Originally posted on 04/16/2018:

I just joined this forum today but please know I used to belong to the Pregame forum as SKgambler and have known Dave for the past six years so I felt compelled to contribute here.

I met the Professor in February of 2012 at a Super Bowl party at the Munch Bar at Caesars Palace. Despite his desire to be "mysterious", I managed to develop a friendship with him and connected with him for meals in Vegas in August 2014, April 2015 and September 2015. All the while we've traded numerous emails about craft beers, Tom Waits music and life in general.

Dave has talked about going "off the grid" for one day between the end of the NCAA tournament and the start of football season (used to be Friday, then became Saturday) for several years and that was for a project he's been working on. It's related to the bristlecone pine which is a species of pine tree more than 5,000 years old. Many of them are located on Mount Charleston. I've had the good fortune of being on an email list he sends updates to after his solo hikes. Correct, he went on those adventures on his own.

When he didn't post anything to the forum this past Sunday morning I began to be concerned. And that grew as the day went along. I even texted a friend of mine throughout the day expressing concern. Dave is the most disciplined person I know. He loves his craft and wakes up each day well before dawn to begin working on the day's games.

That brings us to today (Monday, April 16) when I received a message from Matt Landes confirming my fears Dave has gone missing. Since then I've spent the day praying he merely suffered a fall which can be survived while unfortunately losing contact with his phone. Dave's mom, even though he's in his later 50's, always asked him to send her text updates during his hikes. I vividly recall one of those photos he showed me during our August 2014 dinner at Umami Burger which showed him chowing on a pastrami sandwich. So, we know he had that iPhone with him on this journey.

With all due respect to Dos Equis, Dave is the most interesting man in the world. Knowledgeable about so many topics. More focused than anyone. Tremendously generous. It's by God's grace I became friends with him and it's that same higher power I pray our beloved Professor is still fighting for his life.

Shawn