Latest news with #USAASalutetoServiceLounge
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
From hitting the griddy to surprising a veteran with Super Bowl tickets, Justin Jefferson is living his best life
Four-time Pro Bowler, internet phenom and all-around great dude, Minnesota Vikings Justin Jefferson leveled up his support for the military community today when he gifted two Super Bowl tickets to an incredible veteran, Kim Hubers. Hubers served 14 years in the Army National Guard (2001 – 2015), achieving the rank of Staff Sergeant. During her decorated service history, she was assigned to the 727 Transportation Company and 1742nd Transportation Company where her key roles and responsibilities included team leader, heavy vehicle operator, certified trainer and unit suicide prevention representative. SSG Hubers served our country both domestically and abroad, including emergency response efforts for blizzards and flooding in Fargo, ND, clean up assistance in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, and an oversea deployment to Iraq (2003-2004) at the beginning of the war. Hubers was forced to medically retire due to service incurred injuries in 2015. Following her military career, Hubers worked with adults with developmental disabilities for many years and stayed home to raise her four children, learning to adjust to her medical conditions, while remaining active in volunteer work through her local Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Chapter 1 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. She is the current department commander of South Dakota, and in 2023 was recognized as the Disabled Veteran of the Year winner. Jefferson has a long history of supporting the military community and also partnered with USAA in 2023 to give away tickets. 'I can't believe I get to have this experience,' he told WATM at the USAA Salute to Service Lounge at the Super Bowl. 'It's just such an honor to be able to do this. The veterans are the real heroes here.'
CBS News
06-02-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Army veteran takes us inside Drake Maye's Super Bowl surprise
BOSTON -- New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye is on his way from the Pro Bowl to the Super Bowl this week. He won't be playing in the big game, but the 22-year-old will be rendezvousing with a special guest. Two weeks ago, Army veteran Matt Jabaut received a huge surprise. As the unsuspecting sergeant was being interviewed about the American Legion in Lewiston, Maine, he received a tap on the shoulder. "Drake Maye grabbed me on the shoulder, and it took me a minute to put the context together of the face and the space," Jabaut told Nick Giovanni of WBZ-TV Sports. "Then I realized, 'Oh, wow! This is really happening right now.'" View this post on Instagram A post shared by Drake Maye (@ It was a moment the lifelong Patriots fan never saw coming. And that was before Maye broke out a pair of tickets to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans for Jabaut, courtesy of USAA and the NFL. "Just the idea of meeting him and that kind of stuff, it was kind of really, really cool and enough at the moment," recalled Jabaut, who served seven years as an Army medic and was deployed to Kuwait and Iraq. "And then when he pulled out two Super Bowl tickets, I was just kind of overwhelmed from that perspective to kind of be recognized and to have that kind of opportunity to go do a bucket list kind of thing like that." Spending time with Drake Maye After the Patriots quarterback gave Jabaut the two tickets, Jabaut gave Maye a tour of the post. "He's just a really good guy," Jabaut said of Maye. "The whole time he was appreciative, enjoyed the moment, enjoyed seeing the history." Maye then left another impression on Jabaut as the two got to play a game of catch outside. "He took it easy on me at first, until I think he realized I could throw a little bit and catch a little bit. The last couple, he zipped a couple at the end to me," said Jabuat. "That kind of caught me off guard. I needed a little adjustment there on a couple of them." "But we didn't let the ball hit the ground, which is the important thing," added Jabuat. Sgt. Jabaut plans to take his fiancée, Caroline (who served in the Navy) with him to Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. But he'll reunite with Maye again in New Orleans at the USAA Salute to Service Lounge.
