Cut Traded Fired Retired

His high school is known for having one of the best programs in the nation and producing more NCAA and NFL players than any other high school. Needless to say, there were no “off” days for Jimmy Spencer at Glades Central in Florida, which was fine because Jimmy knew he wanted to play in the NFL since he was 7.

He had his choices of colleges and was being looked at as simply an athlete. He played quarterback at Glades Central, but his speed caught the eye of scouts. Jimmy opted for the University of Florida and skipped his senior season to enter the NFL Draft.

The Washington Redskins took Jimmy in the 8th round and he spent his rookie season on the practice squad. The next season, he was with the Saints, where he was taught technique and thrived at defensive back. He also thrived at having too much fun and when he was given a chance to re-sign in the Big Easy, he credits God for showing him a different path. He took an offer with the Bengals instead.

After Cincinnati, he went to the Chargers, then finished his career with the Broncos for three years, including the final year serving as a player/coach, something that hadn’t been done since 1972. These days he’s a husband and dad to four and coaches one of his sons at Cherry Creek High School.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He’s the only person who played high school, college and professional baseball in the state of Colorado. After graduating from Northglenn High School, a suburb north of Denver, Mark Knudson went straight up I-25 to Colorado State University where he majored in journalism and pitched for a baseball program that was dissolved a decade after Mark left for the pros.

Mark was drafted by the Astros in 1982 and credits his college ball for giving him a fast track to the majors: he debuted in single A and just 3 years later, he made his MLB debut. In 1986, Mark was traded to the Brewers which stung, but he made the most of it and became their Opening Day starter in 1991. Unfortunately, the next day he came down with a virus and was never the same that year. He was sent to their AAA team (the Denver Zephyrs) where he helped win a championship and then was released when the Brewers weren’t going to bring him back to the show.

Mark kept a home in the Denver area while he was playing and in the early 90’s was “enlisted” to be a spokesperson to help bring Major League Baseball to Denver. In his final year in the pros, Mark played for that team and was the first Colorado born player to be on the Rockies roster.

The day after Mark retired, his wife had triplets and they would later add another daughter. In retirement, he’s worked in numerous mediums in journalism and continues to do so between writing, radio and podcasting. He’s also a high school baseball coach for Prospect Ridge Academy in Broomfield.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He moved from Ghana to the United States when he was 7. Ebenezer Ekuban didn’t know anything about football and had no aspirations of playing the game because he was focused on academics. When his father told him he needed to do something outside of school, Ebenezer decided to try football his junior year of high school. He became a quick learner on both sides of the ball, playing tight end and defensive end and after just two years of high school ball, he turned some heads and had a number of offers to play in college.

He opted for the University of North Carolina where he played tight end sparingly for two years, then was switched to defensive end and thrived. So much so, the Dallas Cowboys moved up to draft him in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft. At that point, Ebenezer became the first Ghana born player in the NFL.

Injuries crept in during his 5 years in Dallas and he dealt with three different head coaches, including Bill Parcells. It didn’t take long for Eb to realize he wasn’t a “Parcells Guy.” He signed with the Browns as a free agent and then the next season was traded to the Broncos where he fell in love with Denver. After 10 years in the NFL, Ebenezer and his wife Karen made their home in the Mile High City where they are raising four children.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cole Pemberton took a leap of faith when he transferred from Kansas City to Highlands Ranch to live with his dad during his high school years. That leap provided a new relationship with his father and a stellar football career as an offensive lineman at Mountain Vista High School.

Cole opted to play college football at Colorado State University for Sonny Lubick and prided himself on protecting his quarterback. He allowed just one sack his senior season and was a team captain. He also dealt with injuries.

His name wasn’t called on draft day, but he was able to get on as a college free agent with Gary Kubiak’s Texans, who at the time were “CSU South” with several former Rams on the roster. Cole was cut a few times in the NFL and when a doctor told him his knee was shot, he hung up his cleats.

Post retirement wasn’t easy. He tried coaching at the University of Miami and some other odd jobs and nothing felt right. He also fell into a dark place mentally and used opiates and other substances to help his physical and mental pain. Today, Cole is in a better place. He enjoys his job and talking to others about overcoming substance abuse and challenges.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Rockies’ ownership opened their wallets in 2000 and struck mega deals with two big name pitchers, fans rejoiced. Unfortunately, Coors Field is an unforgiving ballpark for pitchers, no matter how much money they get paid.

Denny Neagle yearned to be the savior Rockies fans so desperately wanted. He’d worked his way up through the baseball ranks, starting with college ball at the University of Minnesota, getting drafted by the Twins, becoming an ace and All-Star with the Pirates, starting a World Series game and earning another All-Star nod with the Braves and winning a World Series ring with the Yankees. The pedigree was there, and it was tough on Denny when success didn’t come in Denver. He wanted to prove his worth.

Denny pitched his last game in July of 2003, had some personal incidents in 2004 and realized he needed to get his life together, not only for himself, but for his family and those around him. These days, he spends a lot of time with his family, especially his three young adult children. He’s also the pitching coach at Chatfield High School and starting to dabble in podcasting with comedian Frank Nicotero.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The NFL Draft and Beyond: Bradlee Van Pelt thought he’d be drafted on the first day, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. BVP oozed confidence after his tie at Colorado State University and was convinced the NFL was ready for his unconventional style of playing quarterback. He waited all the way until the 7th round and the Denver Broncos took him with their second pick in that round. His NFL experience is filled with some wild stories, mostly because Bradlee wanted to do things Bradlee’s way. He soon realized NFL coaches didn’t care for his tactics.

After the NFL, Bradlee dabbled a bit overseas in both football and another passion: wine. He also met a girl and after a few years, had his second true girlfriend and eventually wife. He also got his MBA, has become a father of five and is starting to reconnect with Colorado State, it’s football team and people from his past.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Early Years: When he arrived at Colorado State University, the skateboard wielding transfer quarterback from Michigan State was all the talk and a bit of a mystery. Fans called him “Sunshine” and no one could quite figure out Bradlee Van Pelt. Including Bradlee.

What Bradlee did know is he wanted to play quarterback and he stuck to his plan despite nearly everyone trying to push him to another position and never receiving any proper quarterback coaching. He threw footballs at targets for hours after practice, just waiting for his moment. When that moment came, Bradlee rose to the occasion and fans were calling for Sunshine to be under center. He made it and while the next two years involved some chaos, Bradlee won back to back Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year awards.

Part 1 focuses on BVP’s early life, from growing up the son of an NFL player, the litany of sports he played, figuring out college and some choices he wishes he could have back and do over. Part 2 focuses on 2004 to present day, from the NFL Draft, bouncing around to a few teams, becoming a husband and a father.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Life was rough growing up for Reuben Droughns, but no one would ever guess that based off the permanent smile he wears on his face. No one would know he stayed in hotels at times, was homeless other times and dealt with custody issues. Reuben could have used his young life as an excuse, instead he just stayed positive and forged on towards a career in the NFL that lasted three times longer than most others.

Reuben mostly grew up in LA and when his grades weren’t where they needed to be, he went to junior college after high school. He played football and tore up the field as a running back – in 1997, he was the nation’s top JuCo running back. Soon he got his grades up and took his talents to Oregon where he continued to run like crazy and was 1st Team All-Pac 10 his senior year.

He was a 3rd round draft pick by the Detroit Lions in 2000 and would get traded a few times and spend time with a few teams including Denver, Cleveland and the NY Giants. After a nine-year career in the NFL, he tried high school coaching, overseas coaching and these days is just being dad, to FOUR girls. Of course he’s still always smiling.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

His story sounds improbable: middle class kid from Northern Colorado becomes a high caliber two sport athlete at the highest levels. After his athletic career, he starts a non-profit which gets acquired by AARP and a start up software company that sells a decade later for 9 figures. Now he’s husband to a Brazilian actress and father of two kids. This is your life Jeremy Bloom.

Jeremy’s story sounds like a fairy tale and while he’s extremely grateful for everything he’s accomplished, none of it came without trials and tribulations. The training it took to be a world class freestyle skier, college athlete and NFL player was constant. He was inches away from winning an Olympic gold medal. He was cut from two NFL teams. He was so focused on his athletic career, relationships sat on a back burner. He nearly threw in the towel on his start up when their capital was running out. Thankfully every time Jeremy encountered a roadblock, he recalibrated and found success.

Listen to his story here and find out how he made it all work with his book RECALIBRATE: Navigating the Winding Road to Success.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the youngest of 7, Brandon Lloyd had a lot to live up to with successful older siblings and knew from a very young age he wanted to make a name for himself. The recognition started in high school as a stellar football and track athlete. Sure, he was a little on the smaller size, but he made up for size with explosive speed. That got the colleges calling.

He chose the University of Illinois mostly because of the degree he would receive. The NFL wasn’t on his radar, and he had his sights set on a degree in broadcast journalism. After being first team All-Big 10 his sophomore and junior years, his focus changed and he left school early for the NFL draft.

The 49’ers chose him in the 4th round of the 2003 draft and from there Brandon started a career that would span a dozen years and involve many teams including the Denver Broncos. During the 2010 season in Denver, Brandon led the league in receiving yards, was an All-Pro and a Pro Bowler.

After football, Brandon finished his undergraduate degree and took it a step further with an MBA in 2022. He’s currently working in the insurance industry and being dad to two teenage boys.

To learn more about the host Susie Wargin, visit www.SusieWargin.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.