HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — Former Highland Springs High School football star Mekhi Becton is now a Super Bowl champion. Becton, 25, is a starting offensive lineman on the Philadelphia Eagles.
"This is the happiest and most emotional I’ve ever been, other than my son being born," Becton told The New York Post. “As a player, this is something you dream about.”
Becton is in his fifth NFL season and first with the Eagles.
He went on to tell The Post what was going through his mind while the Eagles dominated the Kansas City Chiefs.
"I'm a kid from Richmond, Virginia,” Becton said. "People don’t make it out of Richmond from where I’m from. I’m not supposed to be here right now. I was thinking about that and thinking about all the people watching me back home. I was doing it for them, man."
Henrico County Supervisor Tyrone Nelson, whose district covers Highland Springs, said Monday that the whole region is proud of the success Becton has earned by hard work.
"This kid was walking the halls of Highland Springs High School, and now, the next time we see him in the area, he'll be walking around with a Super Bowl ring," Nelson said. "That shows our kids that if you dream big, your dreams can be fulfilled, and so you work hard, in the right situation with people investing in you, and you investing in yourself."
After a stellar football career at the University of Louisville, Becton was selected 11th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft by the New York Jets.
The 6-foot-7, 360-pound football player signed a one-year deal with the Eagles in the offseason and is now free to sign with a new team.
Watch: Former Highland Springs standout drafted to New York Jets
Becton has returned to Richmond over the years in an effort to positively impact the community.
He took part in the first 804 Sports Association's Youth NFL Camp at Dorey Park back in 2021.
"It's really important. You’ve got little kids out here, standing right here looking at me as I do this,” Becton said that day. “We’ve got people that were in high school together just coming back together, giving back to the kids. [That’s] something that we didn’t have growing up, so it is really great because they’re going to look forward to it every year, so it’s a great thing."
Watch: NFL stars attend youth football camp: 'It's a great thing'
Harry Lee Daniel, the athletic director at Highland Springs, told our Bill Fitzgerald Monday about how Becton gives back.
"When he comes back, he gives to our kids he gives to our community. He's just always so much fun to be around. I love the big guy. So proud of him. Our whole school, our whole community just so proud of one, the journey he's taken to overcome adversity; but two, this is just an unbelievable accomplishment," Daniel said.
"He understands the community, he understands the city, and to see him be successful, not only on the field, but off the field," said Daniel. "And then, to give that testimony, it's a big moment for our city. It's a big moment for our state. It's huge for Highland Springs High School, to have a guy win a Super Bowl, and be dominant. You know, only nine offensive lines in the whole history of the NFL can say they had a 2000-yard back [in Saquon Barkley]. Mekhi's gonna be part of that history as not only a Super Bowl champ, but he's also part of the offensive line with the all-time leading rusher for an entire season. You can't write a better script for a young man who deserves it."
Email your congratulations to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
📲: CONNECT WITH US
Blue Sky| Facebook| Instagram| X| Threads| TikTok| YouTube
