My Giant Experience

By Nathaniel Kelliehan (High School of Sports Management)

As an intern for Athletes for Charity, I got to attend the New York Giants 2009 training camp in Albany, NY and it was nothing short of amazing. I had never been to anything associated with the NFL, so I didn’t know what to expect going to the Giants camp. However, when I got there I was interested in the variety of things occurring at the camp. When we got onto the field, I felt overjoyed watching the players practice, position by position then on to scrimmages. Watching the players scrimmage was so fun because even though there wasn’t anything at stake, they still performed to their best ability. If that wasn’t enough, getting autographs from the Giant players namely, David Diehl, Danny Ware, Kareem McKenzie, Fred Robbins, Danny Clark, and Osi Umenyiora made the day even better.

Afterwards, I was able to meet and greet the players at the dorm cafeteria which was the highlight of my day because I got to actually have conversations with some of the players while still having fun. Moreover, I was able to sit and talk to Tackle Kareem McKenzie who really helped me on my pursuit to becoming a sports agent. He told me that I would need a law degree, which I already knew but he added that studying law would be beneficial because if being an agent doesn’t work, you can become a lawyer. Kareem also told me that to be a sports agent you have to have the best interest not only for your client but for their family too. His words were really inspiring because it gave me a whole new outlook on the prospect of being a sports agent. I always figured that as a sports agent you would only be concerned with your client‘s sports related issues, but I’ve learned that more athletes look for sports agents who they feel they can trust and know that everything is taking care of. When I asked him what he looked for before hiring his agent he responded by saying, “I looked for someone who had my best interest, as well as my family’s best interest at hand.” After eating I was able to take pictures with Kareem McKenzie and Center Shaun O’Hara, and also crack a few jokes.

In conclusion, going to the New York Giants training camp was a great experience that I will always cherish. This was the first time I got to become a fan, and it’s not as easy as it looks. I enjoyed being able to talk to some of the players like I did, because I got to see them at a time were their having fun and aren’t under any pressure, which most people don’t see. This event will always be remembered because not only did I watch some of the game’s brightest stars, I also got to talk to them. I never had the chance to attend anything like this and I’m glad that this was my first time. I wish the Giants much success this upcoming season, and I hope that I am able to attend next year’s training camp because this one was great.