Finding lost family more super than game

HOUSTON -- Mention Bobby Hamilton to his 73-year-old grandmother, and Helen Hamilton's memories flash back almost 30 years.

"I used to keep him," the elder Hamilton recalled with a huge smile Wednesday as she leafed through childhood pictures of Bobby visiting her Houston home.

"He was a baby then. He was a good boy. He'd say, 'Grandma, Grandma, can I go out and play?' and I'd have to say, 'No, you're too small to go out and play now.' "

At 32, baby Bobby isn't too small anymore. He will go out to play Sunday at Reliant Stadium in Super Bowl XXXVIII as a 6-5, 280-pound starting defensive end for the New England Patriots.

The game against the Carolina Panthers will come two days after an expected emotional reunion with his grandmother and close to 30 long-lost relatives on his deceased father's side. Hamilton discovered them living in the Houston area five years ago.

None have seen him since Billy Hamilton's funeral in December 1980. Hamilton's father was killed in a random shooting in his home just days before his wife and four sons were to move from Columbia, Miss., to ... // 85% Remaining