‘This Dude Is Going To Light It Up’

Tetairoa McMillan is looking forward to teaming up with Bryce Young.

The Carolina Panthers selected the 6-foot-4 wide receiver with their No. 8 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. McMilan will enter his rookie season with high expectations as he’s expected to emerge as Young’s go-to weapon for the foreseeable future.

McMillan is very familiar with Young, with the two players having attended high schools less than 30 minutes apart in California. They actually matched up during Young’s senior year of high school in 2019, with Young’s team defeating McMillan’s by 45 points.

“We can talk regular outside of ball, we can just talk regular normal people stuff,” says McMilan in a one-on-one interview. But man, sky’s the limit for him. I’ve been fortunate enough to see him play since he was in youth ball. He’s literally been the best player on his team every single year since youth.”

McMilan isn’t exaggerating — Young was the nation’s No. 1 quarterback coming out of high school and he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Young struggled during his rookie campaign, finishing with a 72.2 passer rating with the second worst touchdown percentage of any quarterback (2.1%). However, he improved during his second season after being benched early in the season. Young’s passer rating went up to 82.2 while leading the Panthers to four wins, an improvement over the two wins from the previous season.

“I have no doubt that this dude is going to light it up,” says McMilan. “I’m hoping that I can be that addition for him, that I can help him be to where I know he can be. I’m super excited to see what the future holds for the man. The sky’s the limit for this offense.”

McMilan was widely regarded as the top wide receiver prospect in this year’s draft not named Travis Hunter. At 6-foot-4 and 224 pounds, McMilan is one of the biggest receivers in the NFL and should become an immediate red zone threat for Young. McMilan caught four touchdowns for 304 receiving yards against New Mexico in the season opener last season.

“I would say his humility for sure,” McMilan says of Young’s best trait. “He’s not this rah-rah guy. He’s not the dude that the media talks about a lot. We’re looking at a dude that’s been the best player on his team for every year. He was the best player in eighth grade. He went to Mater Dei, the best team in the country, and he graduated the best player in the country — literally, the No. 1 player in the country.”

The 22-year-old first-round draft pick — he’s two years younger than Young — says Young has always stayed “true” to himself, something that he greatly respects.

“Went to Alabama, won the Heisman, went No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft,” says McMilan of Young. “You look at his resume, it’s ridiculous. There’s not too many people that have the same resume as him. But at the end of the day, he always stayed true to himself. He never switched up, he’s always been this humble guy, but don’t let it fool you — the boy can play.”

The Panthers will look to continue to improve this season entering Dave Canales’ second year as head coach. The NFC South has been dominated by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in recent years, as they’ve won the division during the past four seasons. However, after the Buccaneers, the Atlanta Falcons are a question mark as Michael Penix Jr. enters his first full season as starting quarterback and the New Orleans Saints rebuild following Derek Carr’s retirement.

With a true franchise receiver to partner along with fellow first-round pick Xavier Legette, veteran wideout Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker, the Panthers certainly have enough viable weapons for Young as he enters his third season.

Tetairoa McMilan Partners With Sharpie To Sign First NFL Contract

McMilan is partnering up with Sharpie, a partnership that began at the start of the calendar year. The Arizona Wildcats product actually signed his first NFL contract — a four-year, $27.9 million deal — with a Sharpie S-Gel pen earlier this month.

“It’s a blessing to be able to partner with Sharpie.” says McMilan. “All I know is Sharpie. My whole life I’ve been signing autographs and signing all these things and writing with Sharpie. I’m fortunate enough to sign my first NFL contract with a Sharpie S-Gel pen. I’m looking forward to signing many more autographs, signatures and contracts with my Sharpie pens in the near future.”

The rookie receiver says his favorite product from Sharpie is obviously the S-Gel pen he used to sign his rookie contract with and says there will be social media stuff with him and the writing instrument brand moving forward.

“Anything you think of, I’m pretty sure I got my foot in the door with that as far as Sharpie goes,” says McMilan of social media content planned with Sharpie.