E:60 Recap: Matt Forte, Butterfly Child & The Turf War

ESPN's E:60 will explore the career of Matt Forte, the incredible story of the "Butterfly Child" and the controversial "Turf War" in a literal sense of the phrase.

Matt Forte

Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte suffered what is now being called a short-term knee injury in a loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

Forte is a veteran running back in the NFL and started from very humble beginnings in Slidell, Louisiana.

Forte is very much a family man and took a look back at some of his highlights as a running back at Slidell High School.

Forte "rushed for 1,057 yards with 8 touchdowns, and caught 30 passes for 365 yards and 3 touchdowns" in his junior year according to his bio.

"He ranks second on the school's career-record lists with 808 rushing attempts for 4,145 yards on the ground, while his 38 scoring runs established the Tulane all-time record," according to NFL.

"Forte' also became the 11th player in NCAA Subdivision (1-A) history to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season during his senior year.

After leading the nation in rushing for a good part of 2007, Forte eventually finished second with 177.3 yards per game."

Forte amassed five 200-yard games, which tied the single-season NCAA record held by, Marcus Allen of Southern California in 1981, Barry Sanders of Oklahoma State in 1988 and Jamario Thomas of North Texas State in 2004, according to his bio.

Forte has had injuries in the past but to him it's always about conquering hills and how you respond after you are faced with adversity.

One of the biggest moments of adversity that Forte has faced happens to be off the gridiron. It was returning to Louisiana after the destruction and devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

"It was like a ghost town," Forte recalled in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. "It was unbelievable, unreal."

"When I first saw the pictures on television, I was thinking there couldn't be that much water there, that people couldn't be on rooftops like that.

But to see the town for the first time after the storm, it was really emotional."

Katrina would always hold a place in his mind because he was evacuated from Tulane University in his sophomore year, the year the hurricane hit. Forte recounted how much he and his teammates worried about their families as they were taken to Jackson State University's gymnasium for shelter.

When the team had seen the devastation that had come and gone Forte said it was very hard for him.

He told the Tribune that football was a second thought after Katrina.

His home was damaged but not destroyed, in a way it was like the adversity he faced in his life, no matter what happened, he was never destroyed, he was always able to rise from them.

2015 Player Stats

Butterfly Child

There is an extraordinary young man by the name of Jonathan Pitre. 14-year-old Pitre suffers from a skin condition called epidermolysis bullosa, which leaves him with painfully sensitive skin.

Pitre has to have his skin wrapped with gauze because of the condition, and every day he experiences excruciating pain throughout his body.

Pitre had dreams of becoming a professional hockey, baseball or football player or any kind of athlete for that matter. However, it was all taken away from him because of his condition. Pitre and others who suffer from epidermolysis bullosa are called butterfly children because their skin is as sensitive as the wings of a butterfly. The painful images of Pitre struggling with daily tasks that we may take for granted hits you right in your heart.

His mother, Tina Boileau, says that it's painful to feel helpless in front of your child, knowing you're the one that's hurting them. She says there were times when he would beg her to stop because it was too painful.

The pain comes during the three hour process of Pitre's bath and dressing of his wounds.

Eating, walking, getting dressed and taking baths are all excruciatingly painful for Pitre. However, with every painful movement his determination and appreciation for life continues. Pitre remains strong and happens to be a huge sports fan.

The Huffington Post reported that Pitre's local hockey team the Ottawa Senators made him an official scout for the day on November 20, 2014. Pitre got to hang with the team and even had his own contract.

"In three months, he raised $117,000 for an organization dedicated to Epidermolysis Bullosa awareness called DEBRA Canada, where the teen also serves as a Butterfly Ambassador," according to the report.

"There is currently no cure for the disease, though he hopes to change that."

Pitre is growing more of a sports fan everyday and he says that not being able to play sports kept him up at night in the past.

Butterfly Children are only expected to live to age 30 but Pitre is trying to push the limits with his organization, strength, dedication, perseverance and incredible maturity.

His sense of humor is wonderful, his positivity is unmatched and his personality is absolutely infectious.

"I've faced many roadblocks and I shall face many more. But each time I do it reminds me that nothing is accomplished in life without courage and determination.

I may not have the physical ability to become professional athlete. But I've got a voice and it is powerful." - Jonathan Pitre

Pitre's Story

Turf War

"This is the fifth goalkeeper I've hooked up this week" the nurse said, according to ESPN.

"The hairs on the neck of University of Washington goalkeeper coach Amy Griffin stood on end...a chill went down her spine. It was an a-ha moment. After that visit, Amy started a list, a list of athletes with cancer."

Currently her list, which was started in 2009, has 200 names on it. The majority of the names are soccer players.

The big connection goes far beyond the sport or position, but rather what the field of play is made of.

The synthetic turf that the athletes who had cancer was made of the crumbs of rubber that were tires in their past form. The rubber contains a varying number of carcinogens that are linked to cancer.

"There are more than 12,000 of these fields across the US. Some are in pro stadiums...but most are at schools or town parks," according to ESPN.

"While the turf industry cites existing science and insists they are harmless, parents like Stephanie Beardemphl are not so sure. Her son Luke, a career goalie, died this year of lymphoma."

Former US National Soccer Team midfielder Julie Foudy investigated the use of crumb rubber on synthetic turf fields by "talking to those who make it, those who have studied it, including an exclusive interview with the head of the EPA, and the people who play on it every day...all with one question in mind.

Is turf safe?"

The responses are astonishing but even more so is the effects that simple synthetic turf could have on someones life.