FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Of the 83 players currently on the Patriots' roster, there are only two who played high school football in Massachusetts. Ron Brace, and Andover's Buddy Farnham, who is a hometown kid hoping to defy the odds and stick with the team.
At the conclusion of the team's mandatory minicamp this week, Farnham answered questions from reporters about his underdog tale as he hopes to stick at a receiver position that includes Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Co.
"I'm doing my best," Farnham said, when asked if he feels he's representing his former Andover teammates on such a big stage.
After the minicamp concluded, Farnham (6-0, 185) touched on what life has been like for him since signing a one-year contract with the team on May 3. He received a $1,000 signing bonus, which might have been an enticement for him to cancel a scheduled workout with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the next day.
"It's been great. I'm just taking it all in," said Farnham, choosing his words carefully. "I just come out here every day, do what they tell me to do, and do it as hard as I can do it."
Farnham, who played at Brown University and is donning jersey No. 13, said he doesn't spend time thinking about his underdog status. Instead, his focus has been on going "100 miles per hour" in every facet of the game.
"Whether you're an underdog or not, that's all you can do," he said.
The former Brown University standout touched on how he views Sean Morey as a role model to follow. Morey, who grew up in Marshfield, Mass., and attended Brown, has carved out a successful career in the NFL, primarily as a special teamer.
The Patriots' receiver depth chart is stocked, so Farnham's best chance to stick with the team figures to be the practice squad. That has been reflected in where most of his practice repetitions have come, as Farnham has primarily caught passes from rookie quarterback Zac Robinson at the end of practice, when the team's lesser-experienced players break from the veterans and work on the second practice field.