Victor Penney:

Interim writer Victor Penney, Sporting Life

One of the strongest pro-life messages during this U.S. Presidential election hasn’t come from everyone’s “favourite” Republican candidate. In fact, it hasn’t even come from a politician.

It’s from someone who made a good living by getting grown men to knock over tackling dummies.

So, who is it?

It’s none other than Hall of Fame football coach Tony Dungy.

Dungy earned a Super Bowl ring as a defensive back with the Pittsburgh Steelers, against my beloved Dallas Cowboys, way back in the year when yours truly was born. He’s arguably more famous for his role as a head coach when he led the Indianapolis Colts to an NFL Championship in 2007.

It wasn’t until the last few years, though, that I became aware of his evangelical convictions, so what he did on social media back in September didn’t come as a complete surprise to me.

Dungy challenged the U.S. Vice President online after Kamala Harris tweeted the following on X: “One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree: The government, and certainly Donald Trump, should not be telling a woman what to do with her body.”

That was back on Sept. 19, and, less than two hours later, Dungy fired back with a social media post of his own: “Dear VP Harris,” he begins, “I hear you make this statement all the time. Exactly what ‘faith’ are you talking about when you say you don’t have to abandon it to support abortion?”

Calling out a presidential candidate on abortion and religious liberty, all in one tweet? I love it, and the post only gets better from there. Here’s the rest: “Are you talking about the Christian faith that says all babies are made in the image of God (Gen 1:26), that God places them in the womb (Jer 1:5) and that we should not take any life unjustly (Luke 18:20)? Are you talking about that faith or some nebulous, ‘general faith’ that says we’re good enough, and smart enough to make our own decisions? What ‘faith’ are you talking about?”

I’m sure Dungy isn’t the only one asking these questions of Harris, but he happens to have a high-profile position as an analyst on NBC’s Sunday Night Football, so, when he speaks out to defend preborn children, the pro-life message reaches more people.

In my humble and accurate opinion, the pro-life movement needs more strong men like Coach Dungy leading the way, and there’s at least one Super Bowl champion out there who agrees with me.

Former NFL tight end Benjamin Watson, who hoisted the Lombardi Trophy with the New England Patriots in 2005, has become an outspoken advocate for the preborn since retiring from the gridiron.

Not only is he an author and founder of a non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening the family, Watson has spoken multiple times at the March for Life in Washington, D.C. More recently, he had an inspiring column in National Review. The title, “The Pro-Life Movement Needs Men,” is an understatement.

He starts the piece by dismissing the belief that it can seem “impossible” for a man to speak out against abortion. “You don’t have to be a woman to know that pregnancy means a new life. And you don’t have to be a woman to know that women deserve our love, respect and protection.”

This is an important truth to remember, he says. It is something men should combine with compassion to avoid what he describes as, “the false compassion of young male pro-abortion activists,” individuals who are posing as advocates for women and “choice.”

The reality, however, is far different because these men have either been deceived, or worse, “they’ve deceived themselves,” and he cites NBA superstar Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors as a prime example, someone who wraps his pro-abortion politics in the feminist mantra of “women’s rights.”

This is something Watson addressed more directly on X in early September, when Curry, a four-time NBA champion, went on CNBC to announce his support for Kamala Harris. “Many people have been shocked or disappointed by Steph Curry supporting abortion as his top voting issue,” Watson wrote. “I am neither. I am motivated though. If these weak talking points can convince him that life is inconsequential, how much more could he be influenced by the actual truth. We have work to do.”

Yes, we do have work to do. Plenty of work.