Pat Tillman’s mom was told about previous award winners — but not Prince Harry: sources
The backlash kicked off by ESPN giving Prince Harry the esteemed Pat Tillman Award has turned into a behind-the-scenes clash, sources say.
Over the weekend, Mary Tillman — the mother of NFL player turned army vet Pat Tillman — hit out at Prince Harry being honored.
Network insiders told Page Six that Mary is not associated with the Pat Tillman Foundation, which helps ESPN determine the honorees, and has never been informed during the selection of past recipients.
But other sources say that Mary and her family members were kept abreast of previous honorees, including last year’s winners — members of the Buffalo Bills training staff who revived player Damar Hamlin after he suffered cardiac arrest in the middle of a January 2023 game.
Harry, 39, will be the recipient of the Pat Tillman Award for Service on July 11 at the ESPY Awards, where he will be praised for his work with the Invictus Games.
After last week’s announcement, Mary, 68, said she was never consulted by ESPN to give the Duke of Sussex the award name for her son, who left the Arizona Cardinals to enlist in the Army after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001.
He was killed by friendly fire during a roadside ambush in Afghanistan.
“I am shocked as to why they would select such a controversial and divisive individual to receive the award. There are recipients that are far more fitting,” Mary told the Daily Mail. “There are individuals working in the veteran community that are doing tremendous things to assist veterans.These individuals do not have the money, resources, connections or privilege that Prince Harry has.”
An ESPN spokesperson told Page Six, “ESPN, with the support of the Tillman Foundation, is honoring Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, specifically for the work of The Invictus Games Foundation as it celebrates its 10th year promoting healing through the power of sport for military service members and veterans around the world.
“While we understand not everyone will agree with all honorees selected for any award, The Invictus Games Foundation does incredible work and ESPN believes this is a cause worth celebrating.”
The Post reached out to Mary Tillman, ESPN and the Pat Tillman Foundation for comment. Pat’s widow, Marie Tillman Shenton, is co-founder and chair of the Pat Tillman Foundation.
The ESPYs will be hosted in Los Angeles by tennis champ Serena Williams, a close friend of Harry’s wife, Meghan Markle. Markle, 42, is expected to join her husband on the night.
“This one is for our entire service community,” Harry said after learning of the honor.
The prince, who quit royal life in 2020, launched the Invictus Games in 2014 as multi-sport Paralympic-styled games for wounded or injured servicemen and veterans.
Harry — who recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Games in London — himself served in the British Armed Forces for 10 years, including two tours of duty in Afghanistan as an Apache helicopter pilot and a forward air controller.
The errant royal and his wife have won a series of awards since moving to America, including when he was inducted into the Living Legends of Aviation cohort in January.
In 2022, the couple was feted by the Kennedy Ripple of Hope Award, an honor given by the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization, and picked up the President’s Award from the NAACP.
