KEWAUNEE (NBC 26) — A hometown hero is fulfilling his NFL dreams.
- Kewaunee native Tanor Bortolini has been drafted to the Indianapolis Colts
- The former Badger spent his time playing on Wisconsin's offensive line
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story, with additional details for the web)
Colts general manager Chris Ballard broke the news over the phone.
“Well, you’re a Colt brother. We’re gonna take you right here. Congrats,” said Ballard.
On the other side of the line was Tanor Bortolini, an offensive lineman for the Wisconsin Badgers. The Colts selected him
in the 4th round with the 117th pick.
Bortolini was understandably overjoyed but, also relieved.
“It’s been a long time," Bortolini said. "You know, you pour your love, blood, sweat, and tears into this, so for it to finally come full circle, for you to get to this moment is surreal.”
Bortolini has been playing football since he was a boy. His friends and family and the city of Kewaunee, have been supporting Bortolini for a while—something he doesn't take for granted.
“When you see the games I played at Wisconsin, you know, I had 40, 50, 60 [people] deep rolling up to support. You don’t see many other people having that many people show up," said Bortolini.
Bortolini spent the rest of the day living in the moment but he did have one thing to say about his future.
“I'm just really excited to be a Colt," said Bortolini.
Tanor also told me his work has already begun because the Colts' mini-camp is next week.
