'Its all gone': Boise State, Cal football players among those who lost homes in Eaton fire
At least two FBS college football players and at least one FCS player have seen family homes destroyed in the last week as fires continue to rage throughout the Los Angeles region
LOS ANGELES − On New Year's Eve freshman safety Ty Benefield had nine tackles in Boise State's 31-14 loss to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl.
"The Fiesta Bowl was just an absolutely amazing experience...unfortunately, with the loss (the season) ended, but we were just all so thankful," Benefield told Paste BN in an interview. "Shortly after that I shifted my focus to seeing my family for the break. Getting that phone call from my dad Wednesday morning as I'm sleeping over at my very close friend's house. It was just horrible."
Two weeks later Benefield and his family − along with thousands of others in Altadena − are facing the task of rebuilding after the Eaton Fire destroyed the home that his grandparents owned for decades.
"I couldn't believe the fact that a fire could travel from Eaton Canyon, in the hills, through all those neighborhoods," Daved Benefield, Ty's father, told Paste BN. "Our house had collapsed, and our neighbors' houses, whose lawns I used to cut as a kid, their houses had collapsed, they (were) in full blown blaze."
At least two FBS college football players and at least one FCS player have seen family homes destroyed as fires continue to rage throughout the Southland.
Camden Jones, freshman tight end for the California Golden Bears, also had his home destroyed by the Eaton fire. His father, Carey Jones, told Paste BN that the items connected to his son's football career were entirely lost.
"All of it. Except for, of course, for what he will achieve at Cal but from flag football all the way up to high school, it's all gone," Jones said.
CFB player families describe destroyed community
The multiple generations of the Benefield family grew up in Altadena, with Daved − who played in the NFL and CFL − growing up in the home his parents bought in the late 1960s and Ty and his sister Addy − who plays volleyball for the Washington Huskies − being sent there from Vancouver during the summer.
"The lady at the top of St. James (a neighborhood street), she used to let us, all these kids, we were a bunch of boys, we would have orange fights," Benefield said. "I remember talking to the old lady that lived in the house, and she told me that, basically, "You guys can do whatever you want.'"
The younger Benefield had a similar relationship with the home, saying that he would explore the backyard and pretend that it was "a whole different world."
"We'd just be absolutely amazed by all the tools that our grandfather had in the backyard," Ty said. He recalled days spent playing in the same streets his father grew up on. "He'd be telling me about his experiences on St. James, in this neighborhood and stories, while we'd just be throwing the ball back and forth."
Later in life, Daved spoke with new owners of the home "at the top of St. James" and found that the house was unchanged from when he grew up, a reflection of the spirit of Altadena.
"Sure, there are times where the demographics would change ... There have been some new people moving in, but Altadena just remains the same," Benefield said.
Jones echoed Benefield's sentiment about the community nature of Altadena and pointed to the Mayberry-esque Mariposa Street with the hardware store and the hat shop.
"It's all mom-and-pop shops," Jones said. "People lost not only their homes but also their businesses that they've had for generations."
The Jones family moved to Altadena nearly nine years ago and had planned to stay for the foreseeable future. As of Tuesday, the family had not considered whether or not they would rebuild.
"We're just trying to focus on what we have to do now, and that's finding a place to hang our hats for at least the next year, maybe two, temporarily," Jones said.
Both families have created GoFundMe pages in the wake of the fire, and on Wednesday, a fundraiser began for the family of Duquesne University defensive lineman Adrian Ramirez.
The fires have burned over 40,000 acres, destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 homes, businesses and other structures, and at least 25 people have been killed in the fires, according to authorities.
Football as path to recovery
Both Jones and Benefield said that the Cal and Boise State coaches had reached out to support their families.
Jones said that when his son speaks about what was lost, he is overcome with emotion. He believes that getting back up to Berkeley and back to the field for the Bears will help restore a sense of normalcy.
"I think the biggest thing is for him to get back to school, get back on the field, and get back into stuff that really he loves and he enjoys, and that's really the only way that you get through it is to realize what you still have, and that's what he has, and that's what he loves," Jones said.
Boise State safeties coach Tyler Stockton said that the program would be accommodating Ty's needs as the Benefield family recovers.
"Family comes first. That's the most important thing," Stockton told Paste BN. "I can always do a drill with him. He can always make up a workout but he needs to make sure, most importantly, that his family is OK."