In what can only be described as a disastrous 2024 New England Patriots season â so disastrous that it resulted in the firing of coach Jerod Mayo after just one year â there were a few causes for optimism. One of them was No. 2 tight end Austin Hooper.
But Hooper had an embarrassing moment in front of his peers â including the two arguably greatest tight ends of all time â on Thursday. The moment came at the Tight End University event hosted by Travis Kelce and attended by the other all-timer at the position, former Patriot Rob Gronkowski.
While Hunter Henry carried most of the load at the tight end position for the Patriots in 2024, catching 66 passes for 674 yards and two touchdowns, Hooper more than carried his weight.
The 2016 Atlanta Falcons third-round draft pick out of Stanford hauled in 45 tosses for 476 yards, and actually got into the end zone one time more than Henry.
Swift Gives TEs First Live Show Since Eras Tour
At the Tight End University event, however, Hooper showed that he may have gone to Stanford, a school known for educating many of the smartest people in the country and sometimes referred to as the “Harvard of the West,” but that doesn’t mean his Taylor Swift knowledge is up to snuff.
Swift, the pop music megastar who sold out 53 concerts in NFL stadiums on her recently completed $2 billion-grossing “Eras Tour,” is perhaps better known to football fans as Kelce’s high-profile girlfriend.
The 35-year-old songstress, frequently spotted in a private box with friends and family at Kansas City Chiefs games, to watch Kelce play, appeared at the Tight End University gathering where she gave a surprise performance of her 2014 hit single “Shake it Off.”
The one-off song, accompanied by herself on acoustic guitar, was Swift’s first live performance since her Eras Tour wrapped up, and it took place at what can only be the the smallest venue where Swift has performed in years â the 1,200-seat Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee.
Hooper Messes Up Quiz on Fave Swift Number
In honor of her presence, several of the tight ends in attendance on Thursday were asked to name a single favorite Swift song. Gronkowski, the Patriots legend, effortlessly named the song Swift had played the previous night, “Shake it Off.”
But when it came to the current Patriots tight end, Hooper, the 30-year-old nine-year veteran stumbled. His answer: “Party in the USA.”
For those unfamiliar with Swift’s work, “Party in the USA” is not a song she has written or recorded. Instead, the tune was a hit for rival pop star Miley Cyrus â 16 years ago. Since its debut, “Party in the USA” has received more than 1.9 billion listens on the music app Spotify.
Hooper was quickly informed of his mortifying gaffe.
As for Kelce, he made headlines, at least among the Taylor Swift fan community, for selecting the Swift track “So High School.”
Previously, Kelce had always named “Blank Space” as his favorite song by his gal-pal. But “So High School,” off Swift’s 2024 album The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology, contains lyrics that clearly refer to her relationship with Kelce, such as “You know how to ball, I know Aristotle.”
How well Swift actually knows the works of Aristotle, the Ancient Greek philosopher, remains unclear.
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