Related Links:Purchase a "Gloves Off" Campaign T-ShirtTrey Bell Go Fund Me AccountUW-Stout Game Preview Trey Bell, an All-American and two-time all-conference defensive back for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team from 2000-04, is in a fight much greater than anything he ever experienced on the gridiron.
On September 12, 2014, just 10 years after putting on his Warhawk jersey for the final time, Bell was diagnosed with an aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a cancer in the immune system.
With the support of his wife, Lea, daughters Alana (14 years old) and Sarina (8), and son Devin (6), Bell began intense chemotherapy treatments over the next 12 months.
Bell was informed in September that he is in remission. He has been out of treatment since February and requires a PET scan every four months moving forward.
Bell, who will celebrate his 35th birthday this Thursday, has embraced the fight, supporting the "Gloves Off" campaign to support the "battle tested" survivors of cancer while maintaining his career as a regional analyst for Advanced Waste Disposal.
"I've been fortunate," Bell said. "I think the biggest thing is that people need to pay attention to what their bodies are saying … we have to make sure we get checked and put an emphasis on our health. We need to allow the people who have strong educations to help us and keep us with our loved ones. I can't imagine if I wasn't given that opportunity."
Bell continues to experience back pain as a result of a collapsed vertebrate, but leads a normal life with his family, which resides in Muskego.
Despite an unusual high school playing career – he transferred twice and spent his final semester at Racine Case – Bell had offers to play running back from NAIA schools around the nation.
Bell decided to stay local and follow his wife (then-girlfriend) as well as his childhood friend, Racine Park graduate and fellow running back Cory Tenner, to UW-Whitewater.
After being sidelined by an injury in 1999, Bell made the transition to defensive back with ease starting in the 2000 season. He finished his standout career with 152 tackles, 23 pass breakups, 13 interceptions and seven fumble recoveries in 39 games. He also tallied 451 kick return yards, averaging 16.7 yards per return.
"I didn't know how good I would be at corner, but I thought I could contribute," Bell said. "I was given an opportunity when I came back in 2000. I think continuously going through the motions and working day in and day out with the coaching staff helped me to progress to become a pretty good corner in our conference."
After taking the 2001 season off following the birth of his first child, Bell returned in 2002 and earned second team All-WIAC honors with 45 tackles and five interceptions.
In 2004, he was tabbed a first team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association and garnered third team accolades from D3football.com after collecting 34 tackles, nine pass breakups and four interceptions, helping lead the Warhawks to a 7-3 record.
"Trey came in thinking he would be a running back," said Bob Berezowitz, UW-Whitewater's head coach from 1985-2006. "With his speed and quickness, we thought he could be a corner … he ended up being an All-American, and the only player in UW-Whitewater history to play in the (primarily Division I) Hula Bowl."
Following his collegiate career, Bell was looked at by "numerous" National Football League teams, according to Berezowitz. Just before an NFL Combine workout, Bell tore his Achilles tendon, sidelining him for months and jeopardizing his professional playing career.
Bell continued to push after recovery, receiving a tryout with the Buffalo Bills and playing in the Arena Football League with several teams before the AFL halted operations in 2008.
Bell returned to UW-Whitewater and earned his bachelor's in non-licensure physical education in 2010, and later began his career working in the environmental services industry.
Bell and his family were on a road trip to see his mother in Arizona when he began to have intense back spasms where he had trouble standing up for four days.
"Being a former football player, you assume those injuries are something small, so I allowed them to continue for four months," Bell said. "I slept, on average, for about two hours a night."
At the point of coughing up blood, Bell went to a walk-in clinic expecting to be diagnosed with pneumonia.
Instead, he found out there was fluid in his lungs and around his heart, and was sent to the emergency room.
Upon receiving a PET scan, Bell was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.
Bell continues to experience back pain, stomach problems and digestive issues, side effects he said he'll continue to experience for the foreseeable future.
"There's concern that it may recur in the next year or two, so my doctors want to make sure to keep an eye on me," Bell said. "I don't have any other treatments as of now."
Bell said his children and wife, Lea, who works in the Elkhorn Area School District, have been his strength through it all.
"(My wife) is my rock," Bell said. "She's been extremely strong throughout this process. She comes from a medical family, so she's been in this field and tries to stay positive while taking care of all the things that I haven't been able to take care of."
Berezowitz, who helped spearhead UW-Whitewater's transition into one of the nation's elite programs, reflected on Bell's growth since Bell stepped onto campus in 1999.
"It's been remarkable how much the young man has grown up," Berezowitz said. "When I saw him in Madison when he was first diagnosed, it was a tough situation. He was going in for three weeks at a time for treatment, but he had the determination and fight in him to succeed.
"He hasn't lived the easiest life, but he didn't just play football and walk out of here. He developed that determination and willpower to succeed, and that's what has gotten him through this."
