E-Rod is on Chicago's Latino community's radar

Written by Azarel LugoCourtesy: Nuevo Impact

 It is no secret that NFL rosters are mostly made up of African-Americans and Caucasians. However, throughout the league's history, there have been a few Hispanic men who persevered to make it in the sport. Roberto Garza and Evan Rodriguez of your Chicago Bears are two of them, and the Bears are glad to have them.

Roberto was raised in Rio Hando, TX and grew up in a typical Mexican home. He says he ate tortillas de arena and arroz con frijoles daily. Growing up he was constantly surrounded by family and enjoyed all of the family get-togethers and parties. Having Spanish only speaking parents made him fluent in Español, and has taught him to enjoy and embrace his Mexican culture and heritage. During Roberto's high school years, he lettered in football and track. He was also a part of the National Honor Society. He went on to college at Texas A&M-Kingsville and turned heads as a starter for three years and won multiple awards for his play. He even won the NCAA title for shot put in 2000. Garza became a Bear in 2005 and has played exceptionally well since then. He has been a great role model on the field (with his hard work and dedication) and off the field (with his continuous charitable donations and outreach events).

Thrillingly, Roberto isn't the only one representing his fellow Latinos at Soldier Field this year. The Chicago Bears drafted tight end Evan Rodriguez. Evan has made it his goal to join Roberto in representing Latinos well in the NFL. He's half Puerto Rican and was born in Bronx, New York. His single mom raised Evan, and she has always been one of his greatest heroes. In high school he was team captain and an all-state safety. Evan attended college at Temple University and majored in criminal justice. He received many honors for his outstanding play at the college level. One of those honors was being picked by the Chicago Bears in the 4th round of the 2012 NFL draft. In his first week of practice at training camp, Evan is already turning heads, but that does not move him. Evan's philosophy is to put his head down, work hard, and pay his dues to earn the respect of his teammates, coaches, and fans.

Neither of these Bears has forgotten where they come from. They welcome the responsibility of being role models and ambassadors for Latinos in the NFL. In fact, they are extremely proud to be a part of the fraternity of Latino players in the league. They fully support their fellow Latinos in the league (when they aren't playing against each other), and welcome new additions to the Latino NFL fraternity with open arms.

Roberto's message to young Latinos striving to play football professionally is this, "Never give up on your dreams, get educated, work hard, and do things the right way." Evan says, "At the end of the day, no one can stop you, except that man in the mirror."

In Chicago there are literally hundreds of thousands of Latino Bears fans. Many of them aren't just casual fans either; they are die-hards. These people bleed the blue and orange. Most NFL teams don't have a single Latino on their roster, but here in Chicago, we have the opportunity to watch two Latinos play and contribute to our beloved Bears. We get to watch and cheer for two guys who identify with us by playing with a dedicated, respectable attitude, which is the same mindset that many of us hard working Latinos bring to our workplaces, communities, and homes. GO OZOS!