Prince Harry left NFL players starstruck at Thursday’s Honors ceremony following his temporary trans-Atlantic dash to see his cancer-stricken father King Charles.
The Duke of Sussex, 39, attended the star-studded event in Las Vegas, where he presented the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Yr Award to Pittsburgh Steelers star Cameron Heyward.
And although Heyward snagged the very best honor of the night, the defensive tackle was more shocked at seeing Harry up onstage with him.
“That’s freaking Harry,” Heyward quipped after receiving his award. “Man, I’m in shock. That’s Prince Harry.”
The Duke, who attended the ceremony solo, praised Heyward for being “a player who goes above and beyond” and noted that his “extraordinary commitment to helping others is a mirrored image of his own story.”
“All you guys do on and off the sector is really remarkable,” the daddy of two said onstage.
“You might be role models for tens of millions in the best way you carry yourselves and the best way you give back. This final award — the very best honor — is all about serving your community.”
Heyward, 34, was honored for his work with The Heyward House, which he founded in 2015. The organization helps kids from all types of backgrounds needing extra support.
Harry also poked fun at the NFL, joking that the US “stole rugby from us and made it your individual.”
“As an alternative of passing it backward. Just pass it forward. Why not wear pads and a helmet? And why not take a breather every 15 seconds?” Harry quipped. “And you already know what, as a substitute of a 10-month season, let’s just make it 18 weeks. Genius!”
It stays to be seen if Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, will attend Sunday’s Super Bowl where the Kansas City Chiefs tackle the San Francisco 49ers.
Harry’s mad dash to Sin City follows hot on the heels of his blink-and-you-miss-it trip to London to go to his ailing father, who was recently diagnosed with cancer.
Just 24 hours after landing on home soil — lower than an hour of which was spent together with his father — Harry was already en route back to Montecito, Calif., to be reunited with Markle and their two children.
Harry reportedly stayed at a luxe London hotel during his one-night getaway, moderately than staying with family at one in all their many royal residences peppered across the country.
In keeping with Charles’ former butler Grant Harrold, the duke decided to remain at a hotel to point out the royal family that he was able to “supporting himself” financially.
It’s believed that Harry didn’t see his estranged brother Prince William during his quick stint in England, not his sister-in-law Kate Middleton, who’s currently recovering from her recent abdominal surgery.