Travis Kelce Shares How He Handles Pressure in the Spotlight

1. Travis Kelce whitethorn beryllium inextricably linked to Kansas City, Mo., for life, but helium grew up successful Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

And the man represents, shouting retired his hometown alternatively of his alma mater, University of Cincinnati, during crippled broadcasts that see subordinate introductions.

Which, arsenic you mightiness guess, has irked immoderate chap alums. 

"It’s not due to the fact that I don’t admit the clip I had astatine the University of Cincinnati, due to the fact that I do, I cherish it dearly," Travis said successful 2019 erstwhile helium and large member Jason Kelce were inducted into the Cleveland Heights High School Hall of Fame. "But determination was a clip erstwhile I was astatine Cincinnati that it wasn't casual for me. It was tough. I got my assistance taken from me. I did a batch of dumb things. I'm definite a batch of radical successful this country cognize idiosyncratic from Heights that's done a batch of dumb things. To each my friends, I was that guy."

And the Heights weren't conscionable peculiar to him, helium continued, but "to each azygous idiosyncratic up here. How divers this spot is. It builds thing successful me. Every azygous happening I bash is for this city. It sounds cliche, but I committedness you, each azygous happening I bash retired determination — erstwhile you spot maine dancing successful the extremity zone, that’s Cleveland Heights, for you, close there."

2. About that revoked scholarship...

After the Bearcats' undefeated 2009 play that included a Big East title, Travis failed a marijuana trial up of the 2010 Sugar Bowl aft partying excessively hard connected New Year's Eve successful New Orleans.

Not lone did helium miss the vessel game, the NCAA suspended him for the 2010 play and helium mislaid his scholarship. Finding himself without country and board, helium moved successful with Jason (literally into his brother's country successful the location helium shared with immoderate teammates) and took a occupation arsenic a telemarketer that entailed him asking anyone who picked up if they had thoughts astir the Affordable Care Act.

They did, and Travis could not wait to get backmost connected the field.

3. Travis played hockey, shot and hoops earlier getting into football, and helium was a backmost successful precocious school. In fact, helium was a two-star QB enlistee for Cincinnati, and lone ended up switching to choky extremity arsenic a information of his reinstatement to the squad aft his suspension.

"We had an awesome backmost astatine the clip in Zach Collaros and we needed immoderate assistance successful the tally crippled arsenic good arsenic the passing game," Travis told Arrowhead Pride aft helium was drafted by the Chiefs successful 2013, "so I talked to manager Butch Jones, who was my manager astatine the time, and helium said we request a choky extremity and my skill-set, athleticism and my absorption each transferred implicit and it worked retired cleanable for me."

Or, arsenic helium put it to GQ successful 2017 portion rehashing his un-shining moment, "Everybody my full beingness had been telling maine I was a choky extremity anyway."

4. The location astatine 127 W. Nixon St. wherever Travis bunked with Jason and immoderate chap Bearcats was the country of a batch of beer-infused shenanigans.

The brothers "used to emotion playing Nintendo 64 for hours, smashing the controls and chugging beers astatine the aforesaid time," assemblage person and teammate Tom DeTemple told the New York Times before the 2024 Super Bowl. "They would conscionable travel up with these random drinking games portion playing, and they were incredibly bully astatine it." 

5. And suffice it to say, Travis is highly arrogant of being a Bearcat.

"It's each astir Cincinnati, baby," helium told reporters earlier the 2023 Super Bowl, which the Chiefs got to by beating the Bengals successful the AFC Championship Game. "I've ever been highly prideful of coming from the University of Cincinnati. I yet got my diploma. I effort to assistance retired arsenic overmuch arsenic I can. I spell backmost to the assemblage erstwhile I can. I conscionable miss being astir each those players that I played with, and each the radical I met on the mode determination that person ever been successful my country passim the ups and downs of life."

And erstwhile helium was down successful the eyes of the NCAA, helium continued, "The players, the coaches, the unit that was astatine the assemblage astatine the time—really believed successful maine to beryllium capable to crook things astir and bash amended for myself. That was immense for maine astatine the time."

6. Almost a decennary aft leaving assemblage to participate the draft, Travis earned his grade successful interdisciplinary studies successful 2022—but didn't prime up his diploma until April 2024 during a surprise commencement ceremony aft helium and Jason taped a unrecorded occurrence of New Heights astatine Cincinnati's Fifth Third Arena.

The postgraduate was already holding a tin of brew arsenic helium approached the dean for his congratulatory handshake, aft which helium promptly chugged it.

And Travis was going to postgraduate successful 2022 but helium missed his flight.

7. Largely owed to his off-the-field issue, Travis ended up lone the 5th choky extremity picked successful the 2013 NFL Draft, going archetypal successful the 3rd circular to the Chiefs. After which manager Andy Reid, who'd antecedently coached Jason successful Philadelphia, asked the elder Kelce sibling to vouch for Travis.

Andy and Travis person 3 Super Bowl rings to amusement for Jason's endorsement.

8. His hype euphony whitethorn person changed since, but for years Travis listened to Randy Newman's "Burn On" earlier each game.

"I'm an eastbound broadside of Cleveland kid truthful increasing up, I don't cognize why, but this opus brings maine backmost to reasoning astir household and reasoning astir wherever I americium successful beingness and however overmuch I admit it," helium said connected the NBC Sports podcast PFT Live in 2017.

Let america explain: It's successful the opening credits of Major League, the eventual Cleveland sports movie.

9. Everyone, including Travis, is mispronouncing his past name.

While helium and Jason person conscionable gone with Kelce sounding similar "Kel-see," it really rhymes with "else."

Travis' teammate Chris Jones fired disconnected that bombshell on Inside the NFL in January—"F--king crazy, right?"—and the brothers confirmed arsenic overmuch erstwhile they confronted their dada Ed Kelce about it connected their New Heights podcast.

"Why successful the satellite did you alteration your sanction retired of obscurity and present we are Kel-see?" Jason asked. "Why did we deliberation that our sanction was Kel-see for the archetypal 24 years... 27 years of my life, 25 of Trav's?"

Ed admitted helium "got bushed of correcting people" but urged his lad to "do immoderate you want."

10. The No. 87 Travis has worn passim his clip successful the NFL is simply a tribute to Jason, who was calved successful 1987.

"If determination is simply a Kelce legacy, 2 brothers making it to the NFL, it each started successful 1987, due to the fact that this large feline was calved successful 1987," Travis explained to NFL Films up of the 2023 Super Bowl featuring his Chiefs squaring disconnected against Jason's Philadelphia Eagles.

11. Travis' instauration 87 and Running has been a longtime benefactor of Operation Breakthrough, a nonprofit learning halfway successful Kansas City that the jock has worked with since his archetypal sojourn successful 2015 to work The Cat successful the Hat to the kids.

Yes, reader, helium wore the hat.

Since then, Travis has invested successful the program's Smart Lab and bought the erstwhile muffler store adjacent doorway truthful they could grow and make their Ignition Lab, wherever the young scholars converted aged cars that could've ended up connected the scrap heap into moving electrical vehicles.

12. Travis and Jason telephone their New Heights listeners "92 percenters" successful notation to Jason erstwhile commenting that a play known arsenic a backmost sneak worked "92 percent of the time" erstwhile each you request is 1 gait to people a touchdown.

Fans were seemingly rather tickled and fundamentally christened themselves the "92 percenters," according to the podcast's website, which likened it to "their concealed handshake, but successful words."

Who were the Kelce brothers to reason with that?

13. Travis has 3 idiosyncratic trainers—Alex Skacel, Andrew Spruill and Laurence Justin Ng—and, according to The Athletic, 1 usually travels with him wherever helium goes to guarantee helium remains successful football-catching signifier each twelvemonth round.

Alex, who's besides a carnal therapist, recalled Travis wanting to spell for a precocious nighttime tally aft taking successful a slate afloat of shows during Paris Fashion Week due to the fact that helium missed moving retired that day.

"It's midnight, and we're doing sprints implicit the bridges implicit the river," the trainer told the New York Times in April. "No substance wherever helium is, helium finds clip to get done immoderate helium needs to get done."

14. Travis' idiosyncratic chef, Kumar Ferguson, has been a person since the 4th people successful Cleveland Heights. 

He was an amateur navigator moving arsenic a motortruck operator successful 2016 erstwhile Travis called him up and offered him the opportunity.

"He's like, 'Hey man, I privation to instrumentality my fare seriously, and instrumentality it to the adjacent level,'" Kumar told Vanity Fair successful 2023. "I'm like, s--t, let's bash it. Three oregon 4 days later, I was successful Kansas City."

He's been liable for everything from stocking Travis' fridge to delivering well-balanced lunches to the Chiefs' grooming facility.

16. The $34.25 cardinal two-year declaration Travis signed successful April 2024 made him the highest-paid choky extremity successful the NFL for the archetypal clip successful his career.

Which yet enactment an extremity to years of chatter astir however overmuch wealth helium wasn't making.

"My managers and agents emotion to archer maine however underpaid I am," Travis quipped to Vanity Fair successful 2023. "Any clip I speech astir wanting much money, they're conscionable like, 'Why don't you spell to the Chiefs and inquire them?'"

But by then, with galore different sources of income having opened up for him, helium cared much astir the vibes than the paycheck.

"I'm like, the escaped marketplace looks similar amusive until you spell determination and you don’t win," helium explained. "I emotion winning. I emotion the concern I'm in."

Seeing different players' immense paydays "hits you successful the gut a small bit," helium admitted. "It makes you deliberation you’re being taken vantage of. I don't cognize if I truly pressed the state if I would get what I’m quote-unquote worth. But I cognize I bask coming to that gathering each azygous day."

17. Travis has been into apparel since increasing up successful Cleveland Heights, wherever his precocious schoolhouse "was similar a manner amusement each day," helium told Vanity Fair in 2023.

Hence the chamber helium converted into a closet, the amended to location his decorator threads and much than 300 pairs of sneakers—including a brace of size-13 Nike Air Mags that helium spent a sizable information of his rookie twelvemonth wage connected contempt them being a size excessively small.

"Earlier connected successful my career, erstwhile they didn't person each these sneaker apps," helium explained to the Wall Street Journal, "it was immoderate size I could get successful the footwear that I wanted."

While he's precise overmuch a Nike feline (and not conscionable due to the fact that the marque sponsors him), Chuck Taylors besides clasp a abstraction successful his bosom due to the fact that they punctual him of fictional shot phenom Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez successful The Sandlot.

18. Among his dozens of investments, Travis co-owns Ohio-brewed Garage Beer with Jason.

"I deliberation everyone knows I similar to person a mates beers present and then," Travis said successful a June statement, "so being an proprietor of Garage Beer and heavy progressive successful making the champion airy brew is exciting, man! There is thing amended to bring radical unneurotic than an ice-cold beer, and for Jason and maine that is what brew is each about—friends, household and fun."

19. We're sensing a taxable erstwhile it comes to Travis' blameworthy pleasance TV choices.

Back successful the day, it was Gossip Girl: "I mean, it's awesome," helium said on New Heights. "It similar a New York precocious schoolhouse amusement with a batch of play and fundamentally everybody gossiping and talking s--t connected each other."

His caller favourite show? Peacock's Emmy-winning backstab-a-ganza The Traitors.

20. In his 12th twelvemonth successful the NFL astatine 35, Travis has been much unfastened of precocious astir the toll the crippled takes connected the body.

But he's been stoically getting hammered since time one, erstwhile helium missed his rookie twelvemonth with a microfracture successful his genu that required the archetypal of the 10 surgeries he's had successful his career.

21. Travis enactment it retired there, talking connected New Heights about his thwarted attempt to springiness Taylor Swift a relationship bracelet with his fig connected it erstwhile the Eras Tour touched down successful Kansas City.

And aft proceeding done the grapevine (people successful her campy who knew who Travis was and that helium wanted to conscionable her), she contacted him.

"She told maine precisely what was going on," helium told WSJ. Magazine, "and however I got fortunate capable to get her to scope retired to me." 

22. One of Travis' favourite desserts since everlastingly is French toast topped with whipped pick and syrups.

But much precocious he's go a instrumentality of his girlfriend's homemade Pop-Tarts and cinnamon rolls.

23. At slightest 1 of Travis' ringtones is Chris Farley shrieking "For the emotion of God!" in Tommy Boy.

"I told Taylor that I person that world, I've got to present it to her," helium told WSJ. The Magazine of sharing his affinity for the drama stylings of Farley, Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell with his girlfriend. "I fto her know: This is my jam close here."

24. After screaming "You've got to combat for your close to party!" aft their AFC Championship triumph implicit the Bengals successful 2019, Travis inspired the Chiefs to commencement playing the Beastie Boys song of the aforesaid sanction pursuing each location crippled touchdown astatine Arrowhead Stadium.

"It's similar an vigor multiplier. That's hard to quantify conscionable however important that is," Chiefs wide manager Brett Veach told ESPN successful 2020. "He plays with that benignant of character, charisma, passion, and helium brings radical on with him. In our building, everybody is friends with Travis Kelce. He is an eventual vigor giver. He elevates everybody's mood, focus, attraction and astatine the extremity of the day, he's inactive fun."

But the boisterous celebrant who brought it into their lives admittedly didn't cognize each the words to the 1986 classical until helium was tasked with performing it with Jimmy Fallon connected The Tonight Show in February 2023.

25. Speaking of his jams, successful May 2024 Travis cited his 3 favourite Taylor songs arsenic "Blank Space," "The Alchemy" and "So High School."

Asked astir it successful September, however, his reply had changed to, "They're each my favorite—literally each azygous one."

26. Comparisons to the Chiefs' legendary choky extremity Tony Gonzalez, who retired successful 2013 aft 17 seasons successful the league, started aboriginal for Travis.

In 2015, erstwhile the chatter astir whether helium would, successful fact, surpass Tony's achievements—and however disappointing it would beryllium if helium didn't—was heating up, Travis said helium paid the sound nary mind.

 "Nobody puts bigger expectations connected maine than myself," helium told Complex. "I privation to person the top play statistically that a choky extremity has ever had."

On Sept. 29, Travis surpassed Tony to go the Chiefs' all-time person successful receptions with his 917th catch.

"It's brainsick however things ever travel afloat circle," Travis said connected New Heights. "Being astatine the apical of the leaderboard with the Kansas City Chiefs who person been astir since the '60s, 1 of the opening organizations that made it each the mode done that are inactive astatine their peak. And a batch of that is owed to the affluent past they person and to a feline similar Tony Gonzalez, who has been a mentor to me. I f--king emotion the guy."

27. Of Travis' galore accomplishments, keeping his location successful bid connected his ain isn't 1 of them.

"He can't clean," ma Donna Kelce told Extra in September. "He can't cook.”

But possibly hosting a peculiar idiosyncratic erstwhile she's successful municipality has served arsenic other information to get it together.

"He's getting a small better," Donna acknowledged. "I deliberation he's getting immoderate help."