Why do some NFL players say their high school in their introductions? Most stars state their colleges, but some players have had a little fun with the ritual over the years.
During many NFL primetime games, players often introduce themselves and state their alma maters on camera. The idea of player introductions started with Monday Night Football in 1970, so it’s a tradition that dates back decades.
It actually originated from player intros on college football broadcasts when players would jog up to a microphone and introduce themselves and name their school.
This soon caught on in the NFL and has been a mainstay on big game days. But why do some NFL players say their high school in their introductions? Let’s find out.
Why do some NFL players say their high school?
There could be a number of reasons why some NFL players say their high schools during introductions rather than their colleges.
Players are ultimately free to say whatever they want, so they can be creative or funny with it (more on this later). Other reasons for saying their high school could be because they left their colleges on a bad note. It’s not uncommon for some NFL players to have had bad experiences at university, either from having beef with a particular coach or various other dramas.
Other reasons may be that a particular player just wants to give a shout-out to his high school, and give them a plug too. A lot of players may feel that they especially honed their skills at high school, and owe more to them for their careers. As Fred Gaudelli, a producer on Sunday Night Football for NBC, told the LA Times:
“There were some guys who had a beef with their college when they left and decided to give their props to their high school, or maybe they had a better experience in high school. So we always let them use which school they wanted to reference.”
Players can be as creative as they want
“We ask them to say give us your name and school, and then it’s up to them as to how creative or straightforward they want to be,” Gaudelli told SB Nation.
“I mean as long as it’s in good taste, we let them say you know pretty much whatever they want. I don’t think we’ve ever had somebody use bad taste, but that would be the line in the sand, if you will.”
Jalen Ramsey and other funny examples of player introductions
Los Angeles Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey often uses ‘RPT college’ during his introduction, despite attending FSU.
RPT, in regards to Jalen Ramsey’s college, stands for Ramsey Performance Training. Ramsey Performance Training is Lamont Ramsey’s (Jalen’s dad’s) company, which helped trained Jalen and his brother Jamal when they were younger.
Other well-known, and funny, examples include Randy Moss saying Rand University in 2012, Tony Gonzalez’s Anchorman/Ron Burgundy reference, Terrell Suggs’ Ball So Hard University, and Greg Hardy’s Hogwarts.
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