For football fans, Travis Kelce is a well-known figure. The #87 is considered the best tight end in the league and a key piece in the system of the reigning NFL champion. When Kelce doesn’t play, Patrick Mahomes loses his favorite target and the Chiefs suffer.
The issue is that today Travis Kelce is no longer just a matter of sports conversation. The #87, chosen by the Chiefs in the third round of the 2013 Draft from the Cincinatti Bearcats, is in the middle of the media storm thanks to the confirmation of the personal relationship – with potential for romance – that he has with Taylor Swift.
Sales of official merchandise alluding to Travis Kelce have increased 400% and millions of Swifties in the world have turned to meet the one who is poised to be Tay Tay’s new match.
If this is your case and you really have no idea and you do not be very interested in knowing what is a first down, a screen pass or an read option play but you want to know who is Travis Kelce, we bring to you the following 10 facts.
1. Travis Kelce, reality TV star
Kelce starred in his own reality show, a dating show on E! Entertainment Television called “Catching Kelce” In the 8-episode show that premiered in October 2016, Kelce searched for a partner. Travis Kelce chose from 50 eligible women, one from each state of United States. The end result of the show was that he chose Maya Benberry, but they only dated for about a year before splitting in January 2017.
2. A versatile athlete
He was always an outstanding athlete. At Cleveland Heights High School in his native Cleveland, Ohio, he was a three-sport star, excelling in basketball and baseball in addition to football.
3. Travis Kelce, Quarterback?
Today he is the best tight end in the NFL, but in his early days in football, Travis Kelce was a talented quarterback, recognized with All-Lake Erie League honors after totaling 2,539 passing yards in his last year. Can you imagine Travis Kelce doing Patrick Mahomes’ job?
4. His brother is also a professional football player and Super Bowl champion
He’s not the only Kelce to become an NFL star. His brother Jason Kelce was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round of the NFL Draft in 2011. The elder Kelce brother still plays as starting center of the Eagles and have a Superbowl ring, and been selected three times to the Pro- Bowl and twice to All-Pro.
5. His mother has a unique way of supporting him and his brother
Jason and Travis are NFL stars, which means Mrs. Kelce is always cheering for one son or another. When the inevitable finally happened and they faced off on opposite sides of the football field for the first time in their professional careers, the mother, Donna Kelce, was well prepared for the occasion. She had a special jersey made for herself, a combination of a red Chiefs jersey and a green Eagles jersey. The jersey had Jason’s number 62 on the back and Travis’ number 87 on the front. The Kelce brothers faced each other in the last Super Bowl.
6. Telephone interviewer
During his time as a student, he worked as a telephone survey operator, surveying southern Ohio, northern Kentucky and eastern Indiana how they felt about the then-recently passed Affordable Care Act.
7. Kelce could have been a professional baseball player
Travis Kelce spent a year away from football after being suspended from college. He lived in a shared room with his brother and had to pay for college by working in construction. It was at this time that he flirted with the idea of becoming a professional baseball player before his family intervened. Finally, his coach at Cincinnati Bearcats allowed him to return, but in the tight-end position. The rest is history.
8. No one pronounces their last name correctly
Even Kelce’s own family can’t agree on how to pronounce his last name. It’s conventional to call him “Kell-see,” so Travis surprised the world when he revealed during a podcast interview that his real name is pronounced “Kell-ss.” Even his colleagues were surprised. Kelce later clarified that everyone on his father’s side of the family has long pronounced it “Kell-ss.” Once Travis and his brother Jason became famous NFL stars, the Kell-see pronunciation stuck.
9. He hosted Saturday Night Live
Kelce hosted the famous comedy show Saturday Night Live on March 4, 2023. He is one of a lot of professional athletes to take on the role of host, along with others such as Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Deion Sanders and Derek Jeter. Kelce was widely praised for his appearance and friendliness.
10. He has a successful podcast with his brother.
Years ago, the Kelce brothers had dinner with Travis’ manager, Aaron Eanes. The brothers had a funny talk about blocking different NFL defensive linemen. Eanes called it “the funniest s**t I’ve ever heard in my life,” and the brothers realized it could be a winning formula for a podcast. In September 2022, the Kelce brothers launched their New Heights podcast. The title refers to the Cleveland Heights area where they grew up. The show has proven to be a hit, reaching #2 overall on Apple Podcasts in February. It is in the podcast where the issue of the affair with Taylor Swift arose, with the topic of the Friendship Bracelet in the context of Taylor’s concerts in Kansas City.
