Gold Jacket Spotlight: Randall McDaniel treats ‘second career’ with same passion as football

The first individual in his family with an opportunity to attend college, RANDALL McDANIEL earned his bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University. To this day, he calls this his proudest accomplishment.

How that degree continues to affect Randall’s life – and the lives of countless kids – takes center stage this week in the Gold Jacket Spotlight.

During the 1989 NFL season, Randall and his wife, Marianne, met Nancy Benz, a training camp coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings. When Randall expressed interest in pursuing a career in education, Benz informed the couple she taught in the Robbinsdale school district in suburban Minneapolis.

After a legendary playing career in the NFL, lasting 12 seasons with the Vikings and two with the Buccaneers, Randall pursued his passion for making a difference among the youth in the community with the same fervor. His “second career” began before his playing days ended, however.

Randall began working as a volunteer across the Robbinsdale School District. By 2007, six years after his retirement, he became a full-time assistant at Neill Elementary in the district.

He praises his parents for helping lay the foundation and helping him understand the importance of an education.

“I didn't love school,” Randall said of his own early education. “But it was better to be at school than to be at home. I always figured if you miss a day, you're that much farther behind.”

From kindergarten through high school, he didn't miss a single day. (He only missed two out of a possible 235 professional games in his career, and none after Year 2.) Despite the difficulties he faced in classes, he learned from several difference-makers throughout his life who taught him how to succeed.

He now passes on that knowledge to his pupils.

In 2008, a paraprofessional position opened at Hilltop Primary School in a neighboring district. Randall applied, interviewed and later received word from school administrators that they wanted to hire him.

“I love trying to make that difference in a child's life,” he said. “And I love seeing that light-bulb moment with the kids that I work with and the kids in the class when they finally get it.”

The following year, now eight years removed from pro football, Randall received news that he would be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2009. He declined the opportunity to attend the Super Bowl alongside his new classmates for the official announcement, choosing instead to stay home and prepare for school the following week.

“I know a lot of guys go to the Super Bowl and are there for that announcement,” he said. “I’m like, ‘I’m doing what I love now.’ Football was a small part of my life. I loved every moment of it. But now I’m doing my second career.”

Randall’s dedication to the teaching profession comes from his days as a stalwart on the offensive line in the NFL. He earned 12 Pro Bowl nods and nine consecutive first-team All-Pro selections.

“I find ways to make it fun for the kids and relate it to real life,” he said. “Like if you're playing basketball, you count by 2s. Or to find your batting average; I remind kids that that's math.”

Benz, now a principal in the Robbinsdale district, fondly recalls when Randall began teaching full time.

While the parents might know his name and recognize his face, the students didn’t catch on as quickly. “Mr. McDaniel,” as he’s known today, keeps a low profile, insisting he’s another teacher simply striving to leave a positive mark on the children who pass though his classes.

“‘Mr. McDaniel, you must be somebody,’” Benz recalled a student once saying. “And Randall said, ‘Oh yeah, why's that?’ And the boy said, ‘Because you're on my John Madden Game Boy game.’

“Many of the students don't even know who he is or they're just not intrigued with who he is. They think, ‘He's a helper in the classroom, and I need help.’ ”

To Randall, he’s pursing something he truly cares about: becoming a difference-maker.

“They would say, ‘You played football?’ ” he said. “I said, ‘I played a little bit.’ Then they would give me the line, ‘Were you any good?’ I go, ‘I did all right.’ ”