KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Despite the convergence of sports, their hometown and Taylor Swift, there is a fifth grade girls' basketball team in Kansas City that will be cheering for the San Francisco 49ers this weekend.
"Go Ronnie!" the team yelled toward the KSHB 41 news camera recently at a practice at Plaza Middle School.
But they have a good excuse, a great excuse.
Ronnie Bell is a 49ers' wide receiver but he's also the bankroll behind the team.
"He loves his sister," said Aaron Bell, Ronnie's dad and the team's head coach. "And one of the things he always told me was he always wanted to support her and what she's doing and her dreams."
Ronnie's little sister plays for the fifth grade girls' basketball team and when he's not catching touchdowns – he recorded three touchdowns in his rookie season – he's helping pay for fees, travel costs and even cheering them on when he's in town.
"These little girls love Ronnie," said Aaron. "So whenever he comes around, they're constantly calling him and harassing him."
This week, of course, he won't be around. Ronnie will be at the Super Bowl with the 49ers living out a childhood dream.
"I can just remember some of the conversations we've had growing up and for him to reach that and put in the hard work, it was a blessing to see," said Aaron.
And they'll see it in person, as the family will make the trip to Las Vegas to hopefully see the 2017 Simone Award Winner play on the biggest stage in football. He's been on the inactive list for the first two 49ers' playoff games.
Doesn't matter.
"Once in a life time deal," said Aaron.
But maybe not the way this family is going.
After all, little brother Kendrick Bell who, just like Ronnie, won the Simone Award as a Park Hill senior, just won a national title with Michigan, Ronnie's alma mater.
"He (Kendrick) red-shirted but talking to him week to week and hearing how much better he's getting and how he helped in the background," said Aaron. "I was really excited about that."
There's no house-divided dynamic happening this week with the Bells. Aaron, who was a standout athlete at Raytown South and Pittsburg State and who works as the wide receivers' coach at Missouri Western, has never been a Chiefs' fan.
"I've got a lot of people talking," laughed Aaron about his Chiefs' fan friends. "I tell them 'you've got about two weeks of being the enemy' but I love you guys."
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