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dream, and I was able to fulfill it. "I just wonder if one day I'll look back and think maybe I should have left a little sooner, without quite so many years, so much mileage on the wheels so to speak, because each year you wear down those joints more and more. It has to have effects down the line on your body physically. But I en- joyed each year, and each season was unique. The competition and the camaraderie were tremendous, and that's what I enjoyed the most and now miss the most." Brady was 36 years old at the time but was uncertain what he would do next. Since joining the Jaguars in 1999, he had lived in the Jacksonville area. He was now married with two small children but had never had an off-season job while playing in the NFL. "I had not been in the job market for 13 years," Brady said. "I had a college degree [in exercise and sports science] and you're marketable, but how mar- ketable are you when you've been play- ing football for 13 years, especially in this economy? When a lot of guys fin- ish their NFL careers, especially when they've had long careers, they sort of go through a transitional period where they jump from one job to another, not real sure what their next calling is in life, not sure what the next thing is that they want to do. I saw that repeated- ly, even among some of my former teammates, and I thought instead of doing that, why not go back to college? "I talked to a lot of people and got some opinions. Two graduate degrees that stand out and seem to be very flexible, and are degrees you can use that are more useful down the line in life, are the law degree and an MBA. After really thinking about it a lot, I thought to go ahead and get the law degree, because even if you don't want to formally practice law, just to have that knowledge of the law with re- gard to business pursuits or whatev- er you might get into, it's good knowl- edge to have." In 2009, Brady tried to combine law school with working football weekends for the Big Ten Network but it wasn't feasible. "They wanted me back for 2010, but the amount of time it took to get ready for a weekend of football was pretty significant, and there just weren't enough hours in a day to do both," Brady said. "We have classes Monday through Thursday, and in your first year you have classes on Fri- day and it was something I just could- n't manage." However, after Brady graduates in the spring of 2013 from the Florida Coastal School of Law in Jacksonville, he feels he still could have a future in sports broadcasting. "There are a number of guys who have law degrees who are currently do- ing very well," Brady said. "Steve Young is one of them and Chris Collingsworth is another. I actually think going through the law school ex- perience can make you even better as a speaker. Often you're put in pressure situations, like mock trials or when you're called upon to mediate or arbi- trate, where it takes being adept with words, and I think you can actually polish your skills as a speaker." Brady grew up in the Harrisburg area and once thought he would eventual- ly go back to live in his hometown. But he now has roots in Jacksonville. He bought his first home there in 1999 and met his future wife that same year. Kirstin Jacobsen was working on her MBA at Tennessee and visiting her sis- ter when the two met at a youth group meeting. They married in 2000 and now have a son, Kellen, 7, and daughter, Brooke, 4. Until the kids get older, Kirstin is a stay-at-home mom. That means Kyle sees a lot of his fam- ily, because when he's not in class, he's usually home studying. When asked one final question about his most memorable play in his five- year career at Penn State, Brady hardly hesitated. "There's a series of plays that stick out and I think all Penn State fans remember: those 14 plays against Illinois – 94 yards to get to the end zone." It's now known in Nittany Lion lore as "The Drive." An undefeated season was on the line in Champaign with 6:07 remaining and Penn State trail- ing, 31-28. The No. 2 Lions had trailed 21-0 at the end of the first quar- ter and had fought back against one of the best defensive teams in the country. Brady caught two key pass- es, as Collins confidently guided Penn State to the winning touchdown. "That was just a special and unique group, not just of athletes but of individuals," Brady said. "I can remember that se- ries like it was yesterday. Here it is 18 years later and I still get chills think- ing about it." W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M J U N E 1 , 2 0 1 2 31

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