One can only imagine the impact it has had on those who actually knew him.

Two members of the Green Bay Packers were very familiar with Tillman. Offensive lineman Grey Ruegamer was teammates with Tillman for four years at Arizona State and assistant coach Vince Tobin drafted Tillman and coached him from 1998 to 2000 with the Arizona Cardinals.

Tillman was killed April 22 in an ambush near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. He was the first NFL player to be killed in combat since Buffalo Bills tackle Bob Kalsu was killed in the Vietnam conflict in July 1970. Tillman’s memorial service will be held today in his hometown of San Jose, Calif.

“Pat was one of those guys where I don’t know how you couldn’t like him,” Ruegamer said. “He was a leader and everybody looked up to him. He was a very unique individual.”

It took a unique individual to walk away from a $3.6 million NFL contract to join the Army and serve his country in the Middle East. But Ruegamer said he didn’t blink when Tillman did just that after the 2001 season.

“I wasn’t surprised at all because that’s the kind of guy he was,” Ruegamer said. “When Pat decided to do something, he did it.”

Tobin said he saw similar dedication in Tillman, both as a player and as a person. Tobin drafted the local favorite with a supplemental pick in the seventh round of the 1998 NFL draft. Players taken in that position usually struggle to make the roster, but Tillman opened his rookie season starting at safety for the Cardinals.

“Pat was very committed to everything he did,” Tobin said. “Pat always went all out. He asked for no quarter and he gave no quarter.”

Tobin also said he wasn’t surprised when Tillman left football for the military.

“Pat felt things very strongly and he wasn’t afraid to back up how he felt with his actions.” Tobin said. “If anybody was going to do something like that, he was the guy.”

Ruegamer said he took the news hard when his mother called him early on the morning of April 23 with the news that Tillman had been killed in combat.

“I was so (upset) because you never thought it could happen to Pat,” Ruegamer said. “Pat was always a guy who could take care of himself. You never worried about Pat because he was the guy who could always get it done.”

Tobin said he was shocked by the news.

“It was such a tremendous feeling of loss,” Tobin said. “I had an empty feeling in my stomach and I couldn’t shake it because here’s a young man who sacrificed his life for our freedom and chose to do so. He’s such an inspiration to what the American way of life is and what our youth is all about. I feel privileged to have been a part of his life for a short time.”

Ruegamer said he hadn’t spoken to Tillman since he joined the military.