HANOVER COUNTY, Va. -- It's been two days, but the parents of Josh Wells, a Hanover High School and James Madison University grad who plays football for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, are still relishing in the spirit of their son's Super Bowl victory.
Josh's father, Jeff, said he didn't get a lot done at work on Tuesday.
“50 percent,” Jeff admitted when asked how productive he was. “I'm going to say that. I didn't eat much lunch. During lunch, I took care of a lot of issues.”
Jeff was re-living his trip to Florida with his wife Joy to watch son Josh and the Buccaneers win Super Bowl 55.
They have watched Josh play the game his entire life at Hanover High and then at JMU, but this time it was very different for parents and player alike.
“The camaraderie, people you don't know. I've never experienced something like that. I've been to games before but this was totally different,” Jeff explained.
“It was a lot of walking,” Joy Wells added. “I think we walked three and a half miles. I got my steps in! 10,000 steps one day and 8,500 the next.”
“How much it really means to the city and the fans,” Josh said. “Week in and week out, I think you really do lose sight of just how much the fans support you and care.”
Joy estimates she took thousands of pictures of the trip, which included a visit with their grandchildren.
If they could have drawn it up beforehand, it wouldn't have turned out any better.
“The whole experience was unbelievable,” Jeff said. “Afterwards, just to get with Josh, his wife, and the grandkids and to experience it afterwards, the day after, before we got on the plane was the highlight of my trip.”
“It was just incredible,” Josh added. “The sacrifices they've made to be able to enjoy it with me on the field. My daughter was a little sleepy and a little frustrated but she'll appreciate it one day.”
Josh is now a free agent after his latest one-year deal with the Buccaneers ended. He will take some well deserved time off before getting set for whatever next season brings and to get fitted for a ring.
