From a tweet to the Super Bowl in a few short weeks, Shiloh Keo's story is one of the most unique in the history of the game.
“It's so surreal,” said Keo, who played for the Vandals from 2006-10 and was a member of the 2009 Humanitarian Bowl Championship team. “I can't believe I'm going to the Super Bowl.”
Just weeks before he recovered the onside kick that secured the AFC Championship and Super Bowl 50 berth for the Denver Broncos, Keo was shopping himself to everyone he knew in the game. He still had the passion to play and he just knew there was a place for him on someone's roster. His wife, Keanna, was scouring the daily injury reports. When she told him Denver was in need of a safety and he should reach out, Keo at first didn't respond.
“That was more me being frustrated,” he said. “She put her foot down: What's the worst that can happen?”
After discovering he no longer had defensive coordinator Wade Phillips' number in his phone, Keo decided to contact him via social media.
“I knew he was an avid Twitter guy,” Keo said. “I thought, 'I'll just tweet him and have some fun.' “
It turned into way more fun than he ever imagined. After a week's worth of on-and-off tweeting with Phillips, the Broncos called. What puzzled Keo was they wanted him to report on a Wednesday – typically the day teams are beginning game prep for the next opponent. His experience had been new guys were brought in on Tuesdays for a tryout with the hope of lasting until Wednesday.
“Sure enough,” he recalls, “they ended up signing me.”
That was the beginning of achieving every football player's dream. He joined the Broncos in early December. Seven weeks later, he made the most memorable play of his career.
“Once that ball was in my hands,” he recalled, “that's the first thing I thought: I'm going to the Super Bowl. I just got up as quickly as I could and yelled at the top of my lungs. Oh my goodness! I'm going to the Super Bowl. The championship of all championships.”
To those who watched him play at the Kibbie Dome, that exuberance is trademark Keo – a lively, passionate player who led the Vandals in interception returns three times and in tackles once. By the end of his Idaho career, he had climbed to fifth all-time in total tackles.
Advancing his game when he came to college was just one of the many life lessons he took from Moscow that have helped him in his quest to play at the next level. His ability to learn quickly and adapt to change after playing for three defensive staffs while a Vandal was a big boost as he headed to Denver for his chance of a lifetime.
“I learned so much during my time at Idaho,” he said. “The importance of putting in the time; just the little extra things that get me mentally and physically prepared to play the game.”
His first three season out of college were with Houston where he played every game his first three seasons with starts in 11 of 16 in 2013. Then he was injured and missed all of the 2014 season. He spent the 2015 preseason with Cincinnati but didn't make the final roster. The difficult waiting game began.
“The last two years have been rough on me and my family,” Keo said. “Sitting and waiting on the sideline, hoping someone wants to bring you in.”
Helping him stay the course and maintain his optimism comes from a path made easier by Keanna, who he met at Idaho, and their two sons – Kruz and Kingston (another baby is on the way). There's another path that he discovered at Idaho that he also walks every day.
“My religion, my faith, hit me hard when I was in college,” said Keo, whose conversations are dotted with references to his faith. “I'm just so thankful to have had a career as long as I have. I just feel blessed that I'm still playing.”
Now he's gearing up for what will be the biggest game of his career.
“I love this game. I'm passionate about this game,” Keo said. “I've never had so much fun in my life.”
