Career development goes beyond football for Vols
The University of Tennessee football players are ready to get down to business - only it won’t be happening on the field.
The rising juniors and seniors on the team will be participating in “VFL Career Development Night” on Thursday.
Part of the Vol For Life program, the event is designed to prepare players for careers after football. They will meet with representatives from various industries and potentially secure future employment opportunities.
“We want them to begin building a network and getting to know people,” said Antone Davis, the coordinator of the VFL program. “This is the fourth year we’ve done it and we’ve had seven players secure internships on their own during the evening, which is really outstanding.”
Considering only 1.6 percent of college football players reach the NFL, providing a forum for players to begin preparing for life after football is essential.
The VFL event begins at 6:30 p.m. at Smokey’s Grill on campus. After UT head coach Butch Jones provides a welcome, the players will be introduced to the vendors and allowed to mingle for 30 minutes.
Nearly 25 different businesses will be represented – ranging from medical sales to law enforcement to media corporations. Among the VFLs taking part are Tim Irwin, Will Overstreet and Brad Lampley.
Once the players are done circulating the room, they will provide their top three choices of the businesses they want to get to know more and be seated by one of them for an hour-long dinner.
Davis spent three months preparing to host the event. Last year, former UT quarterback Joshua Dobbs, an aerospace engineering major, requested a representative from Boeing attend the event and Davis made it happen.
Although no specific requests were made this year, Davis tries to provide a range of options that best fit the players’ future career interests.
“Finding the right vendors is the key because we understand rising juniors and seniors aren’t ready to be hired today, so we also ask the vendors to be mentors that evening and challenge them,” Davis said. “Not only challenge them about making decisions with the direction they want to go in life, but challenge them to carry on a good conversation and be engaged in the process.”
Even before they arrive, the UT players will have been prepped on what to expect. They are advised on how to dress, how to exchange business cards and what side of their lapel their name tag should be placed. UT created business cards for each individual player to exchange.
“We want these guys ready to go when they hit the ground and ready to know what to say,” Davis said. “We have one rule – don’t talk football on this night. There will be Thornton Center academic advisers around the room as referees that way if it goes off track and they start talking about the bowl game they can steer the conversation back on topic.”
Davis considers the career development night a perfect illustration of why the VFL program was created. Beyond producing good football players, Davis wants UT to produce college graduates with life skills and opportunities that can benefit them beyond the field.
“Anything I do for the Vol For Life program comes out of the football budget and Coach Jones essentially gives his blessing to us,” Davis said. “It’s not some money donated to us. This is coach saying it’s important enough to take money out of my football budget to take care of our players.”