She has played against men and was the first woman to coach an NFL team. Meet Jen Welter's love story with American football
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Jen Welter coaching the Texas Revolution team from the Professional Indoor Football League
A strong electric current invaded their feet as they touched the vibrant bleachers. Her body shivering, her eyes closed, trying to get accustomed to the lights. How many lights! It's Friday. Little Jennifer had waited all week for this moment. The hustle and bustle of the normally quiet town of Vero Beach, Florida, had already announced: It was Friday for football!
So began the beautiful story of Jen Welter with American football. He grew up with the sport, as if there was no other possible way to live. The Vero Beach Football Indians, team from the only local school, was the great sensation. Accompanying them was a way of life.
"Since I was very little, I'm in love. I was going to watch the games and it was the biggest event, the city stopped. The stadium looked so big! The guys were like superheroes to me. I always wanted to play, even though I did not have any opportunity at the time, "said Jen Welter to the Offensive Line.
Such an opportunity would still take time to introduce himself, but his own life evolved like a football game: with many tackles, different routes and cuts.
CHILDHOOD AND SPORTS
As a child, I played tennis. It was federated in Florida and traveled a lot to compete. He even thought that his future would be on the court, with a racket in his hand, until a coach told her that he lacked height and strength so he could be a pro.
He then went on to play team sports. He played soccer during high school and was captain of the team for two years in a row. He dreamed of a scholarship to play at Stanford University, but he never received the offer. He then traded the round ball for his first oval, rugby, a sport he played throughout college. But something was missing, perhaps a seam in the ball he carried in his hands.
FINALLY, WITHIN FIELD
After she graduated, Jen finally met the Women's Football Alliance, the US full-service women's football league. Now she wore a sweater with the name WELTER printed on her back. Since then, they have been playing for 14 years. He has won many titles, awards and a huge new family. He began to collect pioneering records.
On February 15, 2014, she became the first running back woman to play in a men's professional league, for Texas Revolution. But the beginning of this new stage was not easy. Welter once again needed to prove himself capable.
"They had many challenges, you know? The physical part was a challenge every day. I gave an interview to Michael Strahan these days and it was very funny because he said, 'Jen, you played against men, it would be like I give you tackles every day. How did you do that? '. And I had no answer other than 'I react well,' "Jen Welter told us.
But the physique, though challenging, was not the most complicated.
"The hardest part was to become part of the team. Demonstrate to the guys that I was there for the right reasons. And not only that I belonged to the team, but that we could get along. For me, that was the biggest challenge and also what made everything so special, "he says.
After playing all year, Jen was named coach of linebackers and speacial teams for the team, becoming the first woman to coach a men's team in a professional league.
THE ENTRY IN THE NFL
The game changed his life. Or rather, she changed her whole life to devote herself to the game. He managed to reconcile the training and championships with the specializations: masters in psychology of the sport and doctorate in psychology. The now Dr. Jen Welter would attain a post she had never dreamed of.
After a conversation with the Revolution's senior coach with Arizona Cardinals NFL coach Bruce Arians, Welter was called to join the preseason team of assistant coaches in 2015 and is in charge of the inside linebackers. The signing of the contract made her the first woman to coach an NFL team in league history.
Contrary to what one might imagine, being a woman was not a problem within the training center.
"It had nothing to do with the genre, other than the fact that it was something entirely new. They had many doubts outside whether players would obey a woman. And one of the best things that resulted from this situation is that the answer was a huge yes. The guys were phenomenal and I think it was even a point of pride for them. They were very aware that this was the story being made and they were proud to be a part of it. It was very special. "
After leaving the NFL, Welter understood the proportion of his achievement and was proud to have opened the doors of the league so that other women had the opportunity.
"I was asked, these days, if someday we'll see a woman be a head coach in the NFL. Of course we will eventually. But it's a matter of time. It takes a lot of time for a man or woman to develop and become a good football coach and become the coach. So I think the opportunity is there and the door is open. It's up to every woman who gets in there to do their best and grow as a person and as a professional and grab every opportunity that comes along. "
She understands that the main factor hindering this goal for coaches is the delay in getting in touch with American football.
"The complexity of the game is a challenge that every coach has, whether male or female. The problem for women, using my example, is that I started playing after my 22 years, you know? While the boys start playing with five, six years old. It's a tricky game that requires years of study for anyone, but if you enter the game later than the others, you have more learning time ahead, "he explains.
Welter still identifies some opportunities that have not been exploited by any woman and which are essential to the position of coach: observation and recruitment of players.
"To get the best talent, we need to create an extensive network of contacts in which we can find the players. And we need to know how to evaluate them from the perspective of the draft. This is something that women in our sport have not yet done or had to do, "says the doctor.
WOMEN PLAYING IN THE NFL
And when it comes to women playing in the NFL, she does not think differently. For her, this is also a matter of time.
"There's no reason, especially with women starting to play earlier, so we do not see it happen. But it has to be by merit. Becca (Longo) has a great opportunity now to lead this, to be in the university system and have access to the best training programs and exercises that are available for her to succeed. It's just going to take a while. "
TAKING AMERICAN FOOTBALL FOR WOMEN WORLDWIDE
In addition to publishing the book "Play Big: Lessons from Living the Limits of the First Woman to Train an NFL Team," in which she shares her experience to inspire more and more people, Jen Welter lives on a busy schedule. Since 2015, she has been teaching American football to girls and women around the world. And so far, he has no plans to return to the NFL, but confesses that if an opportunity arises it would be very difficult not to surrender.
Last year, she rode the United States with the Camp GrrriDiron Girls, for girls ages 6 to 18. There were 12 different cities that gathered thousands of players interested in learning with their greatest reference.
He also created "A Day in the NFL," in which he leads women into the league's complex to experience a common routine of athletes. She runs trainings, shows movies of plays, passes through the playbook, among other activities.
Jen still joined Snoop Dog in a project that teaches American football to children with all sorts of special needs.
Outside the United States, she has led training sessions in Canada and Australia, where she spent months training the nation's first female national football team to help prepare them for an international competition.
"What I'm going to do next is still a work of progress."
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