In the fourth round of the 2014 NFL draft, the New England Patriots selected Florida State center Bryan Stork. It did not take long for him to make an impact: In week four of his rookie season, Stork saw his first career start. And while New England lost that game 44-14, the team finally found its starting center.
The Patriots went on to win the Super Bowl and Stork appeared to become a key member of the offensive line for years to come. Unfortunately, he was never able to duplicate the success he had in 2014 due to a series of injuries and up-and-down play during the 2015 season. In August 2016, New England released Stork.
After spending the 2016 season out of football, the 26-year old officially retired from pro football two months ago. But while his on-field career is over, Stork will not leave "the game of football which I will always love dearly": As he announced on Twitter, he has found a new job at Southern Miss, where he will work as a graduate assistant coaching the offensive line.
As part of his new role, Stork will not only have to work with the Golden Eagles’ offensive linemen but also take graduate courses. Despite the heavy workload, though, it still is a popular way to get some entry-level experience at coaching. Patriots coordinators Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia, for example, started their careers as graduate assistants as did Director of Player Personnel Nick Caserio.
And who knows, maybe one day Bryan Stork will find similar success. The first step towards it has already been taken.