PALM HARBOR, Fla. — It was a reunion of sorts for Tampa Bay Buccaneers players, Ring of Honor members, and Hall of Famers as they all gathered at the Copperhead Golf Course to support the Arians Family Foundation.
“That’s what us Buc brothers do,” former Bucs fullback Mike Alstott said. “We support each other; we’re in the community. That’s the beauty thing behind what the Buccaneers organization when I started in 1996 and still doing today.”
Former Bucs head coach Bruce Arians and his wife Christine have been married for nearly 50 years, and even with children and grandchildren, they find time to give back.
“Watching her do this, saving these kids one at a time, way bigger than football when you have that kind of impact on a child’s life, and give them hope,” Arians said. “It means way more than winning a football game.”
This is the ninth annual Arians Family Foundation Celebrity Golf Classic. The foundation’s mission is to support child advocacy in the court system.
“We need more volunteers,” Arians said. “This is to raise money to teach those volunteers and get them into the homes.”
Arians is grateful to continually get support from the Buccaneers organization.
“When I got here in 1997, the expectation was already set,” Ronde Barber, 2023 Pro Football Hall of Famer, said. “You weren’t just going to be football players ; you’re going to give back to this community.”
The Bucs quarterback duo was ready to hit the course but not too confident in their golf game.
“There’s good days and bad days,” Baker Mayfield said. “We’ll see what today is.”
“Not very good. But we’ll work on it today,” Kyle Trask added.
But they’re here to support the longtime coach no matter what.
“BA has been a guy that I have been in touch with since coming out for the draft process,” Mayfield said. “He’s always had brutally honest tips and pointers and I appreciate it. When he asked me to come out here, it’s a no brainer.”
The Arians Family Foundation has raised more than $4 million for children.
