Raising $41k in honor of SDSU Jackrabbit No. 41

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – Former South Dakota State University football player Matt Anderson passed away Monday in a car crash. His former teammates with the Jackrabbit Former Player Association (JFPA) are trying to raise $41,000 in honor of his jersey number.

Ryan McKnight, President of the JFPA, said the group started the Family Fund to help raise money for the families of former players who lost their lives. The fund was created specifically after Anderson’s crash.

“Many people reached out saying, ‘Hey, we gotta do something,’” McKnight said. “I mean, this is tragic, this is terrible, to leave behind a wife and four kids. No amount of money we ever raised up will ever bring back Matt, but knowing that a whole bunch of us old guys can get together buying into the fund that wants to help.”

McKnight said JFPA board members, including SDSU football coach emeritus John Stiegelmeier and former NFL player Danny Batten, came up with the idea of trying to raise $41,000 in honor of Anderson’s jersey number– 41.

“We should try to raise 10 grand, 15 grand and the JFPA has never been one for moderation, so we said that’s not gonna do much, you know,” McKnight said. “It’s cool. It’s great. But we could do so much more. Let’s set the standard pretty high, so we just came up with $41,000. We’ve had a lot of guys donate $410 or $41.”

The fund was started Tuesday night and as of 12:30 on Wednesday, they had raised $24,000.

“Words can not explain the feelings that accompany this tragedy,” Steigelmeier said on X . “Life is so precious. We preached (Make A Difference) in the SDSU FB Family for 26 years. Today, anyone and everyone, please step up and MAD for Matt’s family.”

Not only did McKnight know Anderson through their involvement with the JFPA, but the two played together in the 2000s. Anderson helped bring home the DakotaMarker from NDSU during his final game in 2007. He was a fighter pilot in Colorado where he lived with his wife and four children, McKnight said.

“A lot of guys in my wedding were tight ends with Matt and full-backs with Matt,” he said. “He never talked down to you. No matter what, he was always in a good mood. He always wanted to push the ball, just be a leader and be a guy that would help the young kids understand the playbook, understand college. If you ever needed a ride, if you ever needed anything, he was always there, always.”

Donations for Anderson’s Family Fund are accepted through Venmo or check with the memo JFPA-SDSU (tag line 41). McKnight said that after they raise the $41,000 to help cover the immediate funeral costs and other expenses, he hopes JFPA can raise enough money to send Anderson’s four children to college.

“What I would love to do is if there’s a way that we could raise up, $100,000, $141,000 to help pay for his four kids’ college, don’t care what they use the money for. I just wanna make sure that he’s not forgotten, but his kids, once they grow up, they’ll have some more of that.”

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