FAIRFIELD, Ohio — Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Jackson Carman gave a Super Bowl ticket to his high school coach in Fairfield, Jason Krause.
And Krause won't be going alone: when he arrives in Los Angeles on Thursday, he will carry a suitcase full of inspiration from the school district for Carman.
Fairfield City School District students and staff members - from elementary to high school levels - made thousands of supportive messages as the 2018 Fairfield High School graduate prepares for the Super Bowl on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.
"We're excited about that; it gives everybody a little bit of interest into what he's doing and what they're doing," Krause said. "It shows him our love and support to hear from Fairfield."
From orange and black logo illustrations to creatively-designed envelopes, to a 'Who Dey' poster that includes photos of cafeteria staff wearing Carman's No. 79 jersey, Krause will proudly pack some of the items in his suitcase tonight as he prepares for his flight on Thursday afternoon.
Carman, a 2021 second-round pick from Clemson, will eventually see every encouraging item that the district's students and staff created since the Bengals won the AFC Championship.
"It's pretty cool," Fairfield athletic director Aaron Blankenship said. "I think for us it's just been a fun outlet for people to be able to reach out to Jackson and also just a reminder for really the kids in our elementary schools, our middle schools, our high school that anything can happen."
Krause gratefully accepted an opportunity from Carman last week to make the Super Bowl trip. The coach will accompany some of Carman's family in pregame festivities leading up to Sunday and the game itself.
"It's hard to kind of know where we're sitting," said Krause, who is entering his 12th season at Fairfield. "I am sure we will probably somewhere behind the Bengals bench up way. It's surreal really to think I'm going to be in the stands at the Super Bowl out in L.A. where I've never been."
Krause and Carman text or FaceTime at least once a week during the season. Carman attended several Fairfield games this past fall including when Krause became the school's coaching wins leader in program history.
"Fairfield football is where I really started picking up liking football," Carman told WCPO in January. "The ball really started rolling. I was like, 'Wow, I can make a career out of this.' And so just the level of physicality I feel like we had in the GMC (Greater Miami Conference) definitely helped prepare me for anything that we were going to face beyond that because we hit down there at Fairfield. People know that."
While Krause has discussed Carman and the Bengals plenty of times over the past few weeks, he knows the significance of being able to support his former player in the stadium that will host the biggest stage of football.
"It's exciting just to be able to make this trip," Krause said. "But to look down on the field and see No. 79 and know that that's a guy you are close with, a guy that you coached and saw grow is just amazing for me."
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