Steelers Now
Pittsburgh Steelers legend Jerome Bettis showed support of fellow running back Chris Johnson by doing the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
“I’m Jerome Bettis, I was challenged by Eddie George to do the Ice Bucket Challenge in honor of Chris Johnson,” Bettis said in a video posted on Instagram. “Chris, I want you know that me and my family are praying for you. Now I want to challenge Joey Porter [Sr.] and my Hall of Fame running back brother Marshall Faulk. Here we go.”
Johnson revealed that he has been diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, during an interview with Michael Strahan on Good Morning America on June 29.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is one of the most successful viral fundraising campaigns in medical history, originally exploding onto social media in the summer of 2014. Co-founded by ALS patients Pete Frates and Pat Quinn, the challenge required participants to film themselves dumping a bucket of ice water over their heads, nominate others to do the same within 24 hours, and make a donation to ALS research.
Johnson was drafted No. 24 overall in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans out of East Carolina, one pick after the Steelers selected Rashard Mendenhall 23rd. He rushed for 9651 yards and 55 touchdowns in 130 games, spanning 10 seasons, primarily in Tennessee.
2009 was Johnson’s most successful campaign, becoming the 6th ever to run for over 2,000 yards (2,006) in a season and the first since Jamal Lewis of the Ravens in 2003, punching it into the end zone 14 times as well.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Jerome Bettis Does ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in Support of Chris Johnson
