CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns recently announced a new partnership with Verizon, naming the wireless company the "Official 5G Network" of the organization. But during a special event to celebrate the partnership, one Browns player got an extra special surprise.
Local Verizon employees gathered for an event inside Cleveland Browns Stadium where they learned about their new company partnership asked questions, played games—and got to meet Browns wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones.
Donovan was happy to be part of the day's events because he had a special tie. Donovan's mom Rozlyn Peoples has worked at Verizon for over a decade. That made it a no-brainer for him to be involved in the celebration.
As Donovan took the stage, he answered questions about the Browns, the excitement for the season and about his mom working at Verizon for several years. Then, Donovan was asked if he'd like to be a part of the trivia questions the employees were asked before his arrival.
A question appeared on the screens behind Donovan and the crowd was asked to answer it if they knew it. The question, a very specific question about Donovan's accolades, seemed too tough for anyone in the crowd to get right: In 2015, high school football standout Donovan Peoples-Jones made history by becoming the first underclassman to win which national skills competition?
The crowd was asked to raise their hand if they had the answer. Verizon employees, who knew what was coming next, looked around for any hand to rise. There was just one.
"The answer is the national ranking SPARQ Championship. The youngest winner to ever do it," a voice said from the crowd. As she answered, Donovan looked around and said, "Who is that?" before realizing the surprise.
Rozlyn Peoples, Donovan's mom, held the mic as she proudly gave the answer to the question.
Donovan had no idea she was coming.
"Up on stage thinking, 'What could possibly be happening next?' And they asked a trivia question that I knew nobody in the crowd would know, and then I saw this hand go up, and I saw that it was my mom, and I was like, 'What?! Nobody told me that,' so that was dope," Donovan said.
Rozlyn drove from Detroit to see her son and surprise him at his event—with caution.
"Donovan does not like surprises, so I was a little skeptical, but I thought this was worth it," she laughed.
But Rozlyn decided that while her son didn't like surprises, she owed him one.
"So many times he's gotten me where he'll be like, 'Coming home,' and he'll be outside my house...or he'll make me believe he's somewhere else like he's still in Cleveland and then he'll say, 'Open the door,' and I just jump up like a little kid," she said. "So I got him this time. Usually, he gets me—but this time, I got him."
After the surprise, Rozlyn joined her son on stage, wearing her custom No. 11 jersey with "DPJ Mama" on the nameplate. The two embraced and talked to the crowd before Donovan headed down to meet employees, take pictures and sign autographs.
Being involved in promotions and events for his team is nothing new—but having his mom surprise him meant a little bit more for Donovan.
"Every time I get to see my mom, it's meaningful. For her to come up here and surprise me, means a lot to me. It's something I'll always remember," he said.
And for a guy who doesn't like surprises, the one at the event with Verizon was certainly an exception.
"I do...not—but I liked today's surprise," Donovan said.
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