William Gladness, in memoriam

Former IU player William Gladness has passed away at age 34. By most accounts, he was a great, cool guy.
I really enjoyed watching him play, his slippery interior scoring was something that you don't see too often at IU. I was sort of surprised to see him slump after a fantastic start to his senior season, and right along with him, the Hoosiers slumped into the postseason and got blown out by St. John's. He evidently went on to play in Europe before settling down to teach in Arkansas, and by all accounts, was just a great guy. A fellow teacher said "I once told him, `You can't change the world,' and he looked at me and said, `Why not?'"

Being about to turn that same age, reading something like this is one of those moments that throws the knowledge of your own mortality into plain view. I send my condolences for his family and friends, and I hope Gladness has found peace.