Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson will take a special woman in his life to the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday. In addition, he has no plans to leave football anytime soon.
According to Melody Chiu of People, 26-year-old Wilson has decided not to take singer Ciara as his date to the annual event at the White House, despite the speculation surrounding their relationship. He announced on Facebook that he would take his grandmother to the dinner instead, highlighting their dance moves in a video.
"Can't wait to dance with my beautiful date at the WHCD this weekend! #shesgotmoves #loveugrandma," Wilson wrote.
Chiu reported that part of the guest list was released on Wednesday, and it listed Wilson alongside "his date Ciara." He was once married to Ashton Meem for two years.
As for his professional life, Wilson made it clear on Wednesday that he's not leaving football anytime soon. However, according to Terry Blount of ESPN, he still had dreams of playing professional baseball.
"I didn't say I was going to leave the NFL," Wilson said. "I love playing the game of football, to be one of 32 men [starting NFL quarterbacks] in the world who get to do what I do. It's a special thing and I've been able to play in two Super Bowls and I'm only 26 years old. That's been a blessing."
Wilson added that "baseball was my first love since I was 3 years old." He had personal reasons as to why he wanted to pursue that dream.
"It's something that's meant a lot to me," Wilson said. "It was my dad's dream for me to play two sports, so I've never killed the dream and probably never will. It's something that I think about all the time."
In an HBO interview for "Real Sports" that aired on Tuesday, Wilson told Bryant Gumbel that "You never want to kill the dream of playing two sports." Gumbel then asked him when he might pursue his dream.
"I may push the envelope a little bit one of these days," Wilson said. "That's why the Texas Rangers got my rights. They want me to play. Jon Daniels, the GM, wants me to play. We were talking about it the other day."
Blount reported that Daniels had no plans to push the quarterback into baseball.
"Russell has the competitiveness and work ethic to where he'd have a shot if he committed to baseball," Daniels said. "Obviously, he's got a pretty good thing going on with the Seahawks and we're not going to get in the way of that. Playing quarterback is more intensive than the positions of other guys who have attempted to play both sports."
According to Blount, Wilson is currently in the process of negotiating a new contract with the Seahawks, leading some to believe his comments on baseball were just a negotiation tactic. However, Wilson observed that there were some similarities between baseball and football.
"There's a great correlation between baseball and football, especially in terms of playing quarterback," Wilson said. "The mental focus you have to have with one play at a time and being in the moment. Baseball has helped me. I was always focused one at-bat at a time or one ground ball at a time. It really prepares you mentally."
Wilson added that "it's not easy" playing baseball, noting that he had "so much respect for baseball players and what it takes to play." According to Blount, he played minor league baseball while still in college.
