows when those three "different" incidents happened. All we have is three times since March 2006. We all know three times could be really once or twice in one week. His court date could have been established months ago and he just forgot. This is a non-story for me until more details come out.

[Dave]

I'm with Ari, Claudel. I know he's had a tough time of late, but there are somethings that are just a little over the top, and his 3 silly citations all probably could have been avoided. Hopefully he will show more discretion in the future. More importantly, hopefully he can cope with his father's death- no 20 year old should go through that.

[E.T.]

Thanx for sharing the truth with us Greg and letting us know of Mike's loss.

Big difference between "turning yourself in" and being "arrested".

My prayers to him and his family.

[rg]

Talk about spinning a story in USF's favor. I pray for the loss of his father but the story seems to give the impression he did no wrong. He missed a court date..that's pretty bad.