Catching Up With David Thornton

TSSA makes Tennessee the 10th state to officially sanction Girls Flag Football as a high school varsity sport via and unanimous decision.

Titans staff partnered up with Hands on Nashville and the Nashville Tree Foundation to host a 'Titans Together' presented by Gallagher volunteer project at Hadley Park. Volunteers participated in a variety of tree maintenance and cleanup projects around the park for members of the Nashville community to enjoy.

The Titans hosted the Special Olympics Music City Blitz at Nissan Stadium. The flag tournament kicked off with Special Olympics athletes taking the field alongside Titans Head Coach Brian Callahan and the Titans coaching staff.

The Tennessee Titans teamed up with Hands on Nashville and Friends of Shelby Park to host a 'Titans Together' presented by Gallagher service project at Shelby Park. Together, over 200 volunteers joined to perform various landscaping and restoration projects around the park.

The Tennessee Titans partnered with American Red Cross to host a Blood Drive at Nissan Stadium. Altogether, 81 units of blood were collected, and 243 potential lives were saved.

Honored at the Titans vs Jaguars game as the Wesley Mortgage Community Hero, Susan McCormack is a true river steward. A kayaking hobbyist, she has cleared over 3,000 lbs of metal debris and over 4,000 lbs of trash debris from the waterways around the Stones River Greenway.

Honored at the Titans vs Seahawks game as the Wesley Mortgage Community Hero, Kristin Mejia runs a non-profit organization, Homeland Heart Birth and Wellness Collective, a program that allows her and her team to improve Black maternal and infant mortality statistics in the Nashville area. Considering the social determinants of health that are affecting the Black birthing community, she and provides services that are necessary to improve the health of families during this crucial time. She trains and deploys doulas to women regardless of their financial standing, and advocates for these women and their partners.

The Titans teamed up with Make-A-Wish Middle Tennessee to help make 6-year old Mason's wish of having a Tennessee Titans experience come true.

The Titans hosted a Christmas party for kids and families from Youth Villages. Guests played Christmas games and crafts, opened gifts, and received a special visit from Titans wide receivers Colton Dowell, Kyle Philips, and Chris Moore.

Tennessee Titans staff and players joined Gallagher staff at Nissan Stadium to package a record 51,066 meals for the Nashville and Middle Tennessee communities. The food items were donated to Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee and will be distributed to those in need during the holiday season. The food packaging event is facilitated in partnership with Meals of Hope, a nonprofit organization aiming to fight hunger in communities in need across the world.

Honored at the Titans vs Texans game as the Wesley Mortgage Community Hero, Anthony Poteet spends his free time enriching the lives of foster families and children in foster care, as well as educating the community about their needs and the systemic struggles of the foster care system. Since beginning his own 501c3 Foster Family Assistance Network, Anthony has impacted the lives of 10,000+ individuals in the fostering community.

Billy "White Shoes" Johnson, Oilers legend, pioneer of the touchdown celebration is the newest Titans Ring of Honor inductee. Johnson was a 15th round pick (365th overall) in the 1974 NFL Draft, a small, little-known player from tiny Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania. He embarked on his playing career with the Houston Oilers as an underdog, but he became a star. His rich history with the Oilers was celebrated at the 2023 Titans vs. Texans game at Nissan Stadium.

On December 17, Members of the Tennessee Titans, Tennessee State University, and Nashville community gathered to recognize the communal contributions of Dr. Glenda Baskin Glover, President of Tennessee State University and the 2023 NFL Inspire Change Changemaker.

The Titans honored 10 Coach of the Week award recipients, as well as the Coach of the Year honoree, Tony Brunetti of Pearl-Cohn High School with a group breakfast, awards ceremony and opportunity to be honored on-field at the Titans vs. Texans game. The Coach of the Week and Coach of the Year programs are presented by Whataburger.

Titans staff partnered up with Hands On Nashville to provide relief and support to those affected by the tornados in Madison, Tennessee. Altogether, volunteers delivered hot meals, hauled trash and tree limbs, and removed debris.

The Tennessee Titans hosted the annual Mr. Football Awards at Nissan Stadium to celebrate the accomplishments of Tennessee's best high school football players for the 2023 season. Hundreds of people, including the honorees, their families, coaches, school administrators and members of the media from all parts of the state, attended the 2023 luncheon.

Considered one of the league's most prestigious honors, the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award recognizes an NFL player for outstanding community service activities off the field, as well as excellence on the field.

This year, fans are once again encouraged to participate in Nationwide's annual Charity Challenge, a social media and online contest that allows fans to show support for their favorite Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominee. Fans can vote on X (formerly Twitter) by posting #WPMOYChallenge along with the last name/X handle of their chosen nominee or by voting directly on NFL.com/ManOfTheYear

Honored at the Titans vs Colts game as the Wesley Mortgage Community Hero, Greyson Walker is an eight year old boy born with Larsen's Syndrome who has already endured 18+ surgeries. Greyson was surprised with the news that he was the Wesley Mortgage Community hero at open practice at Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park by his new friends, Head Coach Mike Vrabel and Derrick Henry.

The Titans collaborated with CreatiVets and Nissan to create a memorable and life-changing halftime show for a local veteran at the Titans Salute to Service game on November 26^th, 2023.   This presentation tells the story of Seth Cole, a combat veteran injured at war and single father of five.   Cole wrote a song, Rise Above, through a collaboration with CreatiVets which was performed by country singer Craig Campbell at halftime.  After the performance, Cole and his five children are surprised with a new 2024 Nissan Pathfinder.

The Titans visited the Nashville Ronald McDonald House to serve lunch provided by Buffalo Wild Wings to the kids and families residing at the house. Titans OL Nicholas Petit-Frere, Titans Alumni Delanie Walker, as well as T-Rac and Titans Cheerleaders also joined for some fun Thanksgiving themed arts and crafts with the kids.

For Salute to Service month, the Titans visited USO Fort Campbell for a Warrior Wednesday. Titans staff joined Alumni Dexter McCluster and Andy Levitre, as well as T-Rac and Titans Cheerleaders to provide both meals and swag items to over 300 soldiers at Fort Campbell.

The Titans teamed up with The Bridge to host a 'Titans Together' service project. Both Titans employees and Lee Company joined Titans offensive lineman Dillon Radunz, Andrew Rupcich and Lachavious Simmons to package and serve Thanksgiving meals in the Edgehill community.

The Titans partnered with Hands on Nashville to host a Titans Together staff service project at Ida B. Wells Elementary School. Together, volunteers performed various beautification and construction projects around the school to enhance the learning environment for teachers, students, and staff.

The Titans kicked off Salute to Service month with the annual Tito's Military Bowl, welcoming hundreds of soldiers from nearby Fort Campbell. The event was held at Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park practice facility, where the soldiers participated in a flag football tournament.

Honored at the Titans vs Falcons game as the Wesley Mortgage Community Hero, Scott Foster established the largest homeless shelter in Rutherford County, The Journey Home. This shelter serves on average of 500 meals a week, as well as providing housing, clothing, and professional services to get those in need back on their feet.