Engagement Insider
1/30/13
NEW ORLEANS, LA January 30, 2013 – Approximately 500 New Orleans area high school students today got an up close and personal peek inside Super Bowl week in their city when they attended the 2nd annual Super Bowl XLVII Sports Career Expo at Loyola University.
Created jointly by NFL Player Engagement’s NFL PREP initiative and Why Not Sports, Inc., the free day-long conference for student-athletes, as well as administrators and coaches, provided a unique perspective from successful sports industry leaders who hold a variety of roles in the sports business.
“If not for today’s Expo, these student-athletes may never have the chance to touch the NFL experience happening in their city, “ said NFL Player Engagement Vice President Troy Vincent. “This may be as close as these high schoolers get to interact with the NFL this week, and like our Prep 100 event held here on Sunday, we offer these meaningful events that you may not find in the typical list of activities occurring during Super Bowl Week.”
Those opportunities ranged from officiating and coaching to compliance and marketing, and a number of experts discussed their career paths.
The day started with an attention-getting talk by former New York Giant David Tyree, he of the legendary helmet catch in the 2007 Super Bowl, who described his pitfall-laden journey from growing up in New Jersey to attending Syracuse University and playing in the NFL and now life beyond the field.
The riveting Tyree talked about overcoming problems that started with arrests in eighth grade and later intensified when he started earning NFL money, but that he ultimately overcame through his faith and career success rooted in his academic background.
But that was only the beginning, as next the student-athletes listened to a blue-ribbon panel moderated by New Orleans native and 2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame Finalist Aeneas Williams, who spearheaded a high-energy, interactive discussion with panelists describing how athletics in their teenage years put them on the proper path to meaningful careers.
NFL Director of Officiating F. David Coleman, a West Point graduate who rose to the rank of Colonel, offered insight into the challenges of leadership, and how becoming an official allowed him to stay involved in the game he loves – football.
Then, Yale graduate Shoshanna Engel, the Assistant. Provost for Student-Athlete Compliance at Tulane University, attributed athletics to honing her decision-making skills in creating pride in herself as she encountered opportunities up to now in her life journey.
Next, Jim Garofalo, Global Marketing Director of Gatorade Sports Science Institute, said sports prepared him for life’s challenges and ultimately led him to a fulfilling career working for a brand he believes in strongly.
He was followed by Dr. Michael Giorlando, Director of Athletics & Wellness and Head Men’s Basketball Coach at Loyola, who talked about his family’s medical background leading him to become a dentist while also being blessed to have coaches as mentors, creating a passion and self-trust that leaves no regrets.
New Orleans continued to be represented with native son Jarvis Green, a former NFL player and now CEO of the Jarvis Green Foundation, who stated that football was the key to his life, and that he used it to have a four-year internship while playing. The retired New England Patriot, who is also on the Board of a food company, described how he has overcome adversity from injuries in a car crash to Hurricane Katrina, and today “only thinks positive.”
Finally, Darrell Guy, Executive Director of NFL YET, summed up the panel’s perspective best by saying, “I have the best job in the world.”
Afterward, the 14-year NFL veteran Williams summarized the panel by saying, “It’s gratifying for me being back home and relating to these kids that they don’t have to play professionally to be attached to the different professions that service the League, and that hopefully will pique their curiosity that opportunities are available to them.”
In addition to the speakers and panel, the Expo also featured a College Fair Exhibit, where all the students walked through to learn about scholarships and education.
“We have approximately 20 college institutions and non-profit organizations on-site here today, where these high school student-athletes can hear directly from these representatives about the opportunities available to them in this region,” said Nenette Chambliss, CEO of Why Not Sports, Inc.
For more information about the Prep Sports Career Expo, CLICK HERE.