Will Sheridan, a former Villanova
basketball player, announced on Monday in an interview on ESPN that
he's gay.
Sheridan came forward a day after
Phoenix
Suns' CEO and President Rick Welts came out of the closet in an
interview with the New York Times.
The 26-year-old Sheridan discussed his
sexuality during an appearance on the network's Outside The Lines.
When asked why he decided to come out,
Sheridan replied: “I'm kind of over it. Everyone close to me
knows. Everyone who matters to me knows. I'm at a point where
someone else can learn from my experience.” (The video is embedded
in the right panel of this page.)
In
an expanded story on the network's website, Sheridan's parents,
Will Sr. and Josie Sheridan, sounded conflicted over the news.
“Devastated. I was devastated,”
Josie Sheridan said. “I mean, I was disappointed. Not in him, but
in things that were taken away – not having a daughter-in-law,
grandchildren, things like that.”
But added that she was proud of her
son: “I've always been so proud of him, but he has such courage.
This takes courage.”
Will Sr., a religious man, said he did
not speak to his son for over a year.
“I don't use the word 'tolerate.' I
'appreciate.' I appreciate that this is who he is, and I believe
this is who God wants him to be,” Will Sr. told ESPN.
But then added: “I treat him like he
ain't. I believe one day he's going to change. He says he's not,
but I believe he will. A man has to have some kind of belief and
hope.”
Sheridan has concentrated on his
musical career since leaving college. His 4-track album, Ngoma,
which is Swahili for music, was
released in October.