PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Pictures and videos of Jason Kelce celebrating after his brother’s victory in Super Bowl LVIII went viral. For most of the night, he was sporting a luchador mask.
Turns out it came from a 14-year-old Chiefs fan out of Texas.
“I gave him my mask, and he dropped it, and then picked it back up from the ground. I got a picture with him and kinda just hung out with him, next to him for five to 10 min,” Elijah Smith said.
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The diehard Kansas City fan saw the Chiefs’ overtime victory alongside his family in Vegas. Elijah said he originally spotted the Eagles’ center at the Chiefs afterparty, so he ran over to grab a picture. However, Jason left, Elijah said, before he could get the luchador mask back.
Sarah Smith/Smith Family.
“The next day, of course, it’s all over the place. And there was this wishful thinking that maybe if it was still in his possession that maybe he could get it back,” Sarah Smith, Elijah’s mom, said.
Elijah feels the luchador mask is his good luck charm for the team. The eighth grader also wore it at last year’s big game, when the Eagles fell to the Chiefs. Kansas City Cornerback Trent McDuffie even signed it.
“Last year, every time I put it on I feel like we scored a touchdown or got a defensive stop,” Elijah said. He continued, “Once I put it back on, we made that 10-point come back in the second half, so I feel a little bit superstitious about it.”
Sarah Smith/Smith Family.
On the New Heights podcast earlier this week, the Kelce brothers talked about the viral moments of Jason partying with the mask. At the time – they had no idea who or where it came from.
“He also said on his podcast after he picked up the mask, it kinda just gave him a lot more energy and made the night for him, so I thought that was amazing,” Elijah said.
Fast-forward to Friday morning and Jason posted on X about getting the mask back to its rightful owner – Elijah. Sarah said the Eagles star reached out to the family not long after.
“He does have the mask and so it’s pretty exciting that it’s in the works to get it returned,” she said.
Elijah said simply put, “I’m so happy with the fact that Jason Kelce was wearing my mask and celebrating in it. I thought that was really cool.”
Jason even FaceTimed Elijah Friday evening to check in with him about the mask, his family told CBS News Philadelphia.
The Smith Family
“He [Jason] was so thoughtful, apologetic, and kind. They laughed some about the evening, and he offered to have the mask signed by other players, but Elijah said it’s fine to leave it as is,” the Smith family said.
“He also told him no rush on returning the mask, especially with all that happened after the KC parade. It will get returned, and Elijah was just happy he still has it and grateful he made the effort to FaceTime him. He is an awesome guy,” they said.
So what happens in Vegas – at least in the case of this mask – doesn’t exactly stay in Vegas. Regardless, these Chiefs fans are thankful for Kelce’s kindness.
“Just from the contact we had today, you can tell he just has a big old heart,” Sarah said.
Elijah added, “You [Philadelphia fans] have a great guy in Jason. He’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met!”
