Jermod McCoy, a cornerback from Tennessee, shares a strong connection with Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, rooted in their hometown of Tyler, Texas. Their bond extends beyond their shared birthplace, as they met during Mahomes' high school years.
Key points
Jermod McCoy is a cornerback from Tennessee.
Patrick Mahomes is the quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Both athletes hail from Tyler, Texas.
They met during Mahomes' high school years.
Their connection goes beyond just their birthplace.
Mentioned in this story
Tyler, Texas
Kansas City ChiefsPatrick MahomesJermod McCoyTennessee Volunteers
While many sports fans may be unfamiliar with Tyler, Texas, they unknowingly are familiar with the city's most notable athletes. Now, NFL fans will become familiar with another name during this year's draft.
Former Tennessee Volunteer cornerback Jermod McCoy comes from the same city as Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes. Tyler sits north of Houston and east of Dallas as a part of one of the best high school football states in the country.
Along with sharing the same alma mater, McCoy and Mahomes met while the Chiefs QB was still in high school. Mahomes towered over the young McCoy in a photo, and now the two have come full circle.
Here's a background on the Tennessee CB and Chiefs QB's ties to the Lone Star State, and how their connection goes past sharing a birthplace.
Despite playing on opposite sides of the ball, McCoy and Mahomes have a local connection in the Lone Star State. Both players are from Tyler, Texas.
Along with sharing the same birthplace, the duo played for the Whitehouse High School Wildcats prior to their collegiate careers. Mahomes graduated in 2014, while McCoy was a part of the Class of 2023.
Before the Chiefs took on the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 54 in 2020, McCoy wished Mahomes luck and posted a throwback photo of the two together. Recently, Mahomes reposted that photo, leading up to the 2026 NFL Draft, when McCoy should be one of the top cornerbacks taken.
Along with their football roots at Whitehouse, both McCoy and Mahomes played baseball for the Wildcats. McCoy was not drafted in the MLB Draft like his predecessor, but it shows that both of the Texas stars are stellar athletes.
McCoy was born in Tyler, Texas. The 20-year-old attended Whitehouse High School, Patrick and Brittany Mahomes' alma mater.
McCoy began his college career at Oregon State in 2023, where he finished with 31 total tackles, seven passes defended, and two interceptions. Following his freshman year, he transferred to Tennessee and excelled. During his 2024 sophomore campaign, he totaled 44 tackles, seven passes defended again, and doubled his previous interception total to four.
In January 2025, McCoy tore his ACL during an offseason workout. While he still had a large amount of time to recover before the 2025 season, McCoy was held out of participating in his junior year. The recovery timeline from a torn ACL sits at around eight to nine months, according to UCHealth.
Mahomes is also from Tyler, Texas. He went to the same high school as McCoy at Whitehouse High School. Mahomes was a multi-sport athlete in high school and was even drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 2014 draft (37th round). He opted to stick with football as a three-star recruit and stayed in-state to play at Texas Tech.
In his senior season, Mahomes threw for 4,605 yards and 50 touchdowns for the Whitehouse Wildcats. His final game featured a 605-yard outburst, the fifth-most in state history according to the Tyler Morning Telegraph, but fell just short to Mesquite Poteet in a 65-60 loss in the Class 4A Division II regional playoffs. Here is a recap of the game from Mesquite's coach, including his insights from a crazy battle with the young Mahomes.
“There’s no doubt that it’s in my mind the best season in Whitehouse history,” Wildcats first-year coach Adam Cook said. “The thing that I will look back on … is those kids.
“I think it was the love they had for each other, the fight that they had, the fact that they didn’t want to let each other down.”
