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It was all building, from the moment the woman mistakenly booked herself a first-class ticket to when he helped her put her things in the overhead compartment to him constantly calling her “ma’am.”
The NFL is doing everything it can to dominate your every waking moment with its childish drip-drip-drip of a schedule that won’t kick in for four months, yet the best PR anyone could ever hope for was playing out before the wheels left the ground of a flight in which Sandy Hawkins Combs found herself sitting next to the guy everyone else on the plane seemed to know.
Travis, the young man said.
Even then, it didn’t click for Combs that he was Travis Hunter Jr., No. 2 pick in the NFL draft, instant star receiver/cornerback for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
What did click for Combs was the person, not the athlete, Hunter was. How he not only agreed to do a selfie with her, but was happy to shoot the photo himself, carefully wiping off her phone, just like her kids do for her.
Eventually, she had to say what was on her mind.
“You are such a nice young man,” she said. “Anybody would be proud for you to be their son or grandson.
“Don’t ever change.”
And that’s when he replied something that ought to resonate in his native Palm Beach County.
“I’ll never forget where I came from,” he said. “I will always remember.”
Combs didn’t know it, but by posting the selfie on social media with a summary of their encounter, she was about to go viral. She’s a traveling nurse, so while driving presumably to work this week, she did a live interview on NFL Network offering more details, and scores of laughs, on their experience.
Such as:
She first sent the photo to her son, Charles, which is when things really started to heat up.
Miami Dolphins to face Washington Commanders on Nov. 16 in Madrid, NFL confirms
“Charles immediately answered,” she said. “He never immediately answered.”
Incredulous, Charles made a FaceTime call to see if this was some kind of joke.
“Travis, my son wants to say hello to you,” she told Hunter. “He don’t believe I’m sitting next to you.”
Hunter spoke with Charles, but not for long.
“This is my time,” she said. “And I hung up on him.”
Sassy Miss Sandy got a good laugh from the “Good Morning Football” crew with that one.
Then the conversation shifted to how he helped her with her service tray.
“You didn’t know when you sat next to me, you were going to have to go to work, did you?” she said. “And he said, ‘Oh, it’s all right. I have grandparents. I take care of them all the time.’
“When he said that, it melted my heart.”
That was a reference that included Boynton Beach’s Shirley Hunter, 68. She predicted her grandson would be a star back when he was a 4-year-old on the Boynton Beach Bulldogs, only to break into a dance on draft night when her prophecy came true.
As the NFL releases crumbs of its 2025 schedule, the best bet anyone could make for this fall is that Combs and Hunter have not seen the last of one another. Maybe she’ll be the Jaguars’ guest of honor at the opener. Maybe she’ll be invited to one of their international games. It’s a no-brainer that a reunion must be in their future.
As for now, Combs wasn’t about to disembark from the plane without offering Hunter advice.
“Just continue to be who you are,” she said.
Oh, there was one other order of business she had to take care of.
“I said, ‘You know when I get off of here — I can't do it now — but when I get off, I'm going to Google you so I can know who I'm talking to,’ ” she said.
Who do Dophins play in 2025? Miami's opponents ahead of NFL schedule release
Dolphins schedule release live updates: Leaks, rumors, opponents, dates
Miami Dolphins 2025 schedule release: Everything to know
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Travis Hunter Jr's viral moment on flight best PR NFL could ever get
Continue reading...
The NFL is doing everything it can to dominate your every waking moment with its childish drip-drip-drip of a schedule that won’t kick in for four months, yet the best PR anyone could ever hope for was playing out before the wheels left the ground of a flight in which Sandy Hawkins Combs found herself sitting next to the guy everyone else on the plane seemed to know.
Travis, the young man said.
Even then, it didn’t click for Combs that he was Travis Hunter Jr., No. 2 pick in the NFL draft, instant star receiver/cornerback for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
What did click for Combs was the person, not the athlete, Hunter was. How he not only agreed to do a selfie with her, but was happy to shoot the photo himself, carefully wiping off her phone, just like her kids do for her.
Eventually, she had to say what was on her mind.
“You are such a nice young man,” she said. “Anybody would be proud for you to be their son or grandson.
“Don’t ever change.”
And that’s when he replied something that ought to resonate in his native Palm Beach County.
“I’ll never forget where I came from,” he said. “I will always remember.”
Combs didn’t know it, but by posting the selfie on social media with a summary of their encounter, she was about to go viral. She’s a traveling nurse, so while driving presumably to work this week, she did a live interview on NFL Network offering more details, and scores of laughs, on their experience.
Such as:
She first sent the photo to her son, Charles, which is when things really started to heat up.
Miami Dolphins to face Washington Commanders on Nov. 16 in Madrid, NFL confirms
“Charles immediately answered,” she said. “He never immediately answered.”
Incredulous, Charles made a FaceTime call to see if this was some kind of joke.
“Travis, my son wants to say hello to you,” she told Hunter. “He don’t believe I’m sitting next to you.”
Hunter spoke with Charles, but not for long.
“This is my time,” she said. “And I hung up on him.”
Travis Hunter Jr. 'melted' the heart of fellow flier
Sassy Miss Sandy got a good laugh from the “Good Morning Football” crew with that one.
Then the conversation shifted to how he helped her with her service tray.
“You didn’t know when you sat next to me, you were going to have to go to work, did you?” she said. “And he said, ‘Oh, it’s all right. I have grandparents. I take care of them all the time.’
“When he said that, it melted my heart.”
That was a reference that included Boynton Beach’s Shirley Hunter, 68. She predicted her grandson would be a star back when he was a 4-year-old on the Boynton Beach Bulldogs, only to break into a dance on draft night when her prophecy came true.
As the NFL releases crumbs of its 2025 schedule, the best bet anyone could make for this fall is that Combs and Hunter have not seen the last of one another. Maybe she’ll be the Jaguars’ guest of honor at the opener. Maybe she’ll be invited to one of their international games. It’s a no-brainer that a reunion must be in their future.
As for now, Combs wasn’t about to disembark from the plane without offering Hunter advice.
“Just continue to be who you are,” she said.
Oh, there was one other order of business she had to take care of.
“I said, ‘You know when I get off of here — I can't do it now — but when I get off, I'm going to Google you so I can know who I'm talking to,’ ” she said.
Who do Dophins play in 2025? Miami's opponents ahead of NFL schedule release
Dolphins schedule release live updates: Leaks, rumors, opponents, dates
Miami Dolphins 2025 schedule release: Everything to know
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Travis Hunter Jr's viral moment on flight best PR NFL could ever get
Continue reading...