The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles are once again squaring off in a Super Bowl.
Super Bowl LIX, which will take place on Sunday, Feb. 9, will be a rematch from two years prior, when the Chiefs won 38-35 in a tight contest in Arizona.
Kansas City will be looking for the three-peat while Philadelphia looks to dethrone yet another dynasty and win just their second-ever championship.
While football in North Carolina hasn’t been up to snuff as of late, there are still quite a few players heading to the big game with local ties.
Kansas City Chiefs
The most notable Chiefs connection to the Old North State is offensive lineman Joe Thuney, who was once a member of the NC State Wolfpack (2011-2015).
Thuney is a four-time Super Bowl champion and has now been to the second most Super Bowls in NFL history, with six appearances between his time with the New England Patriots and Kansas City.
The veteran lineman has protected arguably two of the best quarterbacks in the game in Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes and now has a chance to become just the third player in league history to have enough rings for every finger on his hand.
Cornerback Joshua Williams, who grew up in Fayetteville, is also a multi-time Super Bowl champion, having been to the big dance now in each of his three seasons in the league.
Williams was drafted in the fourth round of the 2022 draft, becoming the first player drafted out of Fayetteville State since 1973, and now has the chance to make history with Super Bowl championships in each of his first three seasons.
“For a rookie to make it to the Super Bowl is almost unheard of,” Williams said on the Up & Adams Show. “And to win it? That’s a blessing. To do it twice is super, super, super rare, so to be able to do it three times and to have your name and your legacy in the history books, I don’t even know how to explain it, but I’m just trying to make sure I do my part and everything I can to make sure we do end up hitting that goal.”
Offensive tackle D.J. Humphries was born in Union, South Carolina, but grew up in Charlotte and attended high school at Mallard Creek, where he did not allow a sack over his final three seasons.
A five-star recruit, Humphries played three years at Florida before being drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the first-round of the 2015 draft.
Backup quarterback Carson Wentz – who was once the starter for the Eagles before losing the job to current starter Jalen Hurts – was born in Raleigh, but his family moved to North Dakota when he was three and tight end Noah Gray played collegiately at Duke (2017-2020).
Philadelphia Eagles
The biggest name on the Eagles with NC ties has to be offensive guard Landon Dickerson, the highest paid guard in NFL history.
Dickerson is from Hickory and played high school ball at South Caldwell. The veteran has been selected to three straight Pro Bowls and is a key piece of Philadelphia’s offensive line, i.e. the Tush Push unit.
There have been some concerns over Dickerson’s health heading into the Super Bowl, but he believes he’ll be good to go.
“Knee’s good. We’re gonna be good,” Dickerson told CBS Philadelphia following the NFC Championship. “You get a little banged up, that’s football.”
On the other side of the ball, defensive tackle Jordan Davis is from Charlotte and played at Hopewell High School and Mallard Creek.
Davis played college football at the University of Georgia where he helped the team win the 2022 National Championship, securing both the Chuck Bednarik Award and John Outland Trophy that year too.
The lone North Carolina rookie taking part in the Super Bowl this year will be running back Will Shipley.
From Weddington, Shipley was a touted recruit out of high school, but shockingly elected to go just out of state for college, signing with the Clemson Tigers, where he was a standout talent.
A fourth-round pick of the Eagles, the 22-year-old has managed to already play a big role in the Eagles’ trip to the Super Bowl.
In the NFC Championship against the Washington Commanders, Shipley collected 88 kick-return yards, forced a fumble toward the end of the second quarter when it was still a one-possession game and then scored his first career touchdown right at the end.
“It’s just a dream come true and to do it in the NFC Championship…,’ Shipley said on Good Morning America. “Couldn’t be more thankful, couldn’t be more blessed and to be able to share that with my teammates, my coaches, my friends and family who were able to come and watch the game was a special moment and one that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
