White was a man of many layers.(NFL)(Reggie White, biography)(Biography)

In 1996, a few months after arsonists burned down his church in Tennessee, I decided to write a profile on Reggie White. I wanted to explore the private side of White, by then the most dominant defensive player in the NFL. Four months later, after watching him film a faith-based movie in the woods of Oregon and cry while standing amid the ruins of his church, I had come to realize White was both one of the most complex and ardently emotional athletes I had ever interviewed.

White, who died the day after Christmas, had one of those larger-than-life personalities that engulfed a room and automatically made him the center of attention. He was funny and wise and never hesitant to fervently address any number of touchy issues. It always was both entertaining and informative to be in his company.

But it was during that summer of 1996 that I was able to peel away some of White's personal layers. At one point, we sat in his home office and he launched a 30-minute monologue that covered everything from his extreme views on what he felt were the social ills of this country to his belief that he was ...