Autistic boy ate lunch alone at school every day until a football star sat next to him — it changed his life

At Montford Middle School in Tallahassee, Florida, sixth-grader Bo Paske had grown used to eating alone on most days, since no one joined him at the cafeteria table. One Tuesday, however, something unexpected happened that changed everything, not just for Bo, but for those around him as well. Travis Rudolph, a wide receiver for Florida State University’s football team, was at the school with four teammates as part of a community visit. He had just grabbed two slices of pizza when he noticed Paske sitting by himself. Without saying anything to the others, Rudolph walked over and asked if he could join.

"I just saw him by himself, and I was like, hey, this is like a spot... I guess it's just something that clicked in my head. Just let me go ask him if I can sit with him and eat lunch," Rudolph told CBS Mornings. Paske recalled, "He just sat down with me." He looked up and heard the words, "What's up, dude?" That small gesture led to a genuine conversation between the two. Someone at the school snapped a photo of the moment and sent it to Bo’s mother, Leah Paske. For her, the image carried more weight than Rudolph could have known.

Bo is autistic, and while he doesn't always seem to mind being alone, Leah admitted, "The thought of him eating alone gets to you." She shared the photo in a Facebook post that quickly went viral, writing: "This is one day I didn’t have to worry if my sweet boy ate lunch alone, because he sat across from someone who is a hero in many eyes." Looking back on the gesture, she said, "He could have sat with anybody. And yet he picked Bo, who was sitting by himself. I’m just moved with emotion at his generosity and kindness. I haven’t spoken to him. I don’t know what made him pick Bo, but I’m so grateful he did."

By the next day, when Bo walked into the cafeteria, he was suddenly surrounded by his classmates. "I'm a superstar. Everybody recognizes me," he said. Rudolph later said, "I definitely just hope, you know, that kids just welcome him in, ’cause he's a genuine person, and he can always be around me anytime if I was his friend." His hope reflected something researchers have long studied. A 2016 peer-reviewed analysis of school-based inclusion programs found that when classmates make simple efforts to include children with autism, it can lead to meaningful, lasting social change. Known as peer-mediated interventions, these approaches consistently increased social interaction, reduced isolation, and helped students on the spectrum feel more accepted by their peers.

The chain reaction sparked by that lunch carried into the year that followed their first meeting, when Rudolph and Bo reunited for NFL Draft weekend. Leah posted a photo from that weekend with the caption: "Blessed to be able to spend the weekend with family!" For Bo, the friendship stayed strong. "He's always been with me the whole way. He treats me like a brother," he said. Rudolph told CBS, "He's a cool person. I'll hang out with him any day. And for the mom — if he needs my number, he can get it."