Hlas: Hennings offering messages of responsibility, hope

What's good out there, sports fans?

It seems there's been a lot of the not-so-good in sports lately, from Tiger Woods' serial infidelities to college football coaches Mike Leach and Jim Leavitt getting fired for allegedly mistreating players, to Gilbert Arenas being overly fond of firearms, to Mark McGwire stating the obvious and admitting he used steroids.

Chad Hennings is trying to offer some balance, some hope, something life-affirming.

Hennings has a record of personal accomplishment to use as his podium. After being a state champion wrestler and football standout at Benton Community High School, he was the 1987 Outland Trophy winner as an Air Force Academy football player.

He postponed his entry into the NFL to fulfill his military commitment and piloted an A-10 Thunderbolt on 45 Air Force missions in northern Iraq. He was a Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman for nine years, playing for three Super Bowl champions.

Along the way, Hennings was a promoter of faith and family values. More than a decade ago he wrote a book titled “It Takes Commitment” aimed at high schoolers and young adults.

He has a new book out titled “Rules of Engagement: Finding Faith and Purpose in a Disconnected World.” This one, he said, is intended more for men, to urge them to become better leaders of households and to help each other become better people. He said there is a “go-it-alone” myth in our culture that is hurting us.

Hennings' book stresses a dozen topics. Among them are crafting character and vision for one's self, developing a work ethic, and redefining success.

“I try to go over a lot of different universal truths,” Hennings said by phone Tuesday. “It's important for us to form friendships and relationships in this fast-paced world, to form something deeper and hold each other accountable.”

He uses Woods as an example of someone who may have let himself get too isolated.

“I'm sure Tiger Woods didn't wake up one day and put his life in ruins,” Hennings said. “It's a slow, slippery slope. You start rationalizing, and one day you wake up. It's ‘Holy cow, how did I find myself here?' Nobody isn't susceptible.

“Whether it's athletes or a farmer in Eastern Iowa, you can't be cutting corners. You need to fall back on the faith-based truths this country was founded on.”

Hennings said God has given him a platform “to do my part” via his roles flying jets that provided relief and humanitarian aid to Kurdish refugees and playing for the highest-profile football team in the country.

“This generation needs positive mentors and role models,” he said. “I'm not here to say look at me. I'm trying to use my platform as well as I can to say we all have responsibilities.

“It needs to be told, and people want to hear it. I've gotten a great response so far from the media with a message of hope. There is hope, but we've got to pull together as a team.”