May 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\nBurgess and his parents visited Chapel Hill in May and were blown away by Belichick and his staff. Belichick said to Burgess, \u201cI\u2019m gonna show you why I wanted to recruit you,\u201d and then proceeded to pull up his game film from the 2024 season, when the quarterback led Grayson High School in Loganville to a 7A state title.<\/p>\n
For an hour, Belichick went through Burgess\u2019 plays, asking him why he made this read and why he made that read, but also talked about his progress throughout the 2024 season, his first year as the starting quarterback. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound Burgess threw 24 touchdown passes with just four interceptions and also ran for four more TDs and almost 600 yards.<\/p>\n
When he committed to UNC in late May \u2014 picking the Tar Heels over Auburn, NC State and others \u2014 he was ranked as a three-star prospect and the No. 30 quarterback in the country by 247Sports. Now, after an impressive week at the Elite 11 Finals in June, he is a four-star and ranked No. 16 among QBs.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe really stood out,\u201d said Elite 11 coach Justin Hoover, who has trained several NFL quarterbacks. \u201cHe was a big riser for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
The recruiting process, especially the part connected to the online rankings, can be frustrating for many high school prospects. With quarterbacks, it can be even more soul-crushing since there\u2019s a domino effect in play, with most colleges only looking to take one QB per class. Being patient can be difficult for many prospects.<\/p>\n
\u201cHonestly, for me, it wasn\u2019t because I knew that my time was coming,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd just like with me not starting till my junior season, once I got the opportunity you could see, I won a state championship. The rankings never really affected me because I knew my time was coming, whether I was a three- or a four-star. And once you get to college, that stuff doesn\u2019t matter. It might help as far as popularity or maybe NIL.\u201d<\/p>\n
He actually received his first offer late in his sophomore year from Arizona State.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were able to see a little bit of JV film, but they took a chance on me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
In addition to leading Grayson to a state championship in football, Burgess also helped the Rams win their first title in basketball. His mom, Jennifer, played basketball at Brewton-Parker University, an NAIA school in Mount Vernon, Ga.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe gets all his athleticism from his mom,\u201d said Burgess\u2019 dad, Harold.<\/p>\n
Harold, who retired after serving 24 years in the Army, sees Belichick and North Carolina as an ideal fit for his son.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s very disciplined,\u201d Harold said. \u201cHe sticks to his routine. Every morning, he does the same routine over and over. Friday nights and Saturday nights, when a lot of his friends are having fun, we\u2019re at the house watching film. The next morning, we\u2019re getting up, working out. And he\u2019s waiting on me in the morning, like, \u2018Hey dad, let\u2019s go!\u2019 I think the discipline that he\u2019s been around for his entire upbringing will definitely benefit him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The elder Burgess said Travis picked up good habits from being around the military while growing up. But he also credited the culture at Grayson, where he learned the attention to detail required to play the position from JD Davis, the Rams\u2019 previous starting quarterback, who recently transferred to Alabama A&M after one season at Western Michigan. As part of his daily routine, Travis will put his phone away for three hours every night to read a book, do homework or watch film, his dad says.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe sets a goal and he doesn\u2019t get distracted,\u201d Harold said. \u201cHim being around a lot of military people, he\u2019s seen how once they have an objective, they try to conquer it. The distractions are minimalized. His ultimate goal is to be in the NFL one day and he knows the little things matter. He\u2019s realized that at an early age, it\u2019s how you do anything is how you do everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Burgesses have raised their three children (Travis is the oldest) in a very competitive environment. After each of the kids has a sporting event \u2014 whether it\u2019s a flag football game for Trinity, an eighth grader and the youngest child, or one of Travis\u2019 varsity football games \u2014 \u00a0the family will convene in Harold\u2019s Dodge Ram 1500 truck and each rate the performance on a scale of 1-10. It\u2019s a tradition Travis\u2019 mom implemented.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the truck, we keep it real,\u201d Harold said, adding that they\u2019ve given out some 1s in there.<\/p>\n
The Burgesses grew up as Falcons fans, which meant Belichick spoiled what would\u2019ve been the greatest day in their team\u2019s history when his Patriots rallied from a 28-3 deficit to beat Atlanta in Super Bowl LI in February 2017. The family sees Belichick much differently now that he wears Carolina blue.<\/p>\n
Travis describes being recruited by Belichick as \u201cawesome.\u201d Even though Belichick is best known for his defensive acumen \u2014 he also won two Super Bowls as the Giants defensive coordinator \u2014 his grasp on all aspects of the game will prove to be a great resource for Burgess. After all, Belichick drafted and helped develop Tom Brady from a sixth-rounder into the greatest quarterback in NFL history.<\/p>\n
Burgess\u00a0said he\u2019s already reaping the benefits of being part of Belichick\u2019s program, meeting often with the coach and the rest of the quarterbacks either by Zoom or in person when he visits the campus.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe quarterbacks meet every Wednesday and talk about the game of football,\u201d Burgess said, \u201cand then they talk about the life of football because there is the physical and the mental, so just being able to sit in there in those meetings with Bill Belichick and the other quarterbacks has been awesome. He could coach any position.\u201d<\/p>\n
(Photo courtesy of the Burgess family)<\/p>\n