LACING UP FOR A LEGACY: Connor O’Toole’s Tribute to Austin Denton
In Weeks 13 and 14 of the NFL season, professional football players trade in standard cleats for statements of purpose. Through My Cause My Cleats, they lace up their passions, carrying the stories and causes closest to their hearts with every step they take on the field. For Seattle Seahawks linebacker and special teams player Connor O’Toole, that cause hits close to home. His cleats honor the memory of his former La Cueva High School classmate and friend, Austin Denton—a young man whose courage, spirit, and voice made an impact far beyond Albuquerque.
O’Toole will be wearing cleats in support of the Austin Denton Foundation. Denton is a former La Cueva High School student who passed away at the age of 18 due to complications from a rare spinal cord tumor. “I feel like Austin was an NFL superstar, getting to interview Peyton Manning at the Super Bowl, and announcing draft picks, so I thought the connection was cool and this would be a great way to honor him,” Connor said.
Connor’s cleats will tell Austin’s story—one side featuring the Austin Denton Foundation logo, the other bearing an image of Austin, microphone in hand, alongside his signature phrase: Seize the Moment. After the game, they’ll be auctioned off to raise funds for the foundation that continues Austin’s mission of positivity and impact. “Austin’s Foundation was the first thing that popped into my head,” Connor said. “Austin was a year above me, so I started to get to know him my sophomore year, I always knew who he was because he announced basketball, baseball games, and football games, he actually interviewed me, which was cool,” Connor said. “He was a great guy and I miss him.”
Austin was known for his passion for sports and broadcasting. O’Toole remembers visiting Austin in the hospital, hours before his passing, to whisper in Austin’s ear and let him know that he was making his college choice to play football for the University of Utah. Connor wanted Austin to be the first to know.
Now, as an undrafted rookie in his first NFL season, O’Toole is continuing to make his own story worth telling. His work ethic has already paid off—he made national highlights after recovering a fumble on Sunday Night Footballagainst the Washington Commanders. “It’s been cool, it’s been crazy,” he said. “It’s different than high school and college when you have class. Now, I’m in the facility at 7:30 in the morning and not leaving until 5:30 or 6 at night. That’s been an adjustment. It’s good, though.”
During the preseason, O’Toole recorded a sack and a team-high six pressures. Seahawks management was impressed enough to sign him to a contract. “I always felt like I could play in the NFL, but if you would have told me that it was going to play out this way, I probably wouldn’t have believed you,” Connor said.
Connor started his football career as a standout receiver, but made the transition to defense when he went to college. “When I came out of high school, I was probably 190 pounds, playing receiver, and I knew when I went to Utah there was a very real possibility that I would move positions,” he recalls. “The natural thought was to move to tight end, that’s what I thought. Then they said, ‘We want you to play defensive end,’ and I thought ‘Oh, dang. Ok.’ It caught me off guard, but you put your head down and you go to work and it’s been a few years since I made that transition. It’s crazy what consistency can do and taking it one day at a time.”
With My Cause My Cleats, Connor O’Toole isn’t just playing for Seattle—he’s playing for Austin, for the joy of the game, and for the reminder that even in football, the most powerful plays come from the heart.
