HIGHLAND, Ill. — A football player from Highland Illinois made his NFL debut with the Detroit Lions on Thursday.
Highland is a small town with a big heart, coming together to support each other for big moments, including a very special one for football player Sam LaPorta.
“He's the first guy from Highland to get drafted to the NFL. So that was that was really, really cool,” LaPorta’s former Highland High School football and basketball coach Austin Welz said.
Welz says it all started for LaPorta on the Highland Bulldogs football field.
“He was a phenomenal athlete. But I think some of the coolest stuff that he did was behind closed doors and practice and his leadership mentality and the way that he attacked every day and approached every single game or practice, It was awesome,” Welz said.
In high school, LaPorta had the second most touchdown passes in state history. That momentum continued at the University of Iowa setting a school record for tight ends with 153 career receptions and now kicking off his NFL career with a bang grabbing five receptions as tight end number 87.
While a lot of people were at the watch party to cheer on their local NFL star, they also supported a non-profit right at the heart of the community.
“Leaps Love's been near and dear to my heart my whole life. Traci, who runs Leap of Love, was actually in the hospital room when I got diagnosed myself in the back in middle school,” Welz said.
Leaps of Love helps raise awareness and funds for childhood cancer research.
“Child cancer only gets 4% of national research funding. So very important for us to get that number raised,” Leaps of Love Founder Traci Riechmann said.
Riechmann said LaPorta’s an inspiration for the next generation on and off the field.
“I just hope everybody gets some kind of inspiration from watching Sam and putting the two together and connecting how he helps with the community as well,”
You can donate to Leaps of Love here.