Looking out the window, Giulio (Lio) Banchero watches as the trees roll past him on the bus. His teammates surround him, whispering in hushed tones about his family legacy. Some call out to him, while others remain silent as to not draw attention. But this was his story. And as the freshmen football bus comes to a halt, he leaps out, ready to forge his own path.
For all of his life, Banchero was surrounded by athletes. From this inspired his love for sports.
"My mom played sports professionally. My dad played in college. My uncle played in college. I grew up watching my brother play football and my sister play soccer…so I always wanted to play."
With the help of his family, Banchero developed a competitive drive early on in his life. Before coming to O'Dea, he participated in lots of sports, with his most notable team being the Benson Bruins junior football team in Renton, whom he played with his eighth grade year. Here, he played as a center and was a star player.
"I knew coming to O'Dea I wanted to play football because that was probably the most exciting thing I had seen from O'Dea. So just getting that extra year of experience under my belt before I came into O'Dea as a freshman… it just helped me prepare for what the next level was like."
Going into high school, Banchero had already built up a reputation for himself before stepping foot into the building. As a legacy student, most of the staff had recognized his name because of the multiple generations of family members who came prior.
"I got my grandpa and his family, his brothers, and all that and then my dad and then my cousin [attended O'Dea]."
Both his parents had played sports collegiately. His mom was inducted into the Huskies Hall of Fame as an all-time leading scorer and played in the WNBA, while his father played college football for the Huskies and became a successful businessman. Despite this, he never struggled with pressure from his peers. To him, it just made life more exciting.
"Everybody was just waiting to see what I was gonna do and how I was gonna turn out at O'Dea. So it was more just like everybody waiting to see more than it being pressure and me having all these crazy expectations."
During Banchero's first year at O'Dea, his older brother, Paolo Banchero, had his rookie season in the NBA. As a result, Lio also received some pressure at school for simply being related to him.
"They expected a lot of stuff out of me. Whether it was performances, what sports I should play, or, shoot, even what I needed to wear. People were trying to make me more like him."
Even with all the expectations, Banchero forged his own identity. Although he followed in his brother's footsteps by playing basketball during his freshmen year, Banchero made a name for himself on the football field as a star wide receiver and cornerback. In addition, he also participated in track and field events during the spring, making him a tri-sport athlete.
"A lot of times in the past, people wrote about me as Paolo's little brother… But now it's my name first, with my family's athletes afterwards…They began putting respect on my own name."
Although people had many presumptions about Banchero, he embraced them, and they motivated him to pursue greatness on and off the field.
"I like having the pressure. I like hearing the chants of the opposing schools saying "you're not your brother" or whatever. It's just a part of [my] growth. I'll have to deal with it wherever I go, but I love hearing [it], and it makes [playing] more exciting and fun."
Walking down the path, he entered Memorial Stadium with his head held up high. His family and friends cheered him on from the sideline as he stepped onto the field. The opposing student section chanted "overrated," but that only motivated him further.
In the biggest game, so far, of his junior year. This was his defining moment.
Not his parents'.
Not his brother's.
Just his own. Forged from the fires of greatness, he showcased what he was capable of.
Final score: O'Dea 49, Roosevelt 30.
Photo Credits: Paddy Mahar
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