Emil Ekiyor Jr announcement that he is leaving the Alabama now another significant issue for the Team……

For Emil Ekiyor Jr., Sims was more than a grandmother, she was his confidant. The two shared the same kind and giving spirit but also the same fire when anyone had the misfortune of rubbing them the wrong way.

When Nick Saban recruited Ekiyor to Alabama, Nana was the one the head coach had to convince. Sims was brought up in rural Arkansas during the 1960s and was uneasy about her grandson making the move from Indianapolis to the Deep South. A handwritten letter from Saban explaining how much the Crimson Tide needed Ekiyor and how the team would take care of him in Tuscaloosa ultimately helped seal the deal.

During Ekiyor’s true freshman season in 2018, Sims made the 17-hour round trip drive from Indianapolis to Tuscaloosa, Ala. for each of her grandson’s games, even though he seldom saw the field. She was also a comforting presence over the phone during the offensive lineman’s first year away from home.

“She was there for him for everything from guidance to just being there to talk,” said Ekiyor’s father, Emil Ekiyor Sr. “She loved Alabama football. They would just have conversations about football, and she’d always be there to support him. They were extremely close.”

Sims was diagnosed with angiosarcoma during Ekiyor’s first year at Alabama. While the cancer was treated, it resurfaced again last year causing her lung to collapse. Ekiyor knew his grandmother was sick, but Sims sheltered him from the severity of her illness, asking his parents not to tell him of the second diagnosis. Instead, she kept things positive with her grandson. The two talked about Ekiyor’s college experiences and the promise of more playing time, something Sims was determined to see in person.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. The two shared their final phone call on Aug. 27 of last year, the Tuesday before Alabama’s season opener against Duke. Sims passed away two days later.

The situation worsened when Ekiyor sustained a knee injury in the game as he landed awkwardly during a block in the fourth quarter. While he had to be helped to the Tide’s locker room, the pain was nothing compared to the hurt that was coming later that day.

Hours later, in the parking lot of a Starbucks, Ekiyor’s father broke the news of Sims’ passing to his son.

“I’ll never forget that day,” Ekiyor Sr. said. “It was my wife, him and me, we all just sat there in the car in tears for 20 or 30 minutes. For him, it was that he didn’t get a chance to say goodbye. Telling him that news, I haven’t ever done anything that hard in my life.”

Added Ekiyor’s mother, Andrea: “He was devastated. He just kept saying, ‘I love Nana so much.’ He just kept saying ‘No.’ It was very painful for him. It was very traumatic.”