NorCal Natives Prepare For Super Bowl Debut
VACAVILLE, Calif. (CBS13/AP) -- Two of the players taking the field Sunday during the Super Bowl are locally grown athletes; one from Vacaville, the other from Chico.
Green Bay Packers inside linebacker Desmond Bishop grew up in Vacaville, played at Fairfield High School before playing college ball at Cal and becoming the Packers' sixth round draft pick in 2007.
Bishop made a critical final-quarter tackle that may have kept the Packers aloft in their NFC wildcard game on January 9 against the Philadelphia Eagles, a play that earned Bishop the title of "the Packers' Savior" from an ESPN sportswriter.
Bishop's family says his hard work at Fairfield High School helped prepare him for the professional league.
"You never think it'll happen, but if you keep your eyes on the prize, it could happen," said Desmond's father, Dennis Bishop.
Dennis and 25 other members of the Bishop family will be in attendance at the Super Bowl.
One of Bishop's teammates has captured the spotlight as the Packers have fought their way into the Super Bowl: Chico-born Aaron Rodgers will play in his first Super Bowl as the team's quarterback.
Rodgers spent several years as the team's backup quarterback from 2005-2007 while Brett Favre's will-he-or-won't-he-retire drama played out, but quickly made a name for himself when he was finally given the lead slot.
Both Rodgers and Bishop joined the playful mood when they arrived Monday in Texas. With dozens of fans chanting "Go Pack Go" as the players walked off team buses, the Packers witnessed Super Bowl frenzy for the first time in 13 years. Many of the players carried video cameras or aimed their cell phones at the crowd to take pictures before heading to news conferences.
