Army Staff Sgt: 'Tony Romo Saved My Life'
ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) - With Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo sidelined for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury, there is little he can do to save the Cowboys' middling year. But Army Staff Sgt. Brian Redding said Romo has saved his life twice.
"It started out as just a simple bet amongst guys," Redding said.
In 2006, Redding said he was in Iraq when his beloved Cowboys and their new quarterback Tony Romo found themselves facing the 10-0 Indianapolis Colts.
"I said I betcha a dollar they are going to beat them," the Staff Sgt. Said.
Well, Redding won that bet. Was it a stroke of luck? Maybe, but he said the events after the bet definitely were.
Redding, a weapons specialist, got the dispatch about the Cowboys' win while he was on a mission in Iraq. Just after, shots rang out.
The bullets hit the radio and missed Redding, he said.
Now, it's a stretch to say that a bet on Tony Romo and a dollar are to thank for saving someone's life but Redding considered it – at the very least – a good omen.
He said that dollar came in handy a week later.
"I had taken the dollar and stuffed it into a spot on my weapon's harness," Redding said.
Redding found himself under gunfire again. When he jumped out of his vehicle for safety, the dollar fell out.
"I reached down to grab (the dollar) and a round came out of nowhere," Redding said.
While picking the dollar up off the ground, he said he narrowly dodged a bullet.
"I immediately called my wife and said 'you won't believe this,'" Redding said. '"Tony Romo saved my life twice."'
The dollar parable was a joke in the family but his wife thought it might help Redding meet his hero. So she wrote the Wish for Our Heroes foundation and asked that they facilitate a meeting.
Sunday, Redding met Romo and told him the story. Romo signed the dollar.
"It was awesome," Redding said.
Redding returns to Iraq later this month. He's thinking about taking the dollar.
"I might take it," he said. "I might need it you know."
