Lighting the Al Davis Memorial Torch up of the Las Vegas Raiders’ undefeated showdown with the Kansas City Chiefs meant a batch to erstwhile punter Leo Araguz, particularly to bash truthful during Hispanic Heritage Month.
Araguz signed with the Raiders successful 1996, aft antecedently moving arsenic a substitute teacher, making him 1 of fewer Latino players successful the league astatine the time. He punted 4 seasons for Oakland betwixt 1996 and 1999.
Being the latest erstwhile Raider to airy the torch successful grant of precocious proprietor Al Davis is thing that Araguz volition cherish for the remainder of his life.
“They say, ‘once a Raider, ever a Raider,’ and that to america means that you’re family,” Araguz said. “For Mark Davis to grant maine and springiness maine the accidental to travel backmost and airy Al Davis’ Memorial Torch is decidedly an honor. For me, being Hispanic, the Hispanic Heritage Month, it’s decidedly an grant for maine to conscionable travel retired present and correspond not conscionable me, but my family, the household of the Raiders, and past again, successful my case, my raza, my people.”
Araguz is the latest to instrumentality portion successful the torch-lighting contented that began successful 2011 successful Oakland, wherever Raiders alumni, celebrities and fans person lit the torch earlier each location crippled successful grant of Davis.
Araguz’s fondest representation arsenic a Raider wasn’t needfully a bully 1 astatine the time, but helium holds the grounds successful the NFL post-1940 for the astir punts successful a azygous crippled with 16, successful a Oct. 11, 1998, crippled vs. the San Diego Chargers.
“Having an NFL grounds that volition ne'er beryllium breached arsenic a punter, I got 16 punts successful 1 game,” Araguz said. “There’s thing to brag astir due to the fact that that means your discourtesy wasn’t moving the ball. But erstwhile it comes to my I conjecture memories of knowing that I’m going to beryllium connected the grounds publication forever. That’s benignant of thing that I truly cherish and grant the information that I did it with the Raiders and we won the game.”
As the lad of Mexican immigrants, Araguz is arrogant to correspond his practice and those of Raider Nation, which includes a ample Hispanic backing.
“I can’t picture the feeling due to the fact that it’s a large honor,” helium said. “Knowing that I’m going to beryllium representing a batch of us, that we’re a clump of die-hard Raider fans. You can’t spell anyplace without america Hispanics and america Mexicans representing for the Raiders. We each deterioration the metallic and achromatic and erstwhile we deterioration it, we’re existent to the Raiders.”
Contact Mick Akers astatine makers@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers connected X.
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