Bill Hemmer reveals lucky Bengals outfit for Super Bowl
Tyrus, Dana Perino, and Bill Hemmer discuss predictions for the big game on 'America's Newsroom.'
Cincinnati native Bill Hemmer feels it’s "too difficult to put into words" what a Bengals victory over the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday would mean for his beloved city, but the Fox News anchor is hoping decades of loyalty finally pays off.
"I’m nervous, but I really like to be the underdog, and we are," Hemmer told Fox News Digital as he prepared to travel to California with the hopes of witnessing history.
Bill Hemmer at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City for the Bengals’ victory over the Chiefs on January 30.
"If you're from Cincinnati, you don't shop for another team. You get what you get. And what we've gotten is mediocrity for 30 years," Hemmer said. "We stay true and loyal through it all and hopefully this time faith will be rewarded."
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Hemmer grew up a passionate fan of the 1970s-era Cincinnati Reds, the famous Big Red Machine, which is considered one of the most dominant teams in Major League Baseball history. The Reds won two World Series titles during Hemmer’s childhood. By 1981, the Cincinnati Bengals were a force in the NFL, making the Super Bowl following the 1981 and 1988 seasons, both times against Joe Montana’s famed San Francisco 49ers juggernaut.
The Bengals lost to the 49ers both times, but a pair of World Series titles and two trips to the Super Bowl left Hemmer believing more success for his southwest Ohio city would be imminent.
"I grew up thinking that winning was just a part of life, and it was always going to be around you," he said. "Well, it's not."
The Reds won the 1990 World Series but have generally been an MLB also-ran ever since. The Bengals developed a reputation as one of the NFL's bumblers, failing to win a single playoff game during a 31-year stretch from 1990 until last month against the Las Vegas Raiders in the Wild Card round.
Sensing this year could be special, Hemmer vowed to attend every Bengals playoff game for as long as they remained alive, regardless of what city the games were played in.
Hemmer traveled back home to Cincinnati to watch his team take on the Raiders, and they won. Hemmer said he "could not believe" the celebration outside Paul Brown Stadium following the game.
"People tailgating and having a blast and that feeling has not been there since the late 1980s," he said.
Hemmer traveled to Nashville to watch the following week when the Bengals visited the top-seeded Tennessee Titans in the Divisional round. The Bengals won again, advancing to the AFC Championship game.
Bill Hemmer with his sisters, Ann Ryan and Kris Sikora.
Another victory meant it was time for Hemmer to hit the road for a third straight weekend, so he traveled to Kansas City to watch the Bengals rally from 18 points down to beat the Chiefs.
"When you have opportunities like this, it's like lightning. You don't know where or when it's going to strike, but you can't afford not to be there when it does," Hemmer said. "I have been on the greatest NFL road show of my life ... We just need one more."
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The superstitious anchor has worn the same outfit, including a Bengals beanie cap, to all three chilly games. He’ll be at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles for Super Bowl LVI with hopes that lightning can strike again, but the forecast doesn’t exactly mirror the weather in Cincinnati, Nashville or Kansas City. Hemmer may have to shed some layers for this one.
"I’m trying, but it’s going to be 80 degrees," he said. "I’ll come as close to it as I possibly can to keep the good mojo and the good vibes going."
Bill Hemmer has worn his lucky beanie to all three Cincinnati Bengals playoff victories heading into Super Bowl LVI.
A fellow Ohio native is responsible for much of the Bengals success, which has made this surprising postseason run even more special for Hemmer.
Star quarterback Joe Burrow, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, has already won the Heisman Trophy and an NCAA national championship at LSU. After a knee injury ended his rookie campaign last year, he’s emerged as a budding superstar by guiding the Bengals to the Super Bowl in only his second season.
Hemmer would obviously be a huge fan of any successful Bengals quarterback, but he admired Burrow the minute he discussed growing up in Southeast Ohio during his 2019 Heisman speech. Burrow talked about the poverty rate in Athens County, Ohio, and noted how privileged he felt to represent the less fortunate on a national stage. Burrow began his college career at Ohio State and transferred to LSU, where he enjoyed a solid year as a starter in 2018 before his spectacular Heisman-winning campaign in 2019.
"He was speaking for all those people, and he started a hunger drive for them. I mean, that's a pretty good way to start if you ask me," Hemmer said. "So when you're local, and you're born and bred, yeah, there's an immediate attachment."
While Burrow is the most famous, Hemmer made it clear that Burrow isn’t the only Ohio native looking to bring the Lombardi trophy home on Sunday.
"We’ve got other guys like Sam Hubbard, defensive end, he was born and bred in Cincinnati … Our punter, Kevin Huber went to [University of] Cincinnati. We drafted Jackson Carman, he’s from Fairfield, Ohio, 45 minutes up the road," Hemmer said. "There are some cool local ties on this team to the city and the state itself."
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Hemmer isn’t a run-of-the-mill celebrity fan who jumps on the bandwagon when a local team finds success. The "America’s Newsroom" co-anchor is as passionate as it gets about football and, of course, the Bengals. He reads whatever Bengals content he can find, often spends his time away from Fox News glued to the NFL Network, and has followed every offseason acquisition the team has made for decades.
Cincinnati native Bill Hemmer is hopeful his loyalty will pay off.
Hemmer admits he was conflicted prior to the 2021 NFL Draft when the pundits thought his team would select offensive tackle Penei Sewell, but others felt Burrow’s college teammate Ja'Marr Chase was the obvious choice. Hemmer’s nephew – another passionate Bengals fan – wanted Chase, but the Fox News anchor preferred the big guy.
The Bengals went with Chase, a wide receiver who has been a key contributor to the team and was named the 2021 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, but Hemmer doesn’t seem to mind.
"I always thought you win games in the trenches, and in order to do that, you must have a sustained, effective offensive line," he said. "They have proven me wrong."
He might not be too far off. Burrow was sacked nine times by the Titans, tying a playoff record even as the Bengals narrowly won. Cincinnati will have to keep him upright against the Rams' ferocious pass rush to pull off the upset.
Hemmer, who has attended 20 Super Bowls in the past, feels the game is America’s great annual event. He loves that Americans from all walks of life enter the stadium with an equal level of excitement and anticipation.
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"It’s hard to find that level of joy anywhere," he said. "Now, when the game is over, things change."
The veteran anchor, who isn’t usually at a loss for words, didn’t want to offer his opinion about whether Burrow would emerge as the face of the NFL with a Super Bowl victory at such a young age.
"I’m not even going to consider that until the game is over. I think that would be bad mojo," Hemmer said. "Can we talk about that on Tuesday?"
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