They traded in their Fordham baseball and softball gloves for exam gloves. They took off their Fordham football helmets and donned protective masks. Instead of passing the ball, they hand out assists of a different nature. They run to danger instead of a finish line. They used to clear the way for running back, now they clear the way for emergency vehicles. They come from different sports but the one thing the former Fordham student-athletes have in common is that they are on the front lines of the COVID-19 outbreak. Doctors, nurses, policemen, EMT, firefighters, grocery store workers, they all are there when called upon, living out the Jesuit ideal of men and women for others.
 
Today we recognize former football Ram Tim Van Overloop, FCRH '03, a member of the FDNY for the past 16 years. He spent the first ten years as a firefighter in the South Bronx before being promoted to Lieutenant in 2014. Van Overloop then worked in Brooklyn for a while and has finally settled in Staten Island the past several years.
 

Van Overloop is currently studying for the Captain's test, however the test has been postponed indefinitely due to the pandemic. But he still has plenty on his plate.
 
"The FDNY has remained strong and diligent through this, working to maintain company integrity, while keeping its members safe via proper PPE and operating procedures," said Van Overloop.
 
As a true Man of Fordham, Van Overloop isn't considering himself a hero.
 
"Honestly the real heroes, those hardest hit by this crisis, are the hospital workers," he said. "We respond to emergencies, including medical, however our patient contact ends when EMT's take them to the hospital. My heart goes out to all the small business owners and their families who are taking a major hit from Covid-19."
 
Van Overloop credits his Fordham experience in helping him deal with Covid-19.
 
"My experience at Fordham helped prepare me for this challenging time in that it made me aware of the "bigger picture". Many people come from small towns, or rural areas and only have exposure to very limited groups of people, ethnicity, race, religion etc. Being a student-athlete at Fordham exposed me to teammates and classmates from many different socio-economic backgrounds and forced me to see outside of the little "bubble" I came from. Also, during my tenure at Fordham we dealt with the 9/11 attacks and losing a friend/teammate, which definitely motivated me to take up a career with the FDNY. There was a lot of uncertainty at that time, but dealing with those events, while still completing coursework and preparing for football games, etc., definitely helped mold a wherewithal in me to help deal with today's current events."
 
Van Overloop's thoughts on the Covid-19 crisis is tempered by the fact that it's an ongoing battle. But he holds out hope for the future.
 
"How I think and feel now, may be different then my response six months from now. Right now, my kids are home from school indefinitely, there's no sports, our department is still working in a modified/restricted manner; so my thoughts may be a bit emotional. It's like fighting a bad fire or emergency and asking my thoughts but we're still in the process of putting the fire out."
 
"This pandemic unquestionably has changed the world as we know it, similar if not more so then the 9/11 aftermath. When you think about young people today you wonder what their thoughts are moving forward of being a medical worker, an emergency responder a restaurant owner? Definitely going to be a more cautious, modified approach. However these events may really motivate certain people in a positive way."
 
Van Overloop was an offensive lineman with the Rams from 1999-2002. He was a member of the 2002 Patriot League championship squad as a senior.
 
On the home front, Van Overloop lives with his wife of 13 years, Cristin, and their three sons, Brooks 11, Henry 8 and Jack 4, in Sloatsburg, N.Y. Cristin is a school teacher at Bronx Science.