I had a surreal educational experience last weekend, surrounded by athletes, fans, famous sportscasters, and many other students. The "homework" for this Sports Management major: Go to sunny California and help out with the biggest sporting event on the planet. Yes, I'm talking about the Super Bowl. And I did it on Wittenberg University's dime, except for the airfare.
While working this experience I got to see so many beautiful sights, from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to tree-lined paths in Santa Clara, where the event was held. Oh, and there were many restaurants along the way that served amazing food.
One of my favorite experiences was being able to attend and work the “Bart Starr Award” breakfast and ceremony. There, I was surrounded by sports superstars. They talked about being at the pinnacle of their athletic careers, as well as the sustaining power of their Christian faith. They included John Lynch (San Francisco 49ers GM), Andrew Luck (former NFL QB, current Stanford football GM), and of course, the winner of the award, Christian McCaffrey, the star running back for the San Francisco 49ers. This breakfast and experience encouraged me to hold my own faith close to me, no matter where my career and life take me.
There were so many lessons that I learned from just being there. First and foremost was seeing what the preparation for such an event fully entails. From the stadium set up, to the field, and everything in between, we got to experience first-hand all the behind-the-scenes details it takes to pull off such an huge happening. I (along with about a dozen other Witt students) arrived in California on Thursday night. On Friday morning, we immediately got to work, preparing for our jobs as guides, greeters, and go-fers.
On Super Bowl Sunday, my role was to welcome the fans as they headed towards their respective sections. It just so happened that the section I was working had been reserved for family and friends of the athletes. This allowed for a very cool opportunity to be surrounded by some really special individuals, as well as seeing some famous people from afar. It was overall just an exciting experience to witness everyone's excitement and pure happiness to be at this event.
