A Toledo Rocket is going to win a Super Bowl ring on Sunday.
Either Kareem Hunt is going to complete his redemption story with the Kansas City Chiefs, or Quinyon Mitchell will put an exclamation point on a sensational rookie season with the Philadelphia Eagles. And if the Eagles win, Toledo native Dallas Gant, a practice squad player, will be the second Toledoan to win a Super Bowl.
More than 100 million Americans will tune in, along with another 60-plus million worldwide. All of them will hear the word “Toledo” at least once, providing the Rockets with a priceless global platform.
“It’s a testament to everything that coach [Jason Candle] and the staff and the student-athletes have been pouring into it,” UT athletic director Bryan Blair said. “Hopefully, it makes people pay more attention to how special this place is. We’ve got just so much potential.
“I’ve been to a handful of other spots, and I know what other places have and don’t have. I’ve traveled the country, and when I say this place is special and has way more potential, that’s not just me painting a pie in the sky, that’s based on the things that you see here and that you just don’t see other places. We’ve got special people, special players, special fans, a special location in a special part of the country with tremendous talent.”
Only 11 programs have more Super Bowl LIX participants than UT. Memphis is the only Group of Five team that’s better represented. The winner(s) will join Curtis Johnson (also of Waite High School), Andy McCollum, and Lance Moore as Toledo’s Super Bowl champions.
All three former Rockets who will take part in the Super Bowl were recruited by Candle — Hunt and Mitchell out of high school, and Gant as an Ohio State transfer. Candle — entering year 10 as head coach — has built UT into one of the top G5 programs in the country by several metrics, including wins and NFL draft picks.
Darius Alexander was one of the most talked-about players at the Senior Bowl last week. In the second consecutive year, a Toledo player has become a storyline. This week, Candle talked to local and national media about his former players and Mount Union roommate Nick Sirianni, who’s in his fourth season as Philadelphia’s head coach.
“This is the pinnacle of sport,” Candle said. “This is what they’ve dreamt about since they were little kids. You go to college and you always think that you’re a good high school player, you're going to be a great college player — which all three of those guys were — and that someday you’re going to be an NFL superstar, and this is where it'll end for you. I couldn’t be more happy for those guys. I’m super proud of them and their journey. They all have their own separate stories and perseverance and how to get there.”
Hunt — Toledo’s all-time leading rusher — was a third-round draft pick of the Chiefs in 2017 and then led the NFL in rushing, becoming a critical offensive piece, along with Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. But in the middle of his second season, a videotape emerged of him assaulting a woman. The Chiefs released Hunt, and he spent the next five seasons with the Browns.
When the 2024 season began, Hunt was unsigned. That changed when Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco suffered an injury in Week 4. Hunt quickly rejoined the Chiefs and has emerged as their top option out of the backfield, scoring seven touchdowns during the regular season and twice in the playoffs.
Now Hunt — who missed out on all three Chiefs Super Bowls — can finally get his ring.
“Honestly, I’m just trying to relax, just take it day-by-day,” Hunt said at Super Bowl media day. “I can’t overhype myself up about it. It’s just another football game, I’ve got to treat it like that, even though it’s probably the biggest one of my life. I’ve got to stay relaxed and calm.”
The journey for Mitchell has been more straightforward. He was a two-time All-American at Toledo, put on unforgettable performances at the Senior Bowl and combine, and then Philadelphia selected him in the first round of the NFL draft. All he did this season was get named a defensive rookie of the year finalist, allow just two touchdowns, and intercept two passes in the playoffs.
The Eagles were undone last season in part because of a horrendous secondary. General manager Howie Roseman drafted Mitchell and safety Cooper DeJean in the first and second rounds, respectively, resuscitating one of the best defenses in the NFL.
“I’m living proof that it doesn’t matter where you come from,” said Mitchell, the only G5 player drafted in the first round in 2024. “You’ve got to put in the hard work and believe.”
Working hard has never been an issue for Gant. It’s the core tenet of his football-playing career. The former St. John’s Jesuit standout was a relentless worker at Ohio State and then became a pillar of leadership in two seasons for the Rockets. Candle has never wavered in his belief that there’s a place in the NFL for Gant.
He was signed as an undrafted free agent by Minnesota, where he spent half the season until being released at the end of October. The Eagles snatched him up a week later and elevated Gant to the 53-man roster in Week 17. He had one tackle in his debut at Dallas.
“In a world where we’re all about measurables, and we’re all about arm length, hand size, 40 times, and vertical jumps, when you get away from the combine, and you get away from grass drills, and you get into real football, and you get into meeting rooms, the intangible things that guy brings to the table — and I don’t say this to discredit the others — allows him to have that staying power. I think he still has a lot of football left in him.”
Since 2022, Toledo has won the MAC, appeared in a second MAC championship game, won 11 consecutive games, spent multiple weeks in the top 25, defeated two power conference teams, won a thrilling six-overtime bowl game that nearly three million viewers watched, had a first-round draft pick, a Mr. Irrelevant, created buzz at the Senior Bowl, and now the Rockets have three players in the Super Bowl.
“There’s no way we could afford some of the free advertising we’re going to get from our football program this weekend,” Blair said. “We could go out and buy billboards and digital marketing, but it all pales in comparison to the [recognition] that we’ll gain just by playing that game. This is the biggest event in all of sports. We can’t take these moments for granted. These types of moments don’t happen to most in the country. We’re in rare air.
“We’re talking about the best of the best, the elite of the elite. And we’ve got to start thinking of ourselves that way. We’ve got to utilize this as a foundation and a platform for what can be because we can’t take our foot off the gas. This is a key indicator of what can be. The campus, the community, and certainly those within our athletic department have to take notice of this and pour some gas on the fire.”
First Published February 8, 2025, 8:58 p.m.
