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Hey all,
Brock Bodenhamer sitting down to answer some questions for the latest New Orleans Second Line press conference.
Thanks for questions!
Questions
AdamS
Quote:Have you thought about going into coaching when your career on the field is over?
Thanks for the question, my fellow receiver. We have a great thing going on in the receiver corps in New Orleans. As for life after football, coaching? That's a possibility. Thera are a lot of considerations as to whether a player becomes a coach. I certainly have the drive for having some sort of job involved with football once my playing days are over. I do not know whether I could handle the stresses of coaching. As you know, us players can be a little tough on the coaches. They give us all the direction and we follow it (for the most part!). Would I want to put up with a punk like myself every day, let alone game day? I think that’s a no. Also, there are so many great coaches in the league already. It might be difficult to crack into the job market. I would have no problems starting in the DSFL. I Have a good history with that league that afforded me a lot of experience. Even at that level, the competition for coaching jobs is fierce. You have to be elite to get in there, or well, looking at some of those teams, maybe not. Maybe something less stressful like wide receiver coach. That would be a good starting point. So ultimately, it is difficult for me to really consider what I will be doing post playing career. Retirement isn’t something that I am necessarily looking forward to. I love being in the locker room b and suiting up to do battle before games. I would like to coach but sometimes I doubt my ability. It would take a lot of work to get up to that level. To get to that level, it will take a lot of learning. If I go that route, I plan on giving it 100%. I don’t want to venture into coaching and tank my brand, I imagine switching over to coaching will definitely be a bit of a shock. It’ll go from trying to perform the best I can at my specific role into more of a chess match from the coaching standpoint.
But there are plenty of other opportunities out there in football outside of just coaching. I could see myself definitely hired as a scout for one of the teams. It would be great to either scout at the pro league or even down in the college scene. It would be great to see what is going on at that level. I love college football, but I am so preoccupied with being a professional that I haven’t been able to watch a college game, outside of some bowl games, in a long time. Heck, I would even scout for college teams, I don't have to limit myself to ISFL or DSFL teams. I could see myself going to high school games and helping a college recruit top tier talent. I would love to be able to find the hidden gems out there, the recruits that aren't 3.5+ stars, but deserve a chance. It would be amazing to give them to opportunity to prove everyone wrong and make a name for themselves. Something like that would be the perfect job because I could get back to watching football at a level that is pure and honest. I really do miss football at that level since there are a lot less politics at play.
I think I would do a good job on either the radio talking about games in a sports radio setting or in commentating. I would be a perfect color guy that could add some insight to what is happening on the field, especially for offensive situations. I could gain insight onto what I consider great defense and performances from corner backs. I can really tell when there is an exceptional corner back out there. The only problem with this gig is that it would take hours and hours to call the game and do they even get to go to the bathroom break. Plus, how could I not be a homer? Would they allow me to even call games for New Orleans? If I am not calling Second Line games, then what am I even doing out there? That’s the real question y’all ought to be asking.
But moving into a different direction, another fun career option outside of coaching or scouting is management. I used to play General Management simulators for hockey, baseball, basketball, all the time while growing up. I would like to consider myself somewhat experienced in sports management. This could be a tough job to crack in one of our leagues. The ISFL and DSFL are full of great general managers that have been honing in their experience for years. This would be a fun career path. Going from professional wide receiver and playing in the league for several years to managing players, drafting them, trading them, signing, firing, hiring coaches/scouting/trainers and other staff. It would be a great challenge, I think I could propel myself to at least general managing in the DSFL if I was motivated enough.
mithrandir
Quote:What is your favorite career memory with Bodenhamer?
Thanks for the question. My favorite career memory was draft day. Though I did not hear my name called for a while, I was very pleased to be drafted by the New Orleans Second Line. I grew up as a life long fan of this football franchise and was thrilled when a childhood dream finally because reality. A lot of preparation went into that moment. Constant training and hard work led me to being drafted. In college, I wasn't even sure I would play football professionally, but thankfully, I got that chance by entering the DSFL. I rose through the ranks after being drafted late in the DSFL draft. The ISFL draft saw a similar performance and some even saying that the Bodenhamer pick was a reach. A reach that late in the draft? C'mon man. Some of New Orleans went to bat for me because of the history with this franchise. At that point, I knew that I would be suiting up for the Second Line all throughout my career. I recently signed an extension that marks a highlight of my career. I am able to finish out my career here. This was the most important contract of my career, by far. For the loyalty I demonstrated, New Orleans management sent me a nice bonus to carry me over in the off-season. Very appreciative of the love and support New Orleans has demonstrated.
If we go back in time to high school, there was a game I played in despite having flu like symptoms. Back them, in the dawn before covid, we did not really understand just how dangerous these respiratory diseases were. So when I had the flu, or thought I had the flu, I kept on playing. It probably exposed the rest of the team to flu, but it was a different time back then. Despite being pretty sick, I showed up and performed as good as I could. I made 8 receptions that game for 114 yards and two touchdowns. The team needed those touchdowns, since we squeaked out a win by 3 points. The boys were so hyped about my performance. After the game was over, I just laid in the locker room on the floor for an hour. I felt terrible physically, but I was over the moon with happiness.
Helping the team get to the Ultimus Bowl was really special. Even though we didn’t win it all, we were conference champions. Then it happened again and we had the same result. Those trips deep through the playoffs to the Ultimus Bowl gave a lot of character to young players like me. It helped us with experience and leadership. Next time we go to a high stakes game, we’ll know what the feeling is like before we get there. Hopefully the third time is the charm and we are victorious. I believe in this franchise, so I expect to be back there at some point. If we get back there, I am confident that we will win the Ultimus Bowl. The franchise has won it before, and this corps of guys will lift the trophy up as well. If that happens, or when that happens, that will be the crown achievement of my career. I will be able to look back on that fondly. It will make all the hard work, weekly training, and summer camps worth it. If it does not happen, I won’t consider my career a failure but it will be less fulfilling than I had hoped for. One of my idols is former New Orleans Second Line wide receiver Jones. He inspired me while I was playing in high school. He got to lift up that trophy and I have seen him around at games from time to time. He recalls the Second Line winning the Ultimus Bowl and what it meant. He described it as his favorite career memory. That is something I am trying to replicate. I have tried replicating his playstyle for years since he was so speedy and could zip right through coverage. He is kind of a less talked about player these days, but he had a big effect on me when I was a youth player.
Quote: How do you feel about NOLA's down season?
It happens. I was more disappointed about the back to back losses in the Ultimus Bowl. This team is a special bunch and has a great crew, I want to seem them win the Ultimus again and celebrate. A 5 win season ain't great, but we weren't the worst team in the league and that is something we can hang our hats on (we sort of have to or else we might get depressed). All in all, I think it was a building experience. We can look at what went wrong, address the weaknesses and learn from what happened. Things go poorly sometimes and you just have to adapt. When this happens, one option is to have a pity party, and the other option is to turn it into a strength. With that season behind us, hopefully we are ready to go next season. One thing that is important is to never adopt the losing culture. We had a losing season, but we do not feel like losers because we know that we will be back atop the mountain soon enough.
Throughout my organized sports life, I have had bad season before and will have them in the future. It's just the ebb and flow of sports. I am not sure what management has planned, but the franchise is going to bounce back sometime. As stated, the team will know its strengths and weaknesses a little bit better and be prepared for future adversities. Chalk that season up as a fluke a throw away season, and the boys will come back hungry as ever to be competitive and winning again. One of the things I have been practicing is just not getting too worked up about things. I want to be a nicer person with fewer frustrations. Sometimes the smallest things annoy me massively. Then I get an anxiety about worrying too much about those frustrations and suddenly I am stuck in a feedback loop. The point of me mentioning this is that I am not going to let last season’s performance have a negative effect on me and cloud my focus. I need to focus on my focusing. Time is moving forward and we have to focus on things we can control. I think the Second Line management, players, and fans, will all feel a lot better if they just let the past season evaporate from their memories. Don’t get hung up on the negatives. I know, I know, it’s easier said then done. But next season should be better, and there are plenty of other seasons to make up for last season’s poor outing.
Quote: Predictions for Bodenhamer next season?After a longer off-season than usual, Bodenhamer is coming back stronger and faster. With more progression, Bodenhamer hopefully takes a step in terms of growth. His growth isn’t what some of the other players out of the draft class is, but I find it respectable for his draft position. I am hoping to be a dependable receiver for my quarterback and help the Second Line win a few more games. It’s been a struggling career so far, in terms of excitement. My numbers have been adequate for me, but there has been something missing for my enjoyment. I am hoping for an awesome season that can act like a shot of energy for myself. Here’s to hoping for 1000 yards, or even 800 and 10 touchdowns. I know that is a bit of stretch from the 3 touchdowns last season, but with some more maturity from this off-season, it is obtainable. It’s time to go out there and earn that paycheck.
It is important for a good season at this stage in my career. Getting to this point in your career, at the peak, you are supposed to be putting up the top stats. If things go poorly, and these seasons are wasted, then the career length will naturally get shortened because General Managers will be hesitant to take a chance on an aging player with decreasing or underperforming productions. I certainly look at next season as an extremely important one. I want to make it clear that I won't exactly beat myself up for a bad season, it is what it is, but I see the importance of it when examining my career as a whole. Years from now, will Bodenhamer be remembered by anyone? A bad season now and that could be an easy no. A great season here, and occasionally someone will bring up those Second Line seasons where we almost won the Ultimus and were that close to making guys like Bodenhamer champions. It will be interesting to reflect on this season down the road.
A key to a good season is getting off to a good start. I want to shoot out the gate catching everything thrown in my general direction. There are a lot of factors that determine whether a season gets off to a good start. There's strength of schedule to consider, whether your teammates are showing up ready, etc. I have faith in my teammates, especially after a longer off-season than normal. You have a bad start and it can really mess up your psyche. You might start to second guess yourself. I've talked with some players who get injured and then go out there and are afraid of getting reinjured, and sure enough, with all that focus on getting injured, they suffer. A strong start and Bodenhamer will be on his way to a good season. Otherwise, it'll be playing catchup to make up for the bad start.
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