With the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs set to battle Sunday in Super Bowl LVII, three players are looking to complete the trifecta of winning a state championship, a college national championship and an NFL title.
Linebacker Nakobe Dean and safety K'Von Wallace of the Eagles and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire of Kansas City won championships in high school and college and that winning continued to the NFL.
Edwards-Helaire was activated off injured reserve on Monday and hasn't played since week 11.
Dean and Wallace contribute for the Eagles, combining to play 32 snaps in Philadelphia's victory over San Francisco in the NFC Championship game.
Nakobe Dean is one of three players participating in Super Bowl LVII looking to add a pro football championship to pair with their high school state and college football national championships. (Photo: Robbie Rakestraw)
College: Georgia
NFL: Philadelphia Eagles
Dean was a wrecking ball on both sides in high school, especially during his senior year as Horn Lake (Miss.) went 15-0 and won the 2018 MHSAA Class 6A championship.
The five-star linebacker recruit first received an SEC offer after his 50-tackle freshman season. During his senior season he had 175 tackles.
In the state championship victory against four-star John Rhys Plumlee and Oak Grove (Hattiesburg, Miss.), Dean and the Horn Lake defense held a Warriors rushing attack that had been averaging 233 yards per game, to 32 yards on 11 attempts.
Dean committed to Georgia less than a month later and won a national championship as a junior in 2021.
The 5-foot-11, 231-pounder was a third-round pick by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2022 NFL Draft and had 13 tackles this season. In the NFC Championship game, Dean was on the field for 22 snaps.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB
College: LSU
NFL: Kansas City Chiefs
Edwards-Helaire won his national championship at LSU over K'Von Wallace
and Clemson in 2019 after rushing for 110 yards while adding an
additional 54 yards receiving the ball in his final college game.
At
Catholic-B.R., Edwards-Helaire was on varsity all four years and helped
the Bears to their first state championship in school history
during his 2015 junior season. The task was tall against future
LSU teammate Ja'Marr Chase and Archbishop Rummel (Metairie, LA) in the
Superdome. Edwards-Helaire ran for 88 yards and a touchdown and caught
eight passes for 161 yards and another score.
Kansas City made
Edwards-Helaire its first-round pick of the 2020 NFL Draft and he played
in Super Bowl LV where he rushed for 64 yards in a 31-9 loss to Tampa
Bay.
K'Von Wallace, S
College: Clemson
NFL: Philadelphia Eagles
A strong end to Wallace's senior season at Highland Springs helped the three-star safety earn scholarship offers from top schools including Clemson, where he won two national championships.
Wallace was committed to play at Cincinnati when he took the field for Highland Springs state championship rumble against Stone Ridge (Ashburn) in 2015.
The speedster competed in the track and field national championships and played both wide receiver and cornerback. Against Stone Ridge, he had two receiving touchdowns and an interception in the end zone as the Springers brought home their first Virginia state championship since 1961. Within a month he received offers from Ohio State, Clemson and Michigan State.
The third-year NFL safety didn't have to wait long for his next ring as Clemson won the national championship during his freshman year, then again during his junior year. During his collegiate career Wallace was a four-time ACC Honor Roll selection and played in five College Football Playoff games.
Wallace was a fourth-round selection by the Eagles in the 2020 NFL Draft and has 28 tackles this season, including nine in his lone start against the Chicago Bears on Dec. 18, 2022.
