{"id":6173,"date":"2019-07-02T16:12:58","date_gmt":"2019-07-02T20:12:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/?p=6173"},"modified":"2019-07-23T12:43:59","modified_gmt":"2019-07-23T16:43:59","slug":"miles-and-miles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/miles-and-miles\/","title":{"rendered":"Miles and Miles"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Miles<\/div>

Miles and Miles<\/h1>
After nearly a decade as a star wideout for the Dallas Cowboys, Miles Austin took on a new challenge: finishing his degree.<\/div>
By Ryan JonesPhotos by Matt Furman<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/header>\n\n\n\n

It was the bowling alley that surprised him. Miles Austin stumbled upon the Ciniello Family Bowling Center last fall, and natural competitor that he is, he immediately had one thought. \u201cI was just going to start bowling,\u201d he says with a laugh. \u201cBut I didn\u2019t know how to turn on the lanes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Miles<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Austin could talk all day about the differences, about all the ways the Monmouth University campus and his classmates and college life itself have evolved in the 12 years since he left. But he insists that in the time between his first stint at Monmouth and his return last summer, nothing and no one changed more than he did. And that was nowhere truer than in the classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first time around, not counting the athletic ability and determination that eventually would carry him to a 10-year NFL career, Austin was a fairly typical college student; looking back on his early academic career, what he remembers most is doing just enough to get by. \u201cIf we had a group project, I\u2019d do my part, but I\u2019d kind of figure out what the easiest part would be,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd if there was any type of public speaking with it, I wouldn\u2019t necessarily volunteer. I probably wouldn\u2019t have a lot to say.\u201d Only when he returned to Monmouth last year to finish his degree, a 33-year-old husband and father with an unlikely pro football career behind him, did he truly appreciate his own transformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Workload? No problem. \u201cI had a couple of group projects this time, and I was like, \u2018I\u2019ll do this, this, and this.\u2019 I\u2019d do the bulk of it. I wanted us to get a good grade!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oral presentation? Happily. \u201cI\u2019ve done so many interviews as a football player, so I felt completely comfortable with that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of which is to say that Miles Austin probably would\u2019ve been one of the most popular people on campus last year even if he hadn\u2019t been, well, Miles Austin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When he left West Long Branch in the spring of 2006 to focus on a long-shot NFL bid, Austin had etched his name all over the Monmouth football record book, having set program standards for career receptions, receiving yards, and touchdown catches. What he hadn\u2019t done was graduate, leaving about a year\u2019s worth of credits shy of his degree. Finishing it would remain a goal, one that would be postponed more than a decade but never forgotten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Passed over in the NFL draft that April, he signed with Dallas as an undrafted free agent, earned a spot on the Cowboys\u2019 opening-day roster, and stuck around for eight more seasons in Dallas. Of course, \u201cstuck around\u201d undersells things just slightly: After contributing primarily on special teams his first three seasons, Austin was named a starting wide receiver in 2009 and ended the year as the NFC leader in receiving yards, earning the first of two Pro Bowl bids. In just four seasons, Austin had gone from undrafted out of Monmouth to NFL stardom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a few more seasons in Dallas, stints in Cleveland in 2014 and Philadelphia in 2015 saw diminishing returns, and by 2016 it was clear Austin\u2019s playing days were over. Back in Dallas\u2014the Cowboys had brought him back as part of the team\u2019s scouting staff\u2014he and his wife, former Hawks lacrosse standout Stacy Sydlo Austin \u201904, started thinking more seriously about what might come next. \u201cIt had always been one of our family goals to be able to tell our kids he went back to school, to prove that education is important to us,\u201d says Stacy. \u201cIt was always in the pipeline.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It took a couple more years, but last summer, with his family relocated to Rumson, New Jersey, and his next career step yet to be determined, Austin was finally back on campus to finish what he\u2019d started in 2002. His Monmouth homecoming makes for a wonderful story, but it\u2019s worth emphasizing that this was no public-relations stunt. Not when Austin had to knock out 31 credits in the summer and fall semesters to belatedly complete his degree in history and political science. Certainly not when he insisted on finishing his coursework on campus, mostly eschewing online courses that might\u2019ve more easily fit his lifestyle. Austin says he considered finishing up entirely online, but something about that option just didn\u2019t feel right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is the place I grew up,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s New Jersey, the shore, the entire vibe. Our friends and family are here. And I just wanted to experience it fully, be in interactive situations with my teachers, asking questions, face to face. It just kind of made sense. It felt like home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I was younger, my thought process was just doing well enough to continue to play sports. I think a lot of student athletes especially believe school is just a tool that gets them their degree. This time, I was more mature, and had a base of knowledge that I didn\u2019t have when I was taking classes the first time. I\u2019ve lived a lot of life.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Joseph Patten likes to start a new semester with a simple icebreaker, asking his students to share their name and a tidbit about themselves. Needless to say, there was one student in his PS 305 class last fall whose brief biographical blurb stood out. \u201cMiles introduces himself, \u2018I was a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys,\u2019 and everybody looked at him like, what?!\u201d Patten remembers. \u201cAnd honestly, it was good that he got it out there. There were no pretensions about him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An associate professor of political science, Patten served as Austin\u2019s advisor, taught him in PS 305: The American Congress, and worked with him on an independent study course. As such, he owns a unique perspective on the adult learner whom Patten\u2019s younger students knew only from highlights on ESPN. Patten was, and remains, impressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think he attacked coming back to school the same way he attacked cornerbacks in the NFL\u2014that same mindset, same approach, all in,\u201d says Patten. \u201cThis wasn\u2019t just a side thing he was doing. He went to all of his classes, did all the readings. He really made being a full-time student a priority.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Austin began his return last summer with a mix of online and on-campus classes, knocking out 12 credits over the summer session. But just as in his football days, the summer was only a warm-up for the rigors of a busy fall. And boy, was Austin busy: With 12 credits down, he still had 19 to go, and he was committed to finishing them by winter break. His schedule featured six three-credit classes and one credit of Pilates\u2014which, despite his elite athleticism, Austin found particularly challenging. \u201cIt was my first time doing it,\u201d he says, \u201cand it was hard<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The entire endeavor was a challenge\u2014think back to the heaviest credit load you<\/em> carried in any given semester\u2014but Austin adapted quickly. After making the 20-or-so-minute drive to West Long Branch, he would often spend most of the day on campus; his packed schedule included night classes three days a week. In this, his NFL career proved to be terrific preparation. \u201cAs a player, you\u2019re so scheduled, and you can\u2019t miss a day\u2014it\u2019s not like you get a sick day in the NFL,\u201d says Stacy. \u201cHe was used to the grind; it\u2019s just a different kind of grind: go to class, come home, put the kids down for a nap or get them lunch, do his homework, play with the kids, put them to bed, do more homework after that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout, Austin was buoyed by a perspective borne of life experience. It wasn\u2019t only about understanding how to juggle a busy schedule with marriage and fatherhood; it was about embracing hard work as an opportunity. \u201cBeing older, I think I was more curious. I looked forward to doing the readings, talking about my thoughts in class. I actually wanted to learn,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen I was younger, my thought process was just doing well enough to continue to play sports. I think a lot of student athletes especially believe school is just a tool that gets them their degree. This time, I was more mature, and had a base of knowledge that I didn\u2019t have when I was taking classes the first time. I\u2019ve lived a lot of life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
GAME PLAN: Miles and Stacy always wanted to be able to tell their children that dad had finished his college degree. Now they can. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While he never taught Austin in a classroom, Kevin Callahan is perhaps more familiar than anyone with Austin\u2019s focus, determination, and work ethic. The longtime Monmouth football coach and his former star have stayed in touch throughout Austin\u2019s playing career, and Callahan was impressed, if not exactly surprised, by how Austin immersed himself in class work the second time around. \u201cHe was really into it,\u201d says Callahan. \u201cI think he had a much greater appreciation of the learning process.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a sense, that curiosity had always been there, even if Austin wasn\u2019t driven as a 19- or 20-year-old to be a straight-A student. Callahan remembers him as \u201cvery coachable, eager to understand the hows and whys of what he was doing on the field.\u201d Austin got a chance to show what he\u2019d learned last fall, when, class schedule permitting, he\u2019d drop by the Hawks\u2019 practice field to watch and\u2014occasionally, at Callahan\u2019s urging\u2014offer informal insight. \u201cHe\u2019d stand off in the distance, because he said he didn\u2019t want to disrupt anything,\u201d the coach says. \u201cBut I\u2019d stop practice. I wanted him to come out, just to talk to the team for a few minutes. He\u2019s a great example of what we want Monmouth football players to be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which is to say: hardworking, studious, and unwilling to give up in pursuit of a goal. The qualities that made Austin a Monmouth legend\u2014the first Hawk to have his jersey retired\u2014and carried him through a decade in the NFL are the same that brought him back to college to complete his degree. Those same traits have positioned him for a new career in football: In February, he joined the San Francisco 49ers\u2019 staff as an offensive quality control coach. It\u2019s a spot near the bottom of the league\u2019s crowded coaching ladder, one that makes him feel once again like a student. (\u201cI\u2019m just curious to learn, curious to get better,\u201d says Austin.) But for a guy who made it from West Long Branch to the Pro Bowl, no path should seem particularly daunting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If Austin decides to make a career of coaching, Callahan is sure he\u2019ll succeed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s a natural. He was an intelligent player, and he\u2019s got a strong passion for the game,\u201d says Callahan. \u201cHe\u2019s also got a great personality, so he\u2019s going to establish great relationships with the guys he coaches.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patten suggested Austin think about a different path, though for many of the same reasons. \u201cWhen I had him in my American Congress class, I told him he should run for Congress\u2014and I didn\u2019t mean it as a joke,\u201d says Patten. \u201cHe\u2019s bright, incredibly hardworking, and just salt of the earth. A really impressive guy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether he ends up coaching, campaigning, or who knows what else, Austin understands what he\u2019s already accomplished. Finishing his degree only reaffirmed all those traits his coaches, teachers, family, and teammates have long recognized; he might not have needed that diploma at this point, but it will always serve as a reminder of the value of seeing something through. He can take particular pride in how he finished, posting straight A\u2019s in his final semester as a Monmouth undergrad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then he feels compelled to clarify: \u201cI had one A-minus, to be honest.\u201d The class that dinged his GPA was SO 397: The Sociology of Aging. Realizing the potential irony, Austin laughs. He swears he wasn\u2019t the oldest person in the class. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watch Austin share his story<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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