After "Tearjerker" Reunion, Jordan Mailata's Family Set to See him Play Live

The Eagles LT picked his parent up at the Philadelphia airport on Christmas Day, seeing them for the first time in years, and now they will be at the Linc to see him play the Saints

PHILADELPHIA – They’ve explored the labyrinth that is the King of Prussia Mall.

They’ve experienced some of the frosty chill winters in the Northeast United States can deliver.

They’ve gone head-to-head in some competitive games of Dominoes, and shot some pool, too.

The best may be yet to come, and that is when Maria and Tupa’i will head over to Lincoln Financial Field to watch their son, Jordan Mailata, play football for the first time in person when the Eagles host the New Orleans Saints (1 p.m./FOX).

“Hopefully the Linc can give them a good experience, hopefully not too many boos and they’ll be great, my parents' first game, but it is what it is,” said the Eagles’ left tackle earlier in the week. 

“It’s as blue-collar as you can get in Philly and my parents are used to that. It’s going to be a good experience for them.”

Maria and Tupa’i arrived on Christmas Day. It was the first time they had seen their next-to-youngest of five children in nearly four years.

They had never seen him play football in person, only watching him on television.

With flights being canceled across the United States due to a bomb cyclone that brought snow and strong winds to every corner of the country, the Mailata’s made it safely to Philly.

“I wasn’t sure it was going to happen,” said Mailata. “We were texting back and forth. They were saying the flight is still on, I’m saying, are you sure? We went back and forth, but I drove over there (the Philadelphia airport), picked them up…it was a tear-jerker.”

Maria and Tapa’i had flown into Tampa from Australia days before Christmas and spent time with friends and family there they hadn’t seen in a long time.

Jordan didn’t want them to come in until after the game against the Cowboys on Christmas Eve and even then he wanted to make sure they understood that he had a job to do.

“I told my parents they’re on the same page as me that my job comes first before everything, so trying to fit everything in,” he said. “With them being in town has been pretty tricky, but they’ve been pretty understanding, so that helps a lot. I’m worried about the Saints this week."

The Mailatas and Jordan’s finance went grocery shopping shortly after their arrival, and Mailata being 6-8, 380 is about as recognizable as any athlete in the city.

So, of course, there were Eagles fans at the store, and they recognized Mailata. They might have even thrown an E-A-G-L-E-S chant in his direction.

“My dad was shocked,” said Mailata. “I was like, yeah, this is the city, dad, they love their teams, so they know who you are when you’re not in the uniform.”

There will be some Mailata jerseys in the stands on Sunday, and that includes the members of the Mailata family that will be there. In addition to Maria and Tupa’i, Jordan’s younger brother, Millo, will be there as well.

“My dad thinks it’s a big city,” said Mailata. “I said dad, this is a pretty small city. You should check out Chicago or New York. You get lost there. ...he loves Philly so far.”

READ MORE: Jordan Mailata has a Unique Christmas Gift Coming to Town

Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Fan Nation Eagles Today and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglesmaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.