Matt Whitaker....Man, Myth...Legend...A Tribute

“Being United States Attorney is the greatest professional experience and honor of my life. I am very proud of what we have accomplished in this office,” Whitaker said. “We have worked very hard these almost 5 ½ years to advance the goals of the Department of Justice. We have been firmly committed to protecting our citizens from terrorist attacks, reducing gang and gun violence, protecting our children from predators, reducing the availability of meth, cocaine, and marijuana in our communities, and protecting the taxpayers through our civil division.”

This was an excerpt from Whitaker's official resignation of his US States Attorney position. Although I will not feel as safe anymore with him not in this capacity, I admire him for making the decision to step down and focus on what has become much more important to him.

No, its not his family, personal business ventures or even a lazy retirement. Its hockey. What many do not know about "Whitty" is his dedication and passion of this great sport. He knew that if he wanted to achieve the top level of the hockey ladder, he'd need to lay down the briefcase and pick up the infamous RBK stick with Datsyuk curve (his weapon of choice).

On November 20 , Matt will be inducted into the Iowa High School Football Hall of Fame at half time of the 4A state championship game. Although a tremendous honor, it will not compare to the thrill of winning back-to-back C League Championships with the Coke/YDD Tattoo Team. Ever since I met this intimidating man in my store, I have come to know a man that has a fierce determination to be the best.

I took this driven individual, got him geared up and said "Go and conquer this beast called hockey." Although it took many lessons, clinics, adult beverages & a trip to Vegas to get him on the right path, the novice Whitaker progressed. You can see in the picture on the left how I pinned him against the boards until cried "uncle" and understood that I was the teacher and he was the student.

I've had the honor of coaching his daughter Alison and instructing his sons Calvin & Lincoln through clinics. There were many occasions when I had to tell him, "Matt, I know you want them on the ice, but its Wednesday afternoon and they need to go to school too." It was this passion for the game that I befriended.

Now that he can dedicate his life to scoring goals, back checking and riding Justin West into the boards, we will see an even better player in Whitty. He has set new personal goals such as 1) Stay on his feet after shooting the puck on a breakaway, 2) Perfecting the "butt" your way into the crease, and 3) Use his legal expertise to "persuade" the ref that the full body check was in fact an accident.

So while the criminals of the state may breath a sigh of relief that Matt is not clicking away at his Blackberry, scouring the streets for bad guys and burning the midnight oil reviewing cases, its the C League player that checks the schedule in advance looking for an excuse to not play on the night their team faces YDD Voodoo.

As I scoured the Internet looking for old photos, articles ,etc of Matt, I came across something that was rather interesting. A kid named Matthew Whitaker plays for the Mustangs Junior AAA hockey team in Canada....coincidence or strange parallel universe situation? You decide.

In the end, Matt may look like a friendly, easy going, teddy bear sort of guy, but beware. The last 5 1/2 years was just a hibernation period for this caged animal waiting to get on the ice.