50 My most enjoyable moments in football occurred in 2013, when the Broncos became the most prolific offense in NFL history. It felt like spending a year in flow state. The hard work, the challenge of the NFL season, and the joy of true teamwork came together and culminated in us reaching the Super Bowl. This may be difficult for people to understand, but I felt my mind was understimulated while playing football. I didn’t have the ability to solve problems and make decisions. For athletes, even as your career progresses, you still have everyone making all the decisions for you. I wanted autonomy, responsibility, and increased cognitive rigor, but each time I asked to have a greater influence on how I performed my job, I was rebuffed. I knew it was time to make a career change when two coaches on two different teams said, “We pay you to run, not think.” A part of who I am is intellectual, and I didn’t want to repress that part of my being any longer. I needed to have the courage to step away from football to discover the parts of me I was unable to be as an athlete. I chose to study psychology for several reasons, including to challenge myself in a way I believed was important. I knew I wanted to go to college and that sports would be my best chance to achieve that. So, I committed myself to becoming the best basketball player I could. In 2006, I received a scholarship to play Division I basketball at Portland State University. When I got to college, however, I had this lingering feeling deep inside that I could be an NFL player. After four years of playing college hoops, I felt I had to give football a shot. I was terrible at it for the first six months. Eventually, the time and effort I spent trying to improve helped me reach my goal. I was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft and became a two-time Pro Bowl tight end who also played for the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Miami Dolphins before retiring from the game in 2018. I was very blessed to have a successful playing career in football and basketball. I am one of the few people who can say he had the pleasure of participating in the NCAA March Madness basketball tournament and the Super Bowl. Every kid in America grows up thinking about what it would be like to play in one of those iconic competitions, and I got the chance to experience both. Meet the New Head Coach JULIUS THOMAS, M.S. M.S. (’22) Founder, Mastery Development College of Psychology Stepping away from a lucrative football career to pursue a career in psychology isn’t something most elite players who’ve been to a Super Bowl would consider doing. However, as a growing desire to help others and nurture his intellectual side moved to the fore, Julius Thomas chose to retire from football and get his head into a new game. Shark Encounters
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