"I am 100% Mexican" said Mark Sanchez, American citizen and New York Jets quarterback. It was at a press conference before the Super Bowl, attended in part by Mexican reporters.[Yo Soy Mexicano : Mark S??nchez,El Universal, Feb. 6th, 2010]

Joe Guzzardi has written about Sanchez, who is U.S.-born and a native speaker of English. On one side anyway, it was his great-grandparents who immigrated.

What does Sanchez mean by calling himself 100% Mexican ?

At the press conference (90% of which was in Spanish) Sanchez said that

"I need to learn more Spanish because I want to talk with the Mexican fans that have supported me much. I am 100% Mexican".

This is the same guy who said that growing up he "never thought much about being Mexican." But he sure thinks about it now that he's quite successful.

So it sounds like some sort of awakening.