Rome Odunze idolized this Chicago Bears legend

In the latest episode of “Meet the Rookies,” a series that profiles the Chicago Bears’ first-year players on the team’s YouTube channel, Rome Odunze’s upbringing is highlighted, and several interesting nuggets about Odunze’s childhood are featured.

“Doing what he did best, and that’s score touchdowns.”

Tune into the latest episode of #MeetTheRookies ??

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) July 11, 2024

What will be of particular interest to Bears fans is who Rome Odunze idolized as a young football player: Hall of Fame return specialist Devin Hester. Odunze recounted how he would repeatedly watch a specific highlight reel of Hester’s punt returns and that he wanted to wear No. 23, the digits Hester made popular with the Bears.

It isn’t surprising that a young player like Rome Odunze would look up to Hester. He did things on the field as a punt and kick returner that no one had ever seen before and will likely never see again. He single-handedly took over games, became the first player to return the opening kickoff of the Super Bowl for a touchdown, and just this year became the first return specialist inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The rest of the video shows interviews with Rome’s family members and his youth football coach, Jack Waldron. Rome and Waldron have remained close over the years, with Waldron even in attendance with his family for a game against Oregon, Waldron’s favorite team. Odunze caught the game-winning touchdown, but Waldron still ran onto the field along with the Washington fans to congratulate his former player.

He still has to prove it on the field, but it looks like the Bears finally drafted a legit stud, on and off the field.

Check out the full episode below: