What Led To Jake Balanovich Facing Off & Beating Tom Brady In The Mr. Beast Passing Challenge

The Cypress Bay senior quarterback goes in-depth on what went into leading up to beating the legendary 7-time Super Bowl champion

Mr. Beast/YouTube

While millions of kids around the world unwrap gifts around these holidays, it was just a few weeks ago that Cypress Bay senior quarterback Jake Balanovich pulled off the opportunity of a lifetime.

A chance to beat legendary quarterback Tom Brady in a passing contest.

Florida high school quarterback beats NFL legend Tom Brady in a passing contest

Check me out competing against Tom Brady in the new Mr beast video!! https://t.co/HA2hufouRV pic.twitter.com/zI3JmgWwMx

— Jake Balanovich (@JakeBalanovich) November 30, 2024

The Lightning signal caller was randomly selected to face off against Brady, now the main game analyst for FOX's NFL coverage team, and defeated the 7-time Super Bowl champion to win the grand prize of $100,000.

What was crazy about the entire situation is Balanovich didn't even know he'd be facing off against the former New England/Tampa Bay quarterback. It was all by chance.

Getting The Mr. Beast Casting Call

What started everything off was a simple direct message from Mr. Beast's casting team to Cypress Bay head coach Bret Hood kicked things off.

Without a great amount of detail other than if Hood's team was interested in being apart of an event on Nov. 4th and the Lightning head coach quickly replied yes. From there, the setup began for Balanovich to face off against Brady, unknowingly that is.

"They asked if they could interview me because I was the quarterback," Balanovich said. "I had a 15-minute interview over the phone with their people. The next day after practice we went to film the event. We were told it was going to be a pro-style combine. We thought other teams and quarterbacks would be competing against each other. We did not know anything."

Getting Prepared For The Mr. Beast 'Event'

Now not knowing exactly what they were all getting into, Cypress Bay practiced as a team the day before and the Mr. Beast casting crew got a good look at Balanovich.

Got a good look at how far the Lightning senior quarterback was a major piece to the jigsaw puzzle of figuring that Balanovich was perfect for the event, which was in secret a 1-on-1 competition against Brady.

Thing was, everyone knew just before the event that special day that Balanovich would be facing arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history. Everyone except for Balanovich that is. His teammates and family members were in on the best kept secret in South Florida as he went into what would turn into one of the biggest moments of his life.

"Initially no one knew I was competing against Tom Brady. Not even my coach," Balanovich said. "My parents and brother were invited to attend the event along with some other parents because they said they wanted fans at the event. I was separated from my team once I arrived at the stadium. My dad and brother along with my teammates were sent to a locker room to wait. My dad and brother were told along with my team that I would be competing against Tom Brady, before I even knew. According to my dad, their reaction was insane. They all just screamed.

My mom hadn't arrived yet to the stadium because she was working so she did not know until she saw him on the field. She literally arrived just as the team was running onto the field.  I found out (Tom Brady) was my competition while I was warming up on the field. The producers wanted to see how far I could throw so I was taking some warm up throws."

The Surprise Of Seeing Tom Brady

It's not everyday you get to see Brady just casually strolling out onto the field down in South Florida.

For Balanovich, his family members and teammates, what they got to see next after Mr. Beast's ominous comment was the surprise that stunned the Cypress Bay quarterback.

"Mr. Beast walked out and asked if I knew what was going on. And to be honest, I had no idea," Balanovich said. "He said, 'Good'. Mr. Beast disappeared and the next thing I heard was Tom's voice coming from the tunnel saying 'Let me see my competition'. I looked over and saw it was Tom Brady. I was in complete shock, as were my parents and brother. It just didn't seem real."

Out walked Brady onto South Dade Kia Field at Pitbull Stadium, where the FHSAA just recently held the high school football state championships at.

The Throw To Beat Brady

Facing Brady didn't come with ideal weather conditions as both passers had to hit four balloons setup on pedastals ranging from 10 yards out to 50.

Each quarterback hit on their first couple of balloons relatively easily, but things were looking bleak for Balanovich fell behind by one, with Brady only needing to connect on the 50-yard throw.

"Well, it was raining that night and we had high winds too," Balanovich said. "We both went back and forth a few times but my second to last throw I was so close, that I felt confident throwing that last ball. I knew I could pop the balloon. I just tried to remain calm and focused."

Balanovich tied things up and with each competitor needing to knock down one more balloon to win. It didn't matter if it was a direct hit or the ball bounced up from the ground, either way would equal a win.

"Mr. Beast said that if the ball bounces and pops the balloon, it counts," Balanovich added. "My next throw, bounced and popped the balloon. And then my team went crazy. It felt surreal knowing that I just beat the GOAT, who is known for his accuracy, in a throwing competition. And on top of that, doing it in a Mr. Beast video. Mr. Beast is the GOAT of YouTube. Never in my dreams could I have ever envisioned this happening."

Aftermath Of Defeating Brady For $100K

With the event filmed on Nov. 4th, Balanovich, his family members and fellow teammates would have to keep the Mr. Beast passing contest on the low for the time being. Just about four weeks that is.

The Mr. Beast video challange and win over Brady would have to remain a secret itself for a few weeks until it officially aired on YouTube on Nov. 30th. From there, Balanovich's name recognition went through the roof via social media and national media.

"My teammates and I were all excited to be participating in a Mr. Beast video challenge," Balanovich said. "We were not allowed to tell anyone about the video once it filmed, so for three weeks we had to keep it quiet. The only people that knew about the event were the players, coaches, parents and staff that attended. No one reached out to me until after it aired on November 30th. Once the video aired, all of my friends, teammates and family called and texted me saying congrats. I think a lot of people were in shock too because we kept it a secret. But that just made winning that much better.

My name is definitely more recognizable now. I was on the local news which was cool. Inside Edition did an interview with me that was televised nationally. I was on the radio with Larry Blustein, but the coolest part for me was being recognized by the local sports outlets like MaxPreps, 305 Sports, the NFL, Sport Illustrated. That is what every athlete dreams of."

Now Balanovich hopes with the popularity that one more dream of his can come true and that's playing college football. In this past 2024 campaign at Cypress Bay, Balanovich completed 106-of-175 passes for 1,551 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Mr. Beast gave Balanovich the shot to face off against Brady and now the senior hopes someone will take a chance on letting him make the throws on the collegiate level.

"My Hudl views have definitely gone up, but I am still waiting for colleges to reach out or reply back," Balanovich added. "I am actively emailing and sending DM's to coaches in hopes someone will give me an opportunity. My dream is to play football at the next level. I feel like my journey is just beginning. I just need someone to give me a shot."

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi