"I'm his namesake so everything I do is for him," the younger Hayden said.
Their rapport stretches further than just a common name. Their birthdays are a day apart. Then there's the love for football.
"That was pretty much what he lived for," said Jamie Ross, Hayden Matthews's mom and Hayden Dale's son. "He said, 'I live to watch that kid play.'"
Dale suffered a stroke in September and never fully recovered. It took his eyesight, but not his love for cheering on his grandson. He was placed in hospice, and came home from the hospital two days before Cabot's September 20 game against Benton.
"I told him that I would play for him," said Matthews, a senior defensive lineman at Cabot High School. "I'd try to get a sack for him."
When his mom left the game at halftime, Matthews said he knew his grandfather had passed. He responded with the game of his life, recording a tackle for loss, fumble recovery and as promised, a sack.
Tears streamed down his face.
"I can't describe it. I just knew that he was with me," Matthews said.
"The fact that Hayden did that for Daddy, it's almost like that was their last hurrah together," Ross sa... Click here to read full article
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