Deshaun Watson invites Houston-area hero to Texans game

by TigerNet Staff - Tue Sep 24 13:25:53 GMT-04:00 2019

Aldine High School (Tx.) football player Jayden Payne didn't hesitate to jump in and help save a mother and toddler out of a submerged vehicle in the Houston-area recently.

Former Clemson and current Houston Texans QB Deshaun Watson recognized the heroic effort with an invite to this weekend's game with the Carolina Panthers:

Jayden - you are a real life hero! I’d like to invite you to be our special guest at our game this Sunday vs. the Panthers @AldineHS_AISD @gunghoMustangs https://t.co/nhkX3tOtHC
— Deshaun Watson (@deshaunwatson) September 23, 2019

Aldine High School (@AldineAthletics) RB/LB Jayden Payne on @deshaunwatson inviting him on Twitter to be the #Texans special guest Sunday during the game w/ Carolina.Jayden rescued a mother & her child during the flooding caused by Imelda: "I was shocked..Oh my God.I was excited" pic.twitter.com/TsWczaKbPK
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) September 23, 2019

Tropical Depression Imelda brought as much as 40 inches of rain to areas of Texas in the last week:

"I hurried up, threw my jacket off, I threw my shirt off," Payne said. "I ran over there across in front of all the cars. I didn't care if all the cars stopped or not because I was more worried about their safety than my safety."

Payne jumped into the bayou, saw the woman open her car door and her head emerge from the water followed by her pulling her daughter's head out of the waters.

Jayden grabbed the woman and her child and pushed them out of the bayou against a strong current with the help of two men. With the mother and daughter spitting up water, Jayden stayed with the family to make sure they were safe and recovering.

"She was crying. She said 'You're my guardian angel,'," said Jayden, recalling the mother's words.

Watson has a history of giving back to the local community in tough times.

Two years ago after Hurricane Harvey, Watson donated his first game paycheck to cafeteria workers at Houston's NRG Stadium affected by the major storm and also partnered with Habitat for Humanity to refurnish nearly 200 homes.