The Brain Surgeon's Take

EJ Manuel, a former first-round NFL Draft pick, joined ACC Network in 2019 and is a studio analyst on The Huddle, ACCN’s signature football show that airs Saturday mornings throughout the fall. He also co-hosts ACCN’s In Play with Kelsey Riggs and is a regular each week on ESPN’s College Football Live. Along with is his ESPN duties, Manuel co-hosts College Sports Today on SiriusXM with Brock Huard.

One of the most productive quarterbacks in Florida State history, Manuel led the Seminoles to a 25-6 record as a starter during the 2009-12 seasons, and the fourth-most wins in program history. The Virginia Beach, Virginia, native also helped Florida State to notable victories including the 2013 Discover Orange Bowl, 2012 Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game and 2009 Gator Bowl – the final game of legendary coach Bobby Bowden’s career. He is the second quarterback in FBS history to win four straight bowl games, and also went 15-3 in his career against ACC opponents. Manuel is FSU’s all-time leader in completion percentage (66.9), which is tied for third in ACC history, and ranks among the top five Seminole quarterbacks all-time for passing yards (7,736, 4th), total offense (8,563, 3rd), completions (600, 3rd) and attempts (897, 5th), despite only two seasons as the full-time starter. He earned second team All-ACC honors for the 2012 season and was named the 2013 Senior Bowl MVP.

Following his career at FSU, Manuel was a first-round draft pick by the Buffalo Bills in 2013.

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Kevin J. Tracey is president and CEO and the Karches Family Distinguished Chair in Medical Research at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research; professor of Molecular Medicine and Neurosurgery at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell; and Executive Vice President, Research, at Northwell Health. A leader in the scientific fields of inflammation and bioelectronic medicine, his contributions include discovery and molecular mapping of neural circuits controlling immunity. Dr. Tracey received his BS in chemistry, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Boston College in 1979, and his MD from Boston University in 1983. He trained in neurosurgery from 1983 to 1992 at the New York Hospital-Cornell University Medical Center and was a guest investigator at the Rockefeller University before moving in 1992 to the Feinstein Institutes. There he directs the Laboratory of Biomedical Science and was appointed president and CEO in 2005.
An inventor of more than 120 United States patents and author of more than 400 scientific publications, he cofounded the Global Sepsis Alliance, a non-profit organization supporting the efforts of more than 1 million sepsis caregivers in over 70 countries. Dr. Tracey is the author of Fatal Sequence (Dana Press) and delivers lectures nationally and internationally on inflammation, sepsis, the neuroscience of immunity, and bioelectronic medicine.

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Bryan became nationally known as the man who “talked South Florida through” Hurricane Andrew in 1992, which lead to his work on NBC, as the CBS News Hurricane Analyst, and as Senior Hurricane Specialist at The Weather Channel. He is currently the Hurricane Analyst at Fox Weather.

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Manuel Kadre is a businessperson who has been at the helm of 5 different companies. He is Chairman of Republic Services, Inc., Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of MBB Auto, LLC, President at CC1 Caribbean Importers LLC, Director & Partner at Gold Coast Restaurants, Inc. and Vice President & General Counsel at de la Cruz Cos. He is also Member of New York State Bar Association, Member of The Florida Bar and Senior Member at Orange Bowl Committee and on the board of 10 other companies. Manuel Kadre previously held the position of Chief Executive Officer for Gold Coast Caribbean Importers, LLC, Member of Murai Wald Biondo Moreno & Brochin PA, President, Secretary, Director & Vice President at CC1 Cos., Inc. and Chief Executive Officer at ClearPath Immigration LLC.
Mr. Kadre received a graduate degree from Fordham University and an undergraduate degree from Iona College.

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Dr. Susanna Søberg is an international leading scientist in our metabolism during stress and rest. She did her PhD at The University of Copenhagen and has contributed to a deeper understanding of our metabolism during stress and rest in humans. She is an expert in cold & heat therapy and functional breathing for optimized health and performance. She is the founder of the “Soeberg Institute” and her science backed program “The Thermalist Cure” has helped thousands of people out of stress and burnouts and optimized their performance to new levels. She communicates and teaches “The Thermalist Cure” for private and corporate via her talks, workshops, and online programs. One of her principles is to “end cold” to increase metabolism and prolong the benefits of chemicals in the brain - A principle, which Professor Andrew Huberman from Stanford University named after her: The #soebergprinciple.

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While balancing his studies as a medical student at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Marquardt finished fourth in the 2024 IRONMAN Pro Series with three podium finishes at IRONMAN Texas, IRONMAN 70.3 Mont Tremblant, and IRONMAN Lake Placid. He is driven not only to be one of the best triathletes in the world but also to make a positive impact by increasing cancer awareness and supporting research that integrates his experiences in triathlon and the medical field.

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Carlos A. Migoya has served as CEO of Jackson Health System since May 2011, overseeing one of the nation’s largest and most respected public healthcare networks. Jackson has the distinction of bringing world-class medical care – including the medical school faculty and students from the University of Miami and Florida International University – to a taxpayer-owned system that guarantees a single high standard of care for all residents of Miami-Dade County. The system is anchored by Jackson Memorial Hospital, one of the most respected hospitals in Florida. The system also includes three neighborhood community hospitals, Holtz Children’s Hospital/The Women’s Hospital at Jackson Memorial, Jackson Behavioral Health Hospital, the Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at UHealth/Jackson Memorial, two nursing homes and a network of urgent care centers, physician practices, and clinics.

In his first year at Jackson, Mr. Migoya led a transformation that reversed years of massive losses, including an $82 million loss in the prior year, and produced a surplus of more than $8 million. It was the first time Jackson produced a surplus since 2006, and the system has earned an annual surplus every year since. At the same time, key indicators of healthcare quality and patient satisfaction improved, proving that public hospital systems need not choose between medical excellence and operational sustainability.

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Mariandl Hufford is the first female head of school at Miami Country Day School, one of the top schools in the USA.  Mariandl is the seventh head of the school, which is located in Northeast Miami-Dade near Miami Shores. The private, co-educational school has about 1,250 students from preschool to 12th grade. Previously, Hufford served as the assistant head of school and director of the Center for the Advancement of Girls at the Agnes Irwin School in Rosemont, Pennsylvania. Hufford grew up in Suriname and Belgium before attending Bryn Mawr College, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in classical studies. She holds three master’s degrees in teaching and curriculum, educational leadership and psychological services, from Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania, respectively. She succeeded James Connor, the interim head of school during the previous school year. Dr. John Davies retired in 2018 after 32 years, including the last 18 years as head of school. Miami Country Day was founded in 1938.

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Dr. Nownes is an internationally renowned scholar on American Politics. His research focuses upon interest group politics in the United States. His book, Total Lobbying: What Lobbyists Want (and How They Try to Get It) was published by Cambridge University Press in 2006. He is currently working on a number of projects, including one that examines the role of lobbyists in the government procurement process.

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Dr. Sandberg is Professor of Pediatric Surgery and Neurosurgery and is the Dr. Marnie Rose Professor of Pediatric Neurosurgery at McGovern Medical School/UT Health. He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University and his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He completed neurosurgery residency training at Weill Cornell Medical College at Cornell University and New York-Presbyterian Hospital. He was awarded the Resident Traveling Fellowship in Pediatric Neurosurgery by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. He completed this fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. After residency, he completed fellowship training in pediatric neurosurgery at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. After 8 years on the faculty of the Miller School of Medicine of the University of Miami and Miami Children’s Hospital, he moved to Houston to become the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at the McGovern School of Medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. He holds a joint faculty appointment at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where he is co-director of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Program. His major research interest involves novel delivery methods to treat malignant brain tumors in children.

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