Whitehouse, Texas Celebrates 'Hometown Hero,' Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes
WHITEHOUSE, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - A small city in East Texas has a lot to be excited about as residents celebrate their "hometown hero" Patrick Mahomes and his team's Super Bowl win.
The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback comes from the city of Whitehouse (just south of Tyler), where he grew into the coveted athlete he is today. He played basketball, baseball and football at Whitehouse High School.
His hometown spent last week decked out in red and white to support the Chiefs as they took on the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV. There were flags, painted windows, signs and numerous other decorations throughout the city in anticipation of the big game.
Now, the city gets to keep all of that up as Mahomes led his team to a comeback victory and grabbed the game's MVP honor. It was a win for Kansas City, Missouri and the city of Whitehouse.
"It was awesome. Yeah, it was a little nerve-wracking," one resident told KLTV.
"I knew he was going to pull it off. We were hoping he was and he did. He did such an awesome job," local business owner Rebecca Priester said.
Residents and city officials were proud that Mahomes could represent them through his Texas roots.
"We call him our hometown hero. You know he was born and raised here. This is his roots," Shawna Driggers of the Whitehouse Area Chamber of Commerce told KLTV.
"It means a lot. We've all supported him. We've decorated our town and we've been cheering him on the whole time, and it's so amazing. His family is here, so we have a lot of his heart here even though he's not physically here," Driggers added.
The city was so proud of Mahomes just making it to the Super Bowl that the mayor proclaimed Feb. 2 as "Patrick Mahomes Day."
Not only will the city celebrate their "hometown hero" on that day, but they will also be able to celebrate their Super Bowl MVP.
