In January 2010, Jackson Smith, Tulane ’07, was serving the beginning of his first deployment in Afghanistan. Back home, his best friend and SigEp brother Brian McKenna, Tulane ’07 was planning something special.

The New Orleans Saints had just won the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras was underway. To make sure Smith didn’t miss out on the fun, McKenna made a a life-sized cardboard cut-out of his brother and took it, or him, throughout the city during the celebrations. Eventually, he talked his way into meeting Drew Brees, who proudly posed for a photo.

Looking back, Smith never thought he’d be able to repay his brother. 

Five years later, McKenna had a biking accident, paralyzing him from the neck down. Smith wanted to do something special for his brother to give him hope, and that’s when he found a way to repay him.  

Smith attended the Saints’ last open practice and brought a cut-out of McKenna with him. Again, Brees proudly posed for a photo. 

After Smith and McKenna’s story was shared by The Washington Post, thousands of people from across the country were touched. On Thursday, October 1, the brothers will be on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and joined by Drew Brees.