It is possible to make sports a career and this newsletter is going to give you ideas on how to do it.
But too many athletes focus too much on their competitive lives and not enough on lifetime careers. No one stays in top competitive condition forever. Therefore, it takes planning to map out a way to make a living for 30, 40, or 50 years.
Donnie Shell, a former defensive back for the Pittsburgh Steelers and now a career counselor, said, "I tell athletes a sports career is a stepping stone to do something else. It's like a part-time job." (1)
Anita DeFrantz has a similar outlook. "Your sports career is just a blink in time and it's something that will belong to you forever, but there's more to life." She is a former Olympic rower who progressed from sports to law school to the board of directors of the United States Rowing Association to the president of the Amateur Athletic Foundation to a member of the International Olympic Committee. "If nothing else, think about how you're going to get back to sports." (2)
Unfortunately, athletes don't always plan for the future. "Most athletes simply aren't ready for what hits them after retirement. If you discuss with them what their post-athletic-career plans are, the overwhelming majority of athletes have absolutely none," noted Harry Edwards, a sociologist at the University of California at Berkeley who has written extensively about sports. (3)
"Most players are keenly aware that they're not going to play forever. But they hope to put off the inevitable," said basketball legend Julius Erving, who went on to a successful business career with DJ Group Inc., a sports and entertainment promotion company. (4)
He began his transition from sports to business while he was still a pro. "It's a lot easier if you begin your business career before your sports career is over. The last three years of my basketball career I relegated basketball to four hours a day--practice or game time. The rest of the day I concentrated on my businesses and on learning business." (5)
Sports lawyer and agent Ralph Cindrich, who is a former NFL player himself, advises his clients to learn something other than sports. "I tell my clients it's OK to goof off and have fun after their first pro season, but after that I want them to take an off season job. It can be in sales, construction or anything. It doesn't have to lead to another career. But it'll give them a taste of what things will be like the rest of their lives, so at least they won't come as a shock." (6)
The NFL offers a Career Internship Program, which links players and corporations during the off-season. In 1994, approximately 200 players participated.
In 1995 The Wall Street Journal reported that a number of NFL players had active business careers on the side:
Brad Edwards (then a free safety with the Atlanta Falcons and now with the Green Bay Packers) was also an investment planner for The Equitable.
Jack Del Rio, a middle linebacker with the Minnesota Vikings, was also a broker with Merrill Lynch in New Orleans.
Bart Oates, a center with the San Francisco '49ers, was also a corporate and transactional lawyer. He is now a broadcaster for FOX sports.
John Gesek (then with the Washington Redskins and now retired from football) was also a commercial real estate broker. Lester Archambeau (a defensive lineman with the Atlanta Falcons) and Merton Hanks, a safety with the '49ers, worked at the Bank of America.
Three other football players mentioned in The Wall Street Journal article:
During the off-season he works with a commercial real estate firm in Chicago. He also earned his MBA at Florida International University while he was with the Dolphins.
In the mid-1990s he started his own investment business, Amaroq Financial Services, and handled money for teammates. In addition, he owned DSJ & Associates, a sports apparel business.
He said it isn't impossible to juggle several jobs: "Remember when you were in high school and it was eight classes, and you said you didn't have time. Then you went to college, four classes. Not enough time. Grad school, and you're still complaining. My dad worked two jobs. My mom spent 10 years getting her Ph.D.
"This is my own company, my own thing. I have pride in that. Nobody questions it if Bo Jackson decides to play football and baseball, or Herschel Walker wants to be a bobsledder." (9)
He has retired from football and now works as a studio analyst for TNT's "Pro Football Tonight" in addition to running his companies.
While playing football he got a role on the HBO series "First and Ten." He also took a management internship at Anheuser-Busch, became a stock broker at Merrill Lynch, and then attended law school at the University of San Diego. At that time he said, "It's a real contrast to what I do. Mentally, I need it. I've always wanted to be an educated person, and although it's tough with football and everything, I will not be denied." (10)
In 1993 he became a defensive lineman with the Kansas City Chiefs. He also took a job in real estate and construction law. In addition, he had his own weekly radio show, served as co-host of a television show, and wrote a weekly column.