Last month I was standing in the middle of St. Peter's Square ready to enter the Vatican in Rome and I received a phone call from Notre Dame University. The Director of Admissions called to inform me of my acceptance into the MBA program. What a fantastic memory as my wife and I finished a two week vacation in Europe.
I'm excited about the challenge that lays ahead and the opportunity to prove myself again in South Bend. Over ten years ago I left Notre Dame with a terrible sense of disappointment when we lost to the Irish in a last minute football game. For those of you who don't know, I had a pass thrown to me while I was running a crossing route, which tipped off my hands and landed in the lap of Vontez Duff, who took the interception back for a touchdown. Game over, senior year over, and dreams of playing pro football over. Sadly enough I couldn't seem to recover and ever regain my mental edge to play at a high level.
The day after the game my picture was on the front cover of the NY Times sports page, and the highlight was shown in slow motion on CNN Headline News. I had been through disappointment in my sports career, but nothing had an impact quite like this moment.
As I look back on this experience, I realized how valuable a lesson this set back had on my life. Although I feel like I've left something on the table back at Notre Dame, I rest assure that God had this plan already in place, waiting to build my character. When I played college football ten years ago, I was immature and full of a big ego. What a blessing in disguise despite the temporary pain that ruined my senior year of college football because I grew more in my faith for God and changed the way I lived as a man.
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