Despite being a young man of 25, Chester Rogers has found success in both acting and sports. As a child, Rogers was an actor in movies such as “Constellation” and “Madea’s Family Reunion.” As an adult, Rogers is a wide receiver for the Indianapolis Colts. He credits hard work, perseverance and faith in God for his accomplishments.
When Rogers was 10, “Constellation” was filming in his hometown of Huntsville, Alabama. Rogers enjoyed entertaining people, so he tried out and got a part in the movie. Afterward, Rogers’ family moved to California, so he could further pursue acting. He then appeared in “Madea’s Family Reunion,” “Re-animated” and “Dirty.” Some of Rogers’ favorite memories from this time include meeting Maya Angelou while filming “Madea’s Family Reunion” and Gabrielle Union during “Constellation.”
“I ended up getting a kiss on the cheek from Gabrielle Union,” Rogers said.
After appearing in these movies, Rogers moved back to Alabama just in time to start high school. It was around this time Rogers picked up football.
“I got back to playing [football], and [I went] ‘OK, I’m pretty good at this,’” Rogers said. “I just kept going and working. I had an itch for it.”
Since then, Rogers has been dedicated to football and has not done much acting, but he is still in contact with figures in the industry and plans to continue pursing acting after retiring.
During college, Rogers played as a walk-on for Grambling State University, Grambling, Louisiana. As a walk-on, Rogers was not recruited for the team beforehand and did not receive any athletic scholarship for two years. Even though he was on the football team, he had to pay for school out of pocket and with loans. The experience led Rogers to create the Chester Rogers Perseverance Scholarship award for non-scholarship players at Grambling.
After Grambling, the Colts drafted Rogers in May 2016. Since then Rogers has 1,042 yards and three touchdowns in 41 games to his name. Rogers recently performed a career highlight when he scored a game-winning touchdown against the New York Giants on Dec. 23, 2018. It was one of the wins that helped secure the Colts’ position in the playoffs.
“It’s probably the biggest play of my career,” Rogers said.
Football and acting might seem like polar opposites, but Rogers said he learned similar lessons from both. He said both pursuits have required preparation, accepting both wins and losses, hard work and, most importantly, faith. Before every game, Rogers calls his parents and prays. He firmly believes faith in God helps him during good and bad times.
“Whatever you do, man, you should just work hard, keep God first, and never let no one stop your dreams,” Rogers said. “Once you keep that formula, the sky’s the limit, and that’s pretty much the mindset I’ve always had whatever I do from acting to this football stuff. As long as you have a strong faith, believe in God, and [do] hard work, you’ll be good.”
Contact staff writer Ben Lashar at 317-762-7848. Follow him on Twitter @BenjaminLashar.
