Former AU, NFL football player talks at university diabetes function - Opelika Auburn News

Former Auburn University football player and two-time Super Bowl champion Kendall Simmons was the guest speaker at the Boshell Diabetes Research Day at Auburn University Friday.

The sixth Boshell Diabetes Research Day brought together experts who presented current topics related to diabetes and the role of obesity in its development. Simmons was guest speaker at the evening banquet, the day's culminating event.

Simmons was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes his sophomore season in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Prior to his diagnosis, he said he began to see every typical symptom of the disease, including losing 45 pounds in two weeks.

"God knew exactly what he was doing with me when he gave me — what I call a blessing — type 1 diabetes," Simmons said. "He knew which way he was going to direct my path."

Simmons said at least once a month he hates having diabetes, but he wouldn't give it back if he could. He said having diabetes as a professional athlete forced him to address his health.

"I can honestly tell you I would not take care of myself the way I'm supposed to if I did not have this job," he said. "I would fall into the category of a lot of other diabetics — I would do just enough to get by."

"I can tell you that not one time when I was playing with diabetes did I ever feel 100 percent," he said. "Diabetes taught me more about myself than sports ever did."

Simmons said his blood sugar levels would dramatically affect the way he played a game. He said when his blood sugar was high, everything would feel like it was in slow motion and he would have trouble focusing.

"Playing eight years in NFL, my endocrinologist told me, 'If your blood sugar is over 180 … you don't have half the energy or strength you need to perform at peak level,'" Simmons said. "That stuck with me."

"One thing the trainers were really good about was keeping my glucose tabs, my flex pens, my meters, whatever I needed," he said. "They had it … When you'd see a TV timeout and the trainers running out with a water bottle, I was taking a shot or sucking glucose gels."

Today, Simmons and his wife have four children. He works as a diabetes advocate, and he said he is grateful for the position he is in to bring awareness to the disease.