My Background
I’m a graduate of the Smeal College of Business and hold a degree in Marketing, 1999. I was a four-year starter on Penn State’s Football team and was elected team captain in both 1998 & 1999. I was selected as a consensus All-American in 1999 and earned First Team All-Big 10 honors in both 1998 & 1999.
In 2000, I was drafted by the New York Giants and had a seven-year NFL career. While in the NFL, my teammates elected me to be their NFLPA Union Player Representative. In this role I advocated on players’ behalves and educated my peers on their contractual rights and obligations under the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. As a Player Representative, I helped to develop and negotiate the strategy to maximize player value in the 2006 - 2011 NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Following my NFL career, I earned an MBA from Columbia Business School in 2010. Joining Goldman Sachs after graduation as a member of its Real Estate Investment Banking Team based in New York. I transferred to Goldman’s Middle East Banking Team based in Dubai in 2012. While at Goldman I provided advice on M&A transactions and advised corporate boards on their optimal structure & governance practices. In 2015, I moved to London to join a real estate private equity firm and am now a Vice President at Round Hill Capital.
WHY I'M RUNNING
Serving on Penn State's Board has been one of the greatest honors of my life and I ask for your support so I can continue to work to make our great University even better. Penn State is a world-class research institution with the largest most active Alumni network. There's no question that Penn State is a leading institution and at the forefront of higher learning. However, there are many challenges facing our great University. The rising cost to attend Penn State, inadequate board governance & accountability, and the need to adapt more quickly to the changing nature of education are all issues that hamper Penn State's ability to carry our standard of excellence into the future.
Having been recognized as a natural leader; I've developed a skill set that makes me uniquely qualified to represent our Alumni on Penn State's Board of Trustees. I'll continue to bring a strong, diverse, and dynamic voice to Penn State's Board. One that will challenge the status quo and that will work with other board members to improve on every aspect of our University.
My key areas of focus will be:
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Making Penn State More Affordable
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Implementing Improved Board Governance & Accountability
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Preparing Penn State for the Future by Using Technology
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Educational Equity
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Uniting the Penn State Community
I'm asking for your vote. If re-elected I promise to continue waking up every day thinking of ways to make an impact, to improve Penn State and to help lead our great University into the future.
AWARDS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Education
High School: McKeesport Area High School, 1994
Undergraduate: Pennsylvania State University; B.S. Marketing, 1999
PostGraduate: Columbia University, MBA, 2010
Football Career
College: Pennsylvania State University Football Team 1995 - 2000
NFL: New York Giants 2000 - 2003
Carolina Panthers 2004 - 2005
New York Giants 2006
Awards and Honors
High School
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Captain of McKeesport High School’s Varsity Football Team
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1994 Pennsylvania High School Football State Champions
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Captain of McKeesport High School’s Varsity Basketball Team
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1994 W.P.I.A.L Basketball Champions
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1994 Associated Press – Pennsylvania Player of the Year in Football
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1994 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Male Student-Athlete of the Year
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1995 Big 33 MVP
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1995 USA Today’s Super 25 High School Football Players
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1995 First Team Parade High School All-American Team
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1995 Associated Press # 1 Ranked Linebacker in America
College
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1997 Citrus Bowl Defensive MVP
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1998 & 1999 Penn State’s Football Team Captain
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1998 & 1999 First Team Big Ten All-Conference
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1999 Consensus College Football First Team All-American
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2000 Butkus Award Finalist
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2000 Senior Bowl Defensive MVP
Professional Career
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2000 Drafted by the New York Giants
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2001 Played in Super Bowl XXXV
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2001 Honored with the Key to the City of McKeesport; for community service and athletic excellence
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2003 Recipient of the 2003 Minority Athletes Network (MAN) Man of the Year Award; for assisting disadvantaged New York/New Jersey youth in their efforts to pursue higher education
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2004 Opened the Nasdaq on Election Day for the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers Voter Registration Initiative
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2005 Recipient of The Institute for Civic Leadership (ICL) Leaders Award
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2005 Elected as the Carolina Panthers Player Representative for the NFL Players Association
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2005 Opened the Nasdaq with The Institute for Civic Leadership
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2009 Recipient of the Distinguished Alum Award from Penn State Quarterbacks Club
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2010 Inducted into the Western Pennsylvania (W.P.I.A.L.) Sports Hall of Fame as a player
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2013 & 2016 One of Business Insider’s 50 Biggest Former Football Stars on Wall Street
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2015 Inducted into the Western Pennsylvania (W.P.I.A.L.) Sports Hall of Fame along with The 1994 McKeesport High School Football Team
Activities & Organizations
Activities & Organizations
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Penn State Athletic Advisory Board - Former Board Member
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Penn State Institute for Real Estate Studies - Former Board Member
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Penn State Real Estate Finance Classes - Guest Lecturer
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Institute for Civic Leadership (ICL) - Former Board Member
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McKeesport YMCA mentorship program
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McKeesport Boys and Girls Club community outreach
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Recorded TV and Radio Public Service Announcement for the State of New Jersey regarding drinking and driving
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Recorded Radio Public Service Announcement’s for the New Jersey and North Carolina State board on elections regarding the importance of voting
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Worked with Rock The Vote/Young Voter Strategies to persuade the NFL and the NFL/PA to facilitate NFL Players to Register to Vote
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Recorded Public Service Announcements for the Charlotte North Carolina Alcohol and Chemical Dependency Centre
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Spoke to schools for the Charlotte North Carolina Alcohol and Chemical Dependency Centre about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse
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Speaker to the youth about the importance of education and showing them that the only limit to their potential is how had they’re willing to work (NJ, NY, NC, PA, Dubai, and London)