Among the intense emotions of draft day, former Ohio State defensive tackle Kayden McDonald got another bittersweet surprise from one of his childhood best friends.
After getting selected by the Houston Texans with the No. 36 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, McDonald was surprised with a FaceTime call from his friend Elijah Hallum, his first friend when he moved to Parsons Elementary in Suwanee, Georgia.
“So proud of you. There’s no one that deserves it more than you,” Hallum said to a crying McDonald.
“I miss you, I’m coming back home to see you bro,” McDonald replied.
After getting drafted, McDonald had tears streaming down his face on his way to the podium. He approached NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and let out another cry while hugging Goodell.
“Seeing you get all emotional and everything, it got my momma crying at the table,” Hallum said to McDonald.
McDonald opened up about his family’s financial struggles after the call with Hallum, revealing that Hallum would lend him support when he didn’t have lunch money for school.
“I never had lunch money in my account because I was struggling a little bit, the family,” McDonald said, ESPN. “But he always had an open hand for me and, like, we’d just go to recess and play football, kickball. … Our relationship grew each year and, like, after that, you know, just became best buddies.”
McDonald was the fifth Buckeye to be selected in the draft.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Kayden McDonald tears up after surprise call from childhood friend
Reporting by Dan Aulbach, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
