KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit Arrowhead Stadium on Monday night, a small section of the stands will focus on a hometown kid. Already in his third NFL season, Buccaneers running back Rachaad White will make his first appearance at Arrowhead Stadium, a new experience for the Kansas City, Missouri, native.

White, a product of Center High School, took an unusual path to the NFL. He was lightly recruited out of high school and was a 0-star recruit according to 247 Sports’ consensus rankings for the Class of 2017.

For the Yellow Jackets, White was the team’s best running back And best wide receiver. As a senior in 2017, he totaled more than 2,000 yards of offense, which earned him a Class 3 first-team All-State selection, but doesn’t offer any Division I colleges from which to choose.

As a result, his college career began at Division II Nebraska Kearney.

“You just have to figure out what you’re passionate about,” White said. “For me that was football.”

White’s football passion manifested in frustration when he didn’t play during his freshman year at the Division II level. He redshirted and then decided to transfer to Mt. San Antonio College, a junior college located just under 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.

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By the time White left Mount San Antonio, he was the No. 3 ranked junior college transfer prospect. A decommitment from UCLA led him to Arizona State, where a freshman class featuring several four-star running backs largely overshadowed his arrival in Tempe, Arizona. But when games started in a COVID-shortened four-game season in 2020, White averaged 10.0 yards per carry for ASU, which put NFL teams on notice of his skills.

As a redshirt junior, White rushed for over 1,000 yards with the Sun Devils in 2021 and also had over 450 receiving yards, adding 16 touchdowns in 11 games and ultimately finishing as the Buccaneers’ third-round pick in the NFL Draft of 2022. .

Now White returns to Kansas City to play a football game in a stadium he never visited growing up. White, one of four boys raised by a single mother, never got the chance to see former Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles play in person.

“It’s very exciting, I’ve never been to Arrowhead Stadium,” White said in a video call with KCTV5 on Saturday. “I grew up, born and raised (in Kansas City), but I’ve never been to a game. I’ve never met a Kansas City Chiefs player before, so it just feels surreal to me. I remember my brothers coming home from Tony Gonzalez’s football camps and I was just too young to go.

On Monday night, when the undefeated Chiefs take on the Buccaneers, White will prepare for his 42nd career NFL game. He will do this less than 10 miles from his childhood home.

“For me to be able to come back home and witness that, it’s a surreal moment,” the 25-year-old said. “It hasn’t really dawned on me yet. I just know that when I walk into that stadium and walk out of the tunnel, it’s all going to hit me.”

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White remembers Jamaal Charles’ 5-touchdown performance against the Raiders from memory. It was Charles’ play that served as an inspiration for White who grew up wanting to become a playmaker.

“You play tackle football with your brothers and sisters and all I really knew was running back,” said White, who totaled more than 1,500 yards of offense in 2023 and also scored nine touchdowns for the Buccaneers. “All I wanted to do was catch the ball and make people miss, or hand the ball to me and make people miss.”

On Sunday afternoon, as the Buccaneers arrived in Kansas City, White met with Mayor Quinton Lucas to discuss growing up in Kansas City, White’s support of local YMCAs and his local support of youth organizations.

Too young to join his brothers at youth camps with growing Chiefs stars, now White is the one organizing the events. In June, he hosted his first youth football camp at Center High School, inviting kids between first and eighth grades to learn from him.

“I have a lot of love for the city,” White said of his hometown. “What I try to do is build a lot of things and come back and be able to give back as much as I can. Obviously, I’m playing in Tampa now, but Kansas City will always have the most impact and hold the most special place in my heart.”

On the latest edition of Monday Night Football, White said he hopes to put on a show for the Kansas City crowd.

“It’s going to be a lot,” White said Monday night of his support department at Arrowhead. “I’m just blessed and grateful that those who didn’t get the opportunity to see me play in person – which is a good amount – will see me play in person at the highest level.

“It’s a huge opportunity and opportunity for me to go there and have fun, play and ball. That’s what I’m looking forward to doing for a lot of Kansas City people.”

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