Kyler Murray replaces young Arizona Cardinals fan’s lost autographed jersey

GLENDALE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - It’s been an up and down year for Kyler Murray off the field. But now, the Cardinals quarterback is drawing a lot of applause from fans. The face of the franchise went above and beyond after a young fan lost his autographed jersey.

Saturday, at the Cardinals Red & White practice, Zak Gumowski finally got his white whale, the one autograph he’d been dying to add to his white Kyler Murray jersey — the quarterback himself. The 12-year-old now had more than 20 signatures collected on the jersey, a culmination of two years of work. But then, he set the jersey down for a couple of seconds, and it was gone.

“I was just in shock and my heart skipped a beat and I was just lost for words,” says Zak.

Zak went from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. His weekend was ruined. “Tears, crying, and I didn’t want to go outside,” he says. “I didn’t want to talk to anybody. I just didn’t want to do anything, really. I just wanted to sit in my room and try to make things better.”

Monday night, things got better, thanks to none other than Murray.

After Gumowski family friend and Cards super fan Kristi Brown shared what happened on her Twitter page, Murray responded, saying a new jersey with more than 30 player signatures was on the way. “I was jumping up and down,” says Zak. “I was crying in joy. I was just real happy.”

Then Tuesday morning, more overwhelming emotion when Zak was led on the field at State Farm Stadium. Murray walked over to deliver the jersey in person. “I saw him,” says Zak. “I didn’t know he was walking up to me. I’m like, ‘if he walks up to me, that’s just amazing.’ And he did. I skipped a beat but it was not bad, it was good.”

Asked if this could possibly make him an even bigger Cardinals fan and Kyler Murray fan now, Zak quickly responded, “This changes everything by 100% for sure. This makes me know that no matter what happens, this fan base, this team, this organization, will always have any fan’s back no matter what happens.”

Copyright 2022 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved.