‘It’s a brotherhood’: Columbus alum Josh Jobe, Deon Bush set to meet in Super Bowl 57
Amid the bustle of the Super Bowl’s Opening Night in Footprint Center, Josh Jobe took a moment to soak in the atmosphere.
As the Eagles rookie cornerback stood in the multi-purpose arena, he lifted his head and scanned the pageantry — the vibrant lights, the wrestling ring setup from which he and his teammates emerged and the several hundred fans watching it all unfold.
“It feels great being out here,” he told the Miami Herald Monday night. “As a rookie, it’s a great experience to be out here with my teammates.”
When the NFL opened the 2022 season, Miami was the most represented city across the league. 19 players who attended high school in Miami began the year on an active roster, tied with Houston for the most.
And when the season concludes with Super Bowl 57 at State Farm Stadium on Sunday night, the city will be represented by not only Jobe but Kansas City Chiefs safety Deon Bush, who like Jobe attended Christopher Columbus High School. It’s the first-ever meeting in the championship game between Columbus alum (Patrick Lee and Brian Grese are also Columbus alum who have made it to the Super Bowl).
Jobe, 24, and Bush, 29, were never teammates at Columbus. But Chris Merritt, who coached both players, said “they were part of our football program ... when we were evolving into a state power.”
Both Jobe and Bush ventured out of their neighborhoods to attend the all-boys Catholic private school. Jobe is a Coconut Grove native who was determined to attend school and carve a future for himself out of the inner city.
“All we know is football and we grind,” Jobe said of Miami athletes.
Jobe was persistent in his determination to attend Columbus and told his eighth-grade math teacher, Lily Parkin, about his goal. Parkin helped sign Jobe up for the entrance exam, as well as apply for a scholarship. But the cost of attendance would be tough for his family; he was raised by his father and aunt, who adopted him and seven of his siblings. When Jobe’s family was short on the payment to attend the school, Parkin and another teacher chipped in to cover the remaining amount.
“To be honest with you, that’s all I needed to know,” said Merritt, who is now the head football coach at Bryant University. “Because any time you get teachers that are in middle school that pull together resources ... that tells what type of kid he is.”
Several years before Jobe, Bush was also in Columbus as a raw, talented player. His brother, Gary Jr., also attended Columbus and played at Purdue. His father was a science teacher at Miami Southridge who played in college at Mississippi Valley State with Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice. In 2017, Gary died of liver cancer.
Merritt remembers a conversation he had with Bush and his mother in high school in which he informed them he thought Bush had the ability to follow in the footsteps of his father and brother.
“It was voiced: If you take care of business, you’ve got the opportunity to play in college. ... He had all the attributes,” he said.
Bush was a four-star recruit and stayed home, committing to the University of Miami in the Class of 2012. He was a four-year player who started 32 games and earned all-conference honors as a senior. The Chicago Bears selected him in the fourth round of the 2016 Draft.
Bush spent his first six years in the NFL in Chicago, starting 12 games and contributing heavily on special teams before he joined the Chiefs before the 2022 season. He wasn’t present at Opening Night, arriving late in Phoenix after the birth of his child. But fellow safety Juan Thornhill praised Bush’s experience in a young defensive backs room.
The first play that came to Thornhill’s mind aligns perfectly with Merritt’s description of Bush as a “striker.”
“Deon’s been a heck of a player,” Thornhill said. “He steps in on special teams, making big-time plays. Whenever someone goes down, Deon is always willing to step up and make a play. I went out against the Chargers [in Week 11] and I had to go into the locker room. When I went into the locker room, I was watching the game and I saw it was Deon that made that big [hit] that allowed Nick [Bolton] to pick the ball off. So, Deon’s been a heck of a guy in our locker room.”
Meanwhile, Jobe spent his first three seasons at Columbus before transferring to Cheshire Academy in Connecticut because of Florida’s age eligibility rules. A U.S. Army All-American, Jobe was once committed to UM but then flipped to Alabama.
“I think he needed Alabama as much as Alabama needed him.,” Merritt said, “because of the structure they gave him.”
Jobe was also four-year player and signed with the Eagles last spring after he wasn’t selected in the 2022 Draft. He was one of three undrafted rookies to make Philadelphia’s roster and has played on over 75 percent of the team’s special team snaps. The Eagles have a strong cornerback room with Darius Slay and James Bradberry entrenched as starters. But defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon praised Jobe’s potential.
“He’s got coverage abilities. He’s long. He’s tough. And he can get the ball,” Gannon said. “I was so thankful we got Josh. We were ready to draft him. I’ve got high hopes for him. We actually talked before we left [for Phoenix]. We’re looking for him to ascend as we keep going.”
Merritt said he doesn’t like to take credit for the success of Jobe and Bush, instead deferring to their preternatural ability and hard work. When he watches them on the field on Sunday night, he’ll think of the teenage boys who both wore No. 2 and whom he each called “a man amongst boys.”
Though Jobe and Bush were never teammates, Jobe said he always looked up to Bush as a fellow defensive back and Columbus alum.
“He’s from Columbus, so it’s a brotherhood. That’s my big brother,” Jobe said.
