AP

A Michigan school district will not have to go through with plans to make students pay to play sports after Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley stepped in to help.

As a result of budget cuts, Saginaw Public Schools implemented a fee of $75 this year for students wanting to play sports. When Woodley, a 2003 Saginaw High School graduate, heard about that, he contacted the school district, asked how much money those fees would collect, and then told them to scrap the fees because he’d cover the $60,000 himself.

Woodley has declined to draw any attention to himself for his donation, but the school’s athletic director, Dan Szatowski, told the Saginaw News that hundreds of kids are going to benefit from Woodley’s generosity.

“If you know him, you know he’s not doing it to see his name in the paper,” Szatkowski said. “He’s beyond that. What a great message this sends to the kids, to the families, to the other people in the city and even the state. It’s a tough time, but here’s a professional player who gets it. This is a big deal. He’s providing the means for kids to participate. What’s the price you can put on that? What price do you put on an experience? LaMarr Woodley is providing for that experience.”

During an offseason when far too many NFL players were in the news for drunk driving or domestic violence, Woodley is the kind of player NFL fans should celebrate.