NFL’s Lewis, Bolden visit East St. John
Published 12:05 am Wednesday, April 22, 2015
RESERVE — Not many high schools can boast having two Super Bowl competitors on its campus at the same time, much less those who were on opposing teams.
East St. John is in that special category, though, after Seattle Seahawks center Patrick Lewis and New England Patriots running back Brandon Bolden visited the school April 9 and spoke to its football players about persevering to succeed.
Lewis graduated from East St. John in 2008 as one of the most decorated offensive lineman and overall players in team history. Bolden, meanwhile, played under East St. John assistant coach Antoine Carter while the two were at Scotlandville.
East St. John head football coach Alden Foster called the day “a great experience for everyone involved.”
“It just so happened that it was set up for them to come on the same day,” Foster said. “They were surprised to see one another … It’s a real big deal for us, obviously. They’re both great young men who have a terrific story to share.”
Neither Lewis or Bolden were selected in the NFL Draft, but neither gave up on his NFL dreams and eventually both earned their way onto the rosters of elite teams.
“Those guys are proof to these kids, who can say to themselves, ‘If I work hard and make the right decisions, I can achieve anything I want to in life,’” Foster said.
Bolden’s Patriots defeated Lewis’ Seahawks in Super Bowl XLXI, 28-24, in a game that came down to a dramatic ending.
“When they saw each other, Brandon kind of said, ‘Sorry, man,’” Foster said. “Everyone got a laugh out of that … It was a special experience. How often do high school football players get the chance for players from two Super Bowl teams to be with them? I never had a Super Bowl player speak to me when I was younger, but I had college players come, and that sticks with me to this day.”