By Jim Gehman, Engagement Insider
A defensive lineman drafted by the then-St. Louis Cardinals in 1982, you recorded what would be a career high 12 sacks during your second season. Everything just click for you?
“We had a great defense. I played with some great guys, Al Baker, Curtis Greer, Elois Grooms. It was just a combination of some hard work and to a degree it was that it clicked. That and I figured out that I needed to be in a whole lot better shape than I was my first year.” [Laughs]
You also had the only interception of your career that season when you picked off Giants quarterback Scott Bruner and returned the ball 17 yards. How’d it happen?
“They were trying to run a circle over where the back comes out of the backfield into the middle. I didn’t really get a pass rush, but I just happened to be at an angle where I saw it was happening and just flowed right into it.”
Did you hit up Coach Jim Hanifan for some playing time at tight end after that?
“No. [Laughs] I know at that time, the Fridge [Chicago’s William Perry] was getting to be pretty big going both ways, but no.”
The Cardinals moved from St. Louis to Phoenix in 1988. Were you happy for the new fans in Arizona or did you feel sorry for the longtime fans in Missouri or both?
“Well, kind of both. We enjoyed St. Louis. My wife and I, we thought we might like to live there. But it’s always exciting starting something new. So when we went out and had the opportunity to start fresh there in Arizona, everybody jumped at the chance.
“It was a nice change. Of course, you obviously didn’t have the cold, and (as a Florida native) I’ve always been partial to warm weather. So it turned out really nice for us.”
Shortly into the 1990 campaign, you were traded to Denver, who had played in Super Bowl XXIV the previous season. Were you excited about the move?
“It was kind of mixed blessing, hearing that I had a chance of going to Denver who I had no idea that at the time were 2 – 4. So that part was not exciting. [Laughs] But to get a chance to play with all the great players that they had, especially on the defense and to get a chance to be on the team with (John) Elway, it was awesome.
“I’d been injured and was coming back and ready to play. I’d been with the Cardinals for nine years at that point and we really hadn’t done very well. Obviously, we all want to go and be in the playoffs and have some real success. So I thought, well, I was thinking about a change at some point. I didn’t know that it would happen. But when the opportunity came to play with a team the caliber of the Broncos, I really didn’t mind it that much.”
Three years ago, you became a real estate agent with Keller Williams in the Ft. Lauderdale suburb of Pembroke Pines, Florida. What led you to pursue a career in realty?
“Well, I’ve always heard that real estate and insurance are the best ways to build wealth. [Laughs] I’d always liked real estate and I found out that my grandfather who grew up in South Carolina owned some farmland there. And so I thought this would be a great way to get into it.”
What do you enjoy about what you’re doing?
“Freedom. I just love being able to set my own hours, do what I want to do. We’re actually independent agents of Keller Williams, but everybody’s basically an independent business owner. I’ve always liked that.”
Granted, you’re not likely tackling people as often as you used to, but are there similarities with playing for a team and having teammates and being in an office and having co-workers?
“Yes, especially with a company like Keller Williams because there’s profit sharing and there’s team building. In a regular agency, it’s you and then there’s the agency. But in a company like Keller Williams, they have it set up where you have a chance to build a team of people under you. Almost like network marketing. So it’s a great opportunity to grow Keller Williams as a whole, but also to build some additional income for yourself.”
With the cold winter that a lot of the country had this year, is Florida now a seller’s market?
“Yeah, it is to a degree. Just like the rest of the country, we’ve had a lot of people move into rentals because of all the foreclosures. But then being here in South Florida, you also have a huge international investors market which has kind of really sustained the whole system these last few years.
“You have investors putting money in the system, and then you’ve got people who were previously in homes that may have rented for a couple years, and now they’re looking to get back into a home. So the market is pretty dynamic.”