Peterborough Has First Player to Debut in the NFL This Past Sunday

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Peterborough has finally made the NFL as wide receiver Jared Wayne made his debut with the Houston Texans at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. on Sunday.

Photo by David Tuan Bui.

Wayne, a second-generation football player, was elevated from the practice squad after fellow wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson was inactive with a shoulder injury.

The Peterborough native played 16 snaps. He was not targeted and played the fewest snaps among the wideouts.

Wayne played four seasons of collegiate football with the Pittsburgh Panthers, scoring 13 touchdowns during that span.

He finished with career-highs of 60 receptions for 1,062 yards — his first 1,000-yard season — and five touchdowns, one short of last year’s total.

The rookie wideout had declared himself for the 2023 NFL draft but was not selected.

On April 29 last year, he signed with the Texans as an undrafted free agent.

Locally, Wayne has played in the Kinsmen Minor Football League, Peterborough Wolverines and Adam Scott Lions.

In his final collegiate game, he helped the Panthers win the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl on Dec. 30 with five receptions for 50 yards for a 37-35 win over the UCLA Bruins. His performance earned him an invite to play in the Hula Bowl.

Jared Wayne is the son of former CFL linebacker Patrick Wayne. The latter spent nine years in the league mostly with the Ottawa Roughriders but also had stints with the B.C. Lions and Toronto Argonauts.

The Texans defeated the Jaguars 23-20.

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Peterborough Influencer Gets Lifetime Moment With An NFL Football Off Buffalo Bills Touchdown

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Running and coaching influencer Brendan Carpenter got a taste of NFL history as he got to hold the ball thrown into the stands fresh off a touchdown at the Buffalo Bills playoff game at Highmark Stadium on Monday night.

Carpenter has over 21,600 followers on his Instagram account. He posts running/coaching content on his account. Photo courtesy of Brendan Carpenter.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen rushed for a 52-yard touchdown against the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers then eventually threw the ball into the stands to a raucous Buffalo crowd as part of his celebration.

The Peterborough influencer did not initially catch the ball Allen threw. The lucky fan who did snag it allowed Carpenter to borrow it for a picture to create a lifelong memory.

“The ball got hit out of our hands by the guy beside us and landed in the lap of the guy in front of us,” he explained. “It was right in our grasp and the other guy made a lunge. It's still a cool story to have the ball for a second and glad the guy that got it was a lifelong Bills fan and let us snap a picture with it after the fact.”

The influencer got tickets to see the game after his collaboration with NFL Canada.

“We were blessed enough with tickets from my partnership with the NFL Canada that we established last year so we were already winning either way if we got the ball or not and was just happy to see the Bills up 21-0 at that point.”

The game was initially scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. but was moved to Monday at 4:30 p.m. New York Governor Kathy Hochul decided to postpone the game for safety reasons with a weather emergency, including heavy snowfall.

The team asked 200 snow shovellers to help clean the stadium at midnight Sunday since it was overflowing with snow. Even with the help, there was still lots of snow piled in the stadium but that added to the atmosphere said Carpenter.

“Being at the game was insane. No one does it like Bills Mafia,” he explained.” It didn't matter if the seats were cleared because no one ever sits down at a Bills game so standing in piles of snow after everyone tried to shovel the stadium just added to the folklore of Bills Fans.”

‘Bills Mafia’ is a term coined for Buffalo fans known for their crazy antics (among other things) during and before the game. A recent tradition is fans jumping through tables, emulating WWE wrestlers.

During the game, every time the Bills scored a touchdown, Bills Mafia was throwing snow into the air, celebrating their team’s score.

“It was crazy, though, with the snowball celebrations and everyone throwing them; I had never been so happy to be pelted with snow,” laughed Carpenter. “We are a different breed of fans and I wouldn't have it any other way. This year, I was in the stands for a 30+ degree and sun game, a 0 degree and rain game, and now a -20 and snow game and the fanbase never changes; we just show up, go through tables and enjoy the hell out of Bills football.”

The Bills defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers, 31-17 and advanced to the Divisional Round. They will host the defending Super Bowl Champion, the Kansas City Chiefs, this Sunday at 6:30 p.m. at Highmark Stadium.

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David Tuan Bui


Peterborough's Jared Wayne Signs With NFL's Houston Texans

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Peterborough’s Jared Wayne did not get his named called but his NFL dream is far from over as he signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Houston Texans on Saturday.

Jared Wayne is the son of former CFL linebacker Patrick Wayne. The latter spent nine years in the league mostly with the Ottawa Roughriders but also had stints with the B.C. Lions and Toronto Argonauts. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

It would have been the first person from Peterborough to be drafted to the NFL if his name was called.

Wayne played four seasons of his collegiate football career all with the Pittsburgh Panthers, totalling 13 touchdowns during that span.

He finished with career-highs of 60 receptions for 1,062 yards — his first 1,000-yard season — and five touchdowns; one short of last year’s total.

Locally, Wayne has played in the Kinsmen Minor Football League, Peterborough Wolverines and Adam Scott Lions.

In his final collegiate game, he helped the Panthers win the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl on Dec. 30 with five receptions for 50 yards for a 37-35 win over the UCLA Bruins. His performance earned him an invite to play in the Hula Bowl.

He had another year of eligibility with Pittsburgh but decided to enter the NFL draft according to his father and former CFL linebacker, Patrick Wayne.

“I’m very proud, the whole family is proud of how he’s grown on the field and as a person,” he said in a prior interview with PTBOCanada.

Wayne impressed NFL scouts with his speed, posting a 4.53 second 40-yard dash at the combine.

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Peterborough's Jared Wayne Declares Eligibility For 2023 NFL Draft

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Pittsburgh Panthers wide receiver and Peterborough’s Jared Wayne has declared himself eligible for the 2023 NFL entry draft on an Instagram post made on Friday.

Jared Wayne is the son of former CFL linebacker Patrick Wayne. The latter spent nine years in the league mostly with the Ottawa Roughriders but also had stints with the B.C. Lions and Toronto Argonauts. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

Wayne played four seasons of his collegiate football career all with Pittsburgh totalling 13 touchdowns during that span.

He had another year of eligibility with Pittsburgh but opted to go to the NFL as the best option for his future according to his father and former CFL linebacker, Patrick Wayne.

“We weighed the pros and cons and it’s better for him to go onto the next phase of his career,” he explained. “I’m very proud, the whole family is proud of how he’s grown on the field and as a person.”

He helped the Panthers win the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl on Dec. 30 with five receptions for 50 yards for a 37-35 win over the UCLA Bruins.

He finished with career-highs of 60 receptions for 1,062 yards — his first 1,000-yard season — and five touchdowns; one short of last year’s total.

The 2023 NFL Draft runs from April 27 - 29 and is held outside of Union Station in Kansas City, Mo. The first day covers first-round picks only with second-to-seventh round picks on the following days.

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