Roman Wilson speaks about family, flying to high school each day
Former Michigan receiver Roman Wilson know what it means to sacrifice in pursuit of a goal. And living with his family on the island of Maui, but attending Saint Louis High School in Honolulu on the island of O’ahu, Wilson’s sacrifice was a bit more than most as a high schooler.
Speaking with an NFL Network crew at the Senior Bowl, Wilson recounted how for around a month, he would get up at around 4 a.m. each morning in order to make it to school. Via flight, among other modes of transportation.
“I got a crazy story,” Wilson said. “From eighth grade to high school, my mom had three jobs, my dad got a job at the airlines so I could go to a private school on a different island. So I’d get up around 4 in the morning, my mom would take me to the airport, I’d get on the plane and then off the plane, on to a public bus, show up to school 20 minutes late, go to school, go to practice, get back on the bus, get back on the plane and do it again. I did it for like a month straight, and it was hard.”
Eventually, a more sustainable approach emerged, as Wilson found lodging with families closer to the school.
“I remember after that kind of ended I lived with three different families,” Wilson said. “I kind of rotated through them. It was still hard, just taking the bus to school, trying to figure out how to get around, how to be an adult at a young age.”
His father would finally get a small apartment. Wilson recalls immense gratitude, even amongst some spartan settings.
“I just remember being so happy to be able to go to a place I called home,” Wilson said. “A place where they didn’t even have furniture. I remember calling my dad in the morning like, ‘We don’t have shower curtains.’ I’m so blessed to have a shower curtain right now. That made me who I was today. I’m so grateful I got to experience that at a young age. It was hard but it made me who I am today.”
And as the former Michigan wideout approaches the 2024 NFL Draft, he is already considering how he can repay his parents.
“I just want to continue to make them proud, man,” Wilson said. “I think my family has done so much for me. My family has been through a lot. I just want to continue making them proud and hopefully one day I’ll pay it back for them.”