HUNTERSVILLE — As Huntersville-native Drake Maye prepares to lead the New England Patriots into Super Bowl LX this Sunday, Pineville local Brad Higgins is making sure to tell everyone in Charlotte that he personally knew the QB, despite being completely, utterly, full of shit.
“Yeah, we sat next to each other in Chem class at Myers Park. I basically did his labs,” Brad said. “He looked me in the eye after a mid-term and told me, ‘Brad, your brain is a playbook, man.’”
Brad continued.
“I remember back in the day, just throwing the rock around the neighborhood. I told him, ‘Drake, kid, you’ve got the vision, you just need the grit.’ He didn’t say anything back, but you could tell it resonated. He has that way of looking through you when he’s absorbing greatness.”
When pressed on the timeline—considering Brad was living in a studio apartment in New York City during Maye’s high school career—Brad didn’t flinch.
“It’s a Huntersville thing. You wouldn’t get it unless you’ve spent time in the trenches at the Birkdale Village Starbucks,” Brad said. “We’re tight up there. We used to light up together behind the Regal movie theater. We watched The Martian together back in 2015. Man, good times. Drake loved the science.”
As the Patriots prepare for their rematch against the Seahawks, Brad has already begun telling strangers that he’s “on call” in case the Maye family needs a ride to the airport, despite not having their phone numbers.
“I’m just glad he took my advice about the pocket presence,” Brad added. “I told him way back when that moving in the pocket is just like making a left turn onto Sam Furr Road—you gotta commit or you’re gonna get leveled.”
Brad is a transplant who moved here in 2020.
