GARRARD COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — Mike Edwards and Darian Kinnard won't be the only Kentucky connections on the field Sunday night at Super Bowl LVIII.
Garrard County's own Jeremy Thompson's artwork will be on full display on one of the biggest nights in sports.
"The whole sneakerhead adage is that you always make shoe contact before you make eye contact," said Thompson. "So I've been fascinated. I grew up in a generation where Michael Jordan was everyone's hero, and you had to have the new Jordans."
A Paint Lick Elementary School teacher full-time and a sneakerhead at heart, Thompson's hobby of customizing sneakers for his friends and himself caught the eye of former wildcat linebacker Bud Dupree, and it took off from there.
"Through a strange series of events, Bud Dupree found out that I customized shoes. So, the whole time he was at Kentucky. I was doing sneakers for him. He didn't have any cleats that he had done until he got to the NFL. But eventually, I did. I've done several pairs."
Wildcats like Boogie Watson, JJ Weaver, and Maxwell Hairston have collaborated with Thompson for customs.
And what started with Dupree has led him to Super Bowl LVIII, making these special cleats for Edwards, and Thompson is adding a new medium to his repertoire.
"That was all white, he painted them all red, and then they have 10,000 roughly. I think some of them may be lost to the floor. So like they're in the carpet somewhere. But 10,000 rhinestones hand glued on there. So they will be sparkling you should be able to see him under the lights."
The Kansas City Chiefs always have a buzz about them, but this year, it's special for Thompson and his family.
"I'm really excited about this Super Bowl, not because necessarily my team's in it, but because, you know, my artwork is gonna be out on the field. That's that's a big emotional for sure."
