While the Tennessee Volunteers were celebrating their homecoming win over Chattanooga on Oct. 11, one special fan had a particularly exciting day at the game thanks to Special Spectators.
Neyland Pickel is much like any other 4-year-old: He loves watching and playing sports — his favorites are soccer and football — he enjoys playing video games and watching “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” on TV. The only difference is Neyland was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a cancerous brain tumor, just before his third birthday.
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Special Spectators finds children fighting illnesses that are sports fans and treats them and their families to amazing game day experiences. Neyland was an obvious choice since rooting for the Volunteers is a family tradition for the Pickels.
“Neyland is a big UT fan,” said Sylvia Pickel, Neyland’s mother. “It’s a way of life for the family.”
This year’s event wasn’t his first interaction with Tennessee football. Sylvia explained how Neyland was set to attend the Special Spectators event last year, but after a series of high-temperature episodes and infections, he was admitted to East Tennessee Children’s Hospital the day before the big game.
Upon hearing the young Vols fan missed out, the football players turned the tables and paid a visit to see Neyland in the hospital.
Needless to say, when Special Spectators reached out to Neyland for a second time, he wasn’t going to miss out.
Neyland, who is named after the legendary Tennessee football coach General Robert Neyland, had a blast tailgating in Circle Park and watching the players warming up before the game.
The best part of Neyland’s day? Dancing to “Third Down for What,” like any real Vols fan. Neyland could even be heard saying “This is so stinking cool!” while taking in the experience.
“He hasn’t stopped talking about it yet,” Sylvia said. “Getting out and being like everyone else gave Neyland so much energy. He had a clinic appointment [on Tuesday] and his counts are up. He feels great.”
Special Spectators, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, creates VIP all-access game day experiences for seriously ill children and their families at sporting events across the United State. Since 2002, this volunteer-run organization has hosted over 8,000 patients and parents at more than 275 games - mostly college football. Learn more or support Special Spectators by visiting www.SpecialSpectators.org