BURLINGTON, Wis. — Tony Romo returned to his hometown Friday for his first Burlington football game since his 1997 senior season. In a special halftime ceremony, the school dedicated its new synthetic turf surface as Tony Romo Field.

As the Demons ran wild in a 47-14 win over Beloit Memorial, two of Romo’s three sons supplied water to players on the Burlington sideline. Their first experience of Friday night lights reminded Romo of his own gridiron dreams as a youngster in Burlington.

“That was so special as a kid,” Romo said. “You dream about playing on that field. It’s the biggest thing ever if you get the chance to do that and become one of those players. They’re like heroes to you.”

By the time he graduated in 1998, Romo was a star in football, basketball and golf — the first student-athlete at BHS to earn All-State honors in three sports. He was a three-time All-American at Eastern Illinois, earning the 2002 Walter Payton Award as the top player in Division I-AA (now known as FCS).

The Dallas Cowboys gave him a chance as an undrafted free agent, and Romo went on to become the face of the franchise, retiring in 2017 as the team’s all-time leading passer.

In a speech at Friday’s field dedication, Romo told the Homecoming crowd his football career was only possible because people in Burlington believed in him.

“[It was] the teachers, the coaches, the community, and how much that affected me growing up,” Romo said. “I just want to do a small part to hopefully help out and give back the same way people did for me.”

Romo continues to give back to his hometown school. He hosted football camps at his alma mater from 2004 to 2019, and joined local donors to fund the new playing surface at Don Dalton Stadium. With his family, former teammates and coaches beside him at halftime, Romo repeatedly thanked his hometown for its support.

“I don’t take it for granted,” Romo said. “Burlington is home. It always will be, and I love coming back and seeing you guys, so thank you for that.”

Romo’s stop in Burlington coincides with a CBS Sports assignment in Green Bay. He and broadcast partner Jim Nantz will be on the call for Sunday’s 3:25 p.m. game between the Packers and Patriots.