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The New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl for the first time since 2019, and a big reason for that is the play of young quarterback Drake Maye.
The second-year signal-caller out of North Carolina has thrown for 4,394 yards with 31 touchdowns and just nine interceptions this season.
While Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks will be his first Super Bowl appearance as a quarterback, Maye did attend the game the last time it was held in Santa Clara. That’s because Maye grew up a Carolina Panthers fan and cheered on his hometown team at the Super Bowl in 2015.
Here’s everything you need to know about Maye’s history as a Panthers fan.
MORE: How Patriots built Super Bowl 60 roster
Is Drake Maye a Panthers fan?
Drake Maye grew up a Panthers fan. He's from just outside of the Panthers' home stadium in Charlotte, N.C., and former Carolina quarterback Cam Newton was his favorite player/
Maye got to face his childhood team back in Week 5, when the Patriots hosted the Panthers on Sept. 28. The New England quarterback talked about going up against his former beloved squad.
"I think it's different playing up here," Maye told reporters. " Going back to Charlotte would have been different. But going against the team that I grew up watching, I grew up cheering for, and a lot of great memories in that stadium back in Bank of America. So it's a little different, but at the same time, it's still just another week in the NFL."
Maye threw for 203 yards with three total touchdowns during the Patriots' 42-13 win over the Panthers.
MORE: History of New England's big-game appearances
Drake Maye Super Bowl history
The onky time the Panthers have ever played in a Super Bowl was 2016. Led by Cam Newton at quarterback, Carolina put together a surprise season, finishing 15-1, with its only loss coming against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 16.
Carolina then defeated the Seahawks and Cardinals in the playoffs to clinch a trip to the Super Bowl, where it faced the Denver Broncos.
"Just that season, Maye said of the 2015 year the Panthers had. "I think it was 15-1. I was at that NFC Championship game at home, a big-time win. Just being a fan of Cam [Newton], I think, was probably the biggest memory. Him coming out here and doing the airplane and hitting the dab, so just little things like that. Just getting to know some of the players around has been pretty cool."
Super Bowl 50 was held at the same site as Super Bowl 60 in Santa Clara, Levi's Stadium. Maye, who was just 13 years old at the time, got to the game thanks to his father, former UNC quarterback Mark Maye.
"My dad, when I was maybe in seventh grade, said if the Panthers made it [to the Super Bowl], we were going to go," Maye told reporters after the AFC Championship game. It was heartbreaking; they lost to the Broncos. But no, it was a good experience for a kid my age who loved football, loved quarterbacks. That was Peyton [Manning]'s last game. What a [Pro Football] Hall of Fame career he's had."
— SportsAreScripted (@whereswaldo364) January 26, 2026"Pretty cool to be full circle, going back here 10 years later," Maye said of returning to Santa Clara for his own Super Bowl. "I think it's just a special moment for this whole team."
Where is Drake Maye from?
Maye is from Huntersville, N.C., which sits just 14 miles north of Downtown Charlotte. He played his high school football at Myers Park.
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