What Were Sioux Falls Two Big Connections to Super Bowl LIX?

Another NFL season is now in the rearview mirror for another year.

While there was a great deal of hoopla surrounding Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, given that the Kansas City Chiefs had a chance to do something no other NFL team has ever done before, three-peat as world champions, in the end, the Big Game game came up small, as the Philadelphia Eagles absolutely manhandled the Chiefs for almost the entire game.

You may not know that the city of Sioux Falls has two rather significant connections to last Sunday's Big Game. Two high-profile players from that game have ties to South Dakota's largest city.

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Let's start with a player that is actually a Sioux Falls native. His name is Cooper DeJean, a rookie defensive back for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Not only was DeJean a first-year NFL player, playing in the biggest game on the world's biggest stage, but, he was also playing in the Super Bowl on his birthday. How cool is that?

DeJean grew up in the small farming community of Odebolt, Iowa, and played his college ball for the Iowa Hawkeyes, but he was born right here in Sioux Falls on (February 9), 2003.

So that would explain why you might have heard a lot of cheering from parts of Sioux Falls on Sunday when DeJean intercepted Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes and took it to the house for a score.

Talk about a special birthday present, and a day you'll never forget!

Now let's talk about the player who made DeJean's unforgettable day possible, Patrick Mahomes the quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs.

Mahomes is widely considered one of the best players in the NFL right now, and probably one of the best, if not "the" best quarterback in the league. While he is definitely an exceptional player, Mahomes had a tough day at the office at Super Bowl LIX, throwing two costly interceptions, one to Cooper DeJean for a score.

Here's something you probably didn't know about Patrick Mahomes, he also has a tie to the Sioux Empire.

His father, Pat Mahomes a professional baseball player for the Minnesota Twins, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs, and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1992 to 2003, actually played a little minor-league ball right here in Sioux Falls after his professional career ended.

After a stint in the majors, Pat Mahomes played for our own Sioux Falls Canaries from 2007 to 2009. He had such a profound impact on Canaries baseball that the team retired his jersey and inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2019.

So, there you have it, two more names with connections to South Dakota that we can add to the long list of professional athletes who continue to make their mark on the world of sports.

Source: Wikipedia/AI