Drew Brees

Childhood and Highschool

Drew Charles Brees was born on January 15, 1979, in Austin, TX, to attorneys Eugene Wilson “Chip” Brees II and Mina Ruth Brees. Brees began playing contact football in high school, playing QB for the Westlake High School “Chaparrals.” As a junior, Brees led the team to a 16-0 record, on 103 pass completions for 1,933 yards and 19 passing TDs. After blowing out his ACL and requiring time to recover from the injury, Brees retuned to form with stats in his senior year at Westlake of 211 of 333 passes completed, 3,528 yards passing and 31 touchdowns.

The school posted a 12–0–1 record and in 1996 defeated Abilene Cooper (led by future Oakland Raiders RB Dominick Rhodes) 55–15 in the state 5A Division title game.  Brees received honorable mention homors in the 1997 Texas State High School all-star football team where he played alongside fellow prep star and friend LaDainian Tomlinson (San Diego Chargers, New York Jets). He was also honored in his senior year as a member of the USA Today All-USA high school team

College

Brees chose to play for the Purdue Boilermakers of the Big Ten over the Kentucky Wildcats of the SEC. At Purdue Brees became a huge part of coach Joe Tiller’s offensive schemes, earning him the honor of serving as one of the team’s offensive captains in both his junior and senior year. During his career highlights at Purdue, Brees played in 45 games. He had a completion percentage at QB of 61.1% (1,028 of 1,678 passing) for 11,792 yards and 90 TDs against 45 interceptions.

Brees led the Boilermakers to victories over top ranked Ohio State and Michigan during his senior year. Those wins, including a head-to-head against Northwestern led to the school’s first Big Ten championship in more than 30 years and an invitation to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA. Brees passed on opportunities to go to the NFL in his junior year, opting instead to complete his senior year and degree in Industrial Management. He received the Maxwell Award in 2000 as college football’s outstanding player and fourth and third in voting for the Heisman Trophys in 1999 and 2000 respectively.

NFL Draft

Brees entered the NFL draft as part of the 2001 rookie class. At the NFL combine in Carlsbad, Brees ran a 40 time of 4.83 seconds and posted a 32 inch vertical leap. The San Diego Chargers drafted Brees as the first pick in the second round in the 2001 draft. He was the second player taken by the Chargers, after their fifth pick, RB LaDainian Tomlinson, and the second QB after the Atlanta Falcons, who traded with the Chargers for the pick, selected Michael Vick from Virginia Tech with the first overall selection. He was given a contract salary of $3.6 million for four years with the Chargers.

2015 NFL Season

Brees threw for 4,870 yards on 428 of 627 passing and 32 TDs during 2015. He became the fourth player in NFL history to pass for 400 or more TDs in a 26-20 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth week of the season. In a November 1, 2015 game against the New York Giants, which the Saints won 52-49, Brees passed for 505 yards and seven touchdowns. This performance tied the NFL record for most passing TDs in a game with greats such as Sid Luckman (Chicago Bears), Y.A. Tittle (NY Giants), and Peyton Manning (Denver Broncos).

2016 NFL Season

Although the Saints missed the 2016 playoffs witha 7-9 record, Brees continued to post Hall-of-Fame numbers at the QB position. His 5,208 passing yards were the second highest he has posted in his 16 year career (only topped in 2011 when he passed for 5,476 yards). He had a completion percentage of 70% on 471 completion of 673 attemps. He also through for 37 TDs and 15 interceptios during the season and finished with a QB rating of 101.7. Brees also tied the record for most seasons with 35 or more TDs (4) with Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers and became the sixth QB to join the 50,000 yard passing club with a single team.

Personal Life

Brees is the oldest of three, which includes his brother Reid and half sister Audrey. Alongside his college sweetheart Brittany to whom he has been married fo since February 2003, the Brees have four children, sons Bayen, Bowen and Callen and a daughter Rylen. The Brees made their home in New Orleans after the ravages of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Engaged in charitable and philanthropic efforts, Brees was named the 2010 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, the magazine’s top humanitarian award. Brees can be reached at Twitter at handle @drewbrees.