As the three-hour visitation was coming to an end and the 2 1/2-hour service was about to begin, one of the
players Byrdsong had looked upon as one of his three prodigal sons, Dion Lee, strode down the aisle and stopped in front of the casket.
Then Lee, found guilty of conspiring with two others to fix games during Byrdsong's second season, broke down and wept, his body shuddering in anguish as former assistant coach Shawn Parrish rose from the congregation to lock him in an embrace.
It was as though Byrdsong had whispered in Parrish's ear and told his assistant to tell Lee that all was forgiven, and that he could overcome this.
From The Tribune, at the funeral of Ricky Byrdsong