Seahawks WR from Massachusetts wants to be the reason his buddies can’t go to a parade

SAN JOSE, Calif.— Jake Bobo didn’t try to convert his friends.

The Seattle receiver from North Andover said his family, who had been Patriots fans when he was younger, were required to become Seahawks fans. They didn’t have a choice.

But he didn’t expect his friends to. In fact, he didn’t even want his Dunkin’-drinking, R-dropping Patriots-fan buddies to switch allegiances. Bobo would rather be the villain, even in the Super Bowl.

“My friends back home will be rooting for the Pats. I wouldn’t expect or want it any other way. That’s how those guys roll,” he said. “I kind of enjoy playing the bad guy, being from that area and not letting all of those guys go to a parade. I’m going to try my best to do that.”

His Seahawks and the Patriots will face each other on Sunday in Super Bowl 60, a matchup between Bobo’s past and present.

Before the Seattle “12s” rooted for him, like most of New England, he was a big fan of the Patriots and No. 12. Bobo wore his Tom Brady jersey standing on Comm Ave. watching the Duck Boats go at one of the championship parades while celebrating with some of those same buddies that he’s now trying to deprive.

The Patriots had so much success during his childhood that he forgot which Super Bowl that parade was even celebrating.

Bobo has a clear memory of Super Bowl XLIX, although his past history and current employment have complicated that recollection.

He was 16 at the time and watched the first half of the Patriots and Seahawks matchup at a friend’s house, but couldn’t stay. It was Super Bowl Sunday, but still a school night.

“I couldn’t stay out for the whole game,” Bobo said. “I had to be home by halftime.”

He was at home when then-unknown Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler picked off Russell Wilson’s pass at the goal line. That play either gave the Patriots a thrilling championship victory or dealt the Seahawks a crushing loss, depending on the eye of the beholder.

For Bobo, it’s kinda both.

“The debacle that went on late in that game, I remember being excited,” he said. “That’s something I can’t bring up anymore.

“Hopefully, we can avenge that result,” he said and laughed at the amusingly awkward nature of trying to ‘avenge’ a happy memory.

Bobo took a roundabout path around the perimeter of the continental United States to get to Seattle. The North Andover native starred at Belmont Hill in high school, earning him a scholarship from Duke. After four years as a Blue Devil, he used the extra year of eligibility the NCAA granted due to COVID to transfer.

He played one season at UCLA, where he caught 57 passes for 817 yards and seven touchdowns.

After going undrafted, Bobo signed with the Seahawks and turned a terrific preseason into a career as a depth receiver and a regular on special teams. He’s been in the NFL for three seasons now.

The third of those seasons had been tough. He was limited to just two catches by a concussion on preseason and a calf injury during the year.

But in the NFC championship game, he caught a 17-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter that proved critical in Seattle’s back-and-forth win over the Rams.

The touchdown helped earn the Seahawks a trip to the Super Bowl and him a showdown with the team he dreamed of playing for.

“It’s so cool. I’ll try to downplay and make it seem like it’s not that big of a deal, but I can’t do it,” he said. “It’s going to be weird seeing those logos on those helmets. ... It’s cool to be playing these guys and playing a bad guy role at the same time.”

He wasn’t sure exactly what being a bad guy would entail and didn’t especially care.

“All I really want to do is contribute,” he said. “Find whatever role I can.”

His Patriots fandom is obviously gone. And after three years in Washington, he’s even become a Starbucks drinker. But he said being from New England is still a big part of who he is.

“I take pride in being from the Northeast,” he said. “I think it adds a certain toughness to my game and personality off the field.”

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