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Kevin Garrett

Trust Spotlights

Kevin Garrett

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Kevin Garrett is a former NFL cornerback who spent five years in the NFL. A successful entrepreneur and author, Garrett shared his story to inspire his community and shed light on the resources available to former players.

Hailing from a small town in Texas, Kevin Garrett had to overcome illness as a child to play the game of football. Luckily, Garrett had his family’s support, and he eventually graduated with a double major from Southern Methodist University.

During college, Garrett played football and also ran track and field. He started playing football as a linebacker and fullback, before switching to cornerback as a redshirt freshman in college. His track and field accolades helped him get recruited to play football at the collegiate level, but Garrett eventually chose football over track to fulfill his goal of playing in the NFL. He was then selected by the St. Louis Rams in the fifth round of the 2003 NFL Draft.

During his rookie year, Garrett got to experience a “winning culture” with the Rams, playing alongside the likes of Marshall Faulk, Kurt Warner, and other Hall of Famers. He described this experience as “eye-opening,” and the fast pace of the league made him a student of the game as he worked to separate himself from others. He described his time in the league as “life-changing”.

Being part of that fraternity that opens doors and being part of the NFL community was nice. It was life-changing.

After retiring from the NFL, Garrett contemplated what to do next. His support system consisted of his parents, friends, and family and he spent his free time traveling abroad and decompressing from the game. Thankfully, he was able to engage in programs that allowed him to give back to his community and share his knowledge of the game of football with children. Garrett also decided to write a children’s book that playfully touches on diversity, self-love, self-identity and the love for ice cream.

As far as writing my book, it kind of came up in a spur of the moment where I live in an area that's not very diverse. These kids have never seen kids of color… so my son was getting bullied. So, you get this in the hands of young kids and playfully use ice cream. Everybody's ice cream is different and that’s the same with people, we're all different, but we’re all equal inside. So that's kind of what prompted the book.

Garrett mentioned that he has another motivational book that’s in the works and how he’s constantly encouraging people to do better by themselves, to keep pushing, and never give up. He hopes to bring awareness toward diversity and self-love through his children’s book. Garrett also advised former players to reach out to The Trust if they’re facing challenges after retiring.

If you haven't made plans it’s a little rough transition. Reach out to The Trust. They have all kinds of programs, continuing education programs, you got different things that you can go to for finance, etc.… My experience with The Trust actually helped me complete my master's degree… so what you offer to guys and the continued education is a great benefit.

Garrett also spoke about his experience obtaining his master's degree. He urges former players to take advantage of their earned benefits, mentioning that something good can come out of utilizing the resources that are available.

Why not take advantage of all of the services that are being offered to you? You're a member of this fraternity, right? Take advantage of all the services, don't just throw them away. They're there to help you so don't be afraid. Don't be ashamed to reach out if you need some help.

Today, Garrett works as a senior energy consultant for Sun Power. He also runs a sports performance gym in Texas which helps young athletes work on their strength, conditioning, agility, and quickness.

Garrett described his life journey in one word: “perseverance”. He persevered through sickness to play football, went to college playing a different position than what he was accustomed to, and still made it to the NFL. After his success in the NFL, he became a successful sports performance trainer, author and created a career in the solar industry.

Whenever somebody tries to knock you down, you got to keep going, you can't stay down, you got to keep going. You have to persevere.

The Trust is here to support you.
Ready to learn how?

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