Sure, we all know about Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his musically inclined girlfriend. But it's another tight end Chiefs who's been making a difference here in New England.
Noah Gray rose from a Leominster High School starter for his four years on the Massachusetts gridiron, from 2013 to 2017, and is now going for his second-straight Super Bowl ring in two years alongside Taylor Swift's boyfriend.
"You can't script it any better than that for someone who just came into the league," said Devin Gates, Leominster's head football coach.
Gray was a great guy on the field and an even better guy off of it, his coaches say.
"We had a best buddies program at the high school with our special needs kids and he ate lunch with those kids, second lunch, every day," said David Palazzi, the school's athletic director. "He went to the prom — he was the only boy who dressed up in his three-piece suit."
The good kid was drafted by a good team. The Kansas City Chiefs selected the Duke graduate in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Since then, he's had a front-row seat to learn from Kelce, one of the best to ever do it.
Gray's old team in Leominster shared some insights about their reigning Super Bowl champ as the Chiefs go for two in a row.
"They are very supportive of one another, Travis and Noah, and they have a great room of tight ends," said Palazzi. "We all aspire to go to the top level, whether you are a doctor or lawyer, and it is the NFL."
Even with all the success, his high school coaches say Gray hasn't forgotten his life here in Leominster, returning every June for a football camp.
"Things like this, where you can see someone who can make it to that level, it brings that pride to another level for our guys and it is a catalyst to get involved," Gates said.
