Each week during the 2022 season we’re going through the Eagles’ media guide to find an interesting nugget.
The Eagles’ PR interns do a great job filling out these little oddities in the media guides and they serve as a good way to meet the player behind the helmet.
This week, we chatted with rookie safety Reed Blankenship, whose prized possession is a collection of knives from his grandfather.
Me: Tell me a little bit about it.
Blankenship: I guess, when did that start? I guess it started when I was little, little. Every year for my birthday I would get to … he would either pick one out for me when he was still here or when he passed away, my grandmother let me pick out a knife. It was like a tradition and it’s something that I keep dear to my heart, just to remember him by and now remember her by too. I still have the collection in my room. I have two showcase boxes in my room. It means a lot, just to keep little keepsakes like that just to remember them by.
Me: How many do you think are in the collection?
Blankenship: Honestly, I can’t remember. I lost count. I continue to do it. It’s something that’s pretty cool to me.
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Me: Is there a favorite one?
Blankenship: Honestly, every year I pick the favorite one. I don’t really have a set favorite. I don’t know. It’s a tough question.
Me: I’m sorry to hear he passed. How old were you?
Blankenship: It was 2015 when he passed, I believe. It’s been a long time.
Me: Were you guys especially close?
Blankenship: Yeah, I was really close to my grandparents. They lived like a minute or two up the road from us. They were my babysitters pretty much. Came to every one of my games. And then my grandmother, when she was still here, came to all my college home games when she can. She spoiled me to death. That’s something that I’ll cherish forever.
Me: Is that collection something you could see yourself one day passing down?
Blankenship: Oh absolutely. I’ll always keep that with me. They’ll always be hanging in my room somewhere or a man cave. Just something that I can remember him by, he loved to do that and he loved those kind of things. It’s pretty cool to have.
Me: So you would say that’s the most prized thing you have from a sentimental value?
Blankenship: I would say yeah, for that, to remember him by. He loved stuff like that and it made me like it. All his collections. He would sharpen his knives when I was staying at his house and it’s pretty cool.
Me: Thank you, man. I appreciate it.
Blankenship: Sure, no problem.
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