Whitehouse celebrates "Mahomes Mania" ahead of Super Bowl LIX
WHITEHOUSE – Football fans are gearing up for Super Bowl LIX to root for the Kansas City Chiefs or Philadelphia Eagles. The big game will mark Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes' fourth Super Bowl and third consecutive appearance.
This week, "Mahomes Mania" is in full swing in Whitehouse, a small town outside Tyler and two hours southeast of Dallas, known as the quarterback's hometown and biggest cheer squad.
"Being such a small town, he's putting us on the map. He's really already put us on the map and we're very proud of it," said Gloria Munoz, who owns Montez Creekside Kitchen.
Mahomes attended Whitehouse High School, later playing for Texas Tech, and then becoming the 10th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. Mahomes is now the youngest player ever to win both a league MVP and a Super Bowl title.
Ahead of Sunday's game, Munoz is gearing up to host the town's largest Mahomes watch party.
"We've been getting ready all year. We're just very, very excited to be able to do this and to bring this to this community," Munoz said. The owner has hosted a party every year since Patrick won his first Super Bowl. Munoz said each party has grown to host hundreds of patrons. She has expanded to include a tent, and dozens of televisions throughout the space, and even rented the largest TV in East Texas. "People are going to be able to watch the game wherever they're sitting," Munoz said excitedly.
The restaurant is decked out in red and gold and also Mardi Gras décor, bringing a taste of New Orleans to Texas. But, she said local fans will still get to order their famous "Mahomes hot dog" and "Kelsey dog" on the menu. The party is open to anyone, even Eagles fans like Sean Wooten.
"I feel like the Eagles and Kansas City are one and the same. We just have too much history together. So, living here in Patrick Mahomes' town, that doesn't bother me at all," Wooten said.
A Chiefs Super Bowl also means a spike in tourism for the town, with people coming from across the country to see where the football star got his start.
"It spawns interest in Whitehouse. We have folks from Kansas City who have come to check us out and really from all over. So, we kind of feel like we've made it 'Kansas City South,'" said Mitchell Stewart, board chair of the Whitehouse Chamber of Commerce.
The entire town is now hoping for a three-peat and a chance to see their hometown kid make history.
"It just gives people an opportunity to get excited about Whitehouse, Texas, that our little town of all places would spawn the superstar," Stewart said.