“I Wear the Same Underwear Under My Pants Since My Sophomore Year In High School”: Will Campbell Opens Up About His Game Day Superstitions

If there’s one thing that professional athletes and their fans all have in common, at least a little bit, is a superstitious streak. Many wives and girlfriends can tell stories of how much, in their significant other’s eyes, their presence has affected their partner’s favorite teams, depending on what happens in the game when they first walk in the room. Some might say that players are just as bad.

The superstitions really come out on game day. Some like to read letters from their family members to get them riled up (George Kittle). Some like a shot of hot sauce (Harrison Smith)—others of something a little stronger (Clinton Portis). Some others simply indulge in the most shocking junk foods, from cheesecake (Jake Elliott) to Skittles (Marshawn Lynch) to whipped cream (Chris Thompson). However, one of the most common—and most bizarre—is the lucky underwear.

Many players wear the same pair on every game day. And New England Patriots No. 4 overall pick Will Campbell recently revealed in a ‘get to know you’ video that he was one of them. The left tackle didn’t even start the tradition recently while he was at LSU from 2022-2024. It started even earlier, when he was a sophomore at Neville High School in his hometown of Monroe, Louisiana.

“I have a lot [of game day superstitions]. So, every Friday, well now it’ll be Saturday, I eat the same thing from dinner, breakfast and lunch, and pregame meal every day,” he stated.

“I wear the same underwear under my pants since my sophomore year of high school. They’re barely hanging on. But I’ll be able to make ’em work. I’m very superstitious in my pre-game routine. So I have a way that I go about it every time. Yeah, I’m very superstitious.”

 

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Based on how he was talking, we’re guessing that Campbell has a lot more game day superstitions and aspects of his routine he didn’t care to share on that platform. Whatever he’s doing, though, it’s working, so he shouldn’t stop now.

He also answered a few other questions during the video. Campbell shared a few of his nicknames (various variations on Big Will). The 21-year-old also revealed that he has never been to a hockey game and is excited for his first one with the Bruins in town.

“I’d love to go see a Celtics game for sure, but I can tell you I’ve never been to a hockey game so I’m excited to see that…” he added, before wrapping up with a few words of advice for any youngsters watching. “Stay true to yourself, keep the people in your circle close to you. And just work hard, everything else will take care of itself.”

That little get to know you video paired with his “I’ll die for Drake Maye” quote after he was drafted has been the perfect way to introduce Campbell to Patriots Nation.

If the comments on this video are anything to go by, he’s already a fan favorite. “How can you not like this guy?” one user asked. Another said, “He’s such a bro and I’m here for it“, while a different user said it was fate he landed in Boston: “He’s already one of my favorites. So likable and meant to be a Patriot“.

Others marveled at his size, “That’s actually a normal size microphone, he’s just massive“, which, at 6’6” and 320 pounds, is pretty darn impressive.

Will Campbell was just one part of a very impressive top of the draft for the Patriots. An offense that had nothing but Drake Maye last year could be completely revamped. They drafted a new starting tackle, the top center in the class (Jared Wilson, third round), one of the best wideouts (Kyle Williams, third round), and a top-three running back (Treveyon Henderson, second round).

With a shrewd draft class like that, this Patriots rebuild might not take as long as some of their rivals were probably hoping for after dealing with two decades of New England dominance.