Everyone on Oregon’s campus knows Jordan Kent’s exploits by now.
The first NCAA three-sport athlete since 2001-02, the first at Oregon since Peg Rees did it in the mid-1970s during the pre-Title IX era.
A track and basketball star at Eugene’s Churchill High, he played both in college, before, you know, trying his hand at Division I football his final two seasons. Now he’s a wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks who has bounced around from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.
You can add party-thrower and budding philanthropist to that list.
Eugene is where Kent makes his home during the offseason, and has been back in town for five weeks, he said, staying until mid-March, when offseason training camps open for the Seahawks.
And in that short amount of time, he’s already thrown one charity event for low-income children and families in Eugene, and is planning a breast cancer awareness party this Saturday at the Eugene Hilton. Don’t forget last summer, when he hosted a kids sports camp.
“Just kind of started this year,” Kent said. “It was kind of an up-and-down season but I’m so blessed to be in this position. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for this city. I really try to do as much as I can to give back.”
This is a concept that likely makes most NFL players’ heads spin. Indeed, Kent said, philanthropy is one of the last things you’ll hear in an NFL locker room.
“Sometimes people are like, ‘Why are you doing this, why won’t you keep your money for yourself?’” he said. “But it’s not mine in the first place. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t with the people and the town I grew up in. It’s good to help others. Honestly.”
Let’s not forget that, as the 24-year-old Kent said, it was as good a reason as any to get friends together, dress up, have a party. (One friend who will be there is newly minted Super Bowl champion Dennis Dixon of the Pittsburgh Steelers.) The thing is, few college or ex-college students have a party with their best friends at a hotel solely to benefit breast cancer awareness. Kent said it hasn’t touched his family, but it has for family friends.
In December, the sixth-round pick in the 2007 NFL Draft picked up local low-income families and took them to the Build-A-Bear workshop, then gave each family a gift basket for Christmas.
“A huge success,” he said.
These kinds of acts aren’t uncommon in professional sports. In Kent’s own locker room, wide receiver Bobby Engram and cornerback Marcus Trufant are two of the biggest helpers with charities and camps. He’s seen that kind of help. He’s also heard of the troubles of other pro athletes like Adam “Pacman” Jones, whose antics and legal problems legitimize the public’s gripe with overpaid, out of control superstar athletes.
Without going on a “personal crusade” to represent all professional athletes, Kent said, a notion that is as unfair as it is impossible, he knew he could make an impact and help not only his image, but that of pro athletes. You get the hint though, talking with him, that it shouldn’t be about whether he is a pro athlete or not. If you’re in a position to help others, you should help out.
“If you’re going to be in that spotlight, why not use it as a positive tool?” he said. “I just feel that I have got some sort of a responsibility.”
He also has a responsibility to himself. He trains at the Casanova Center during his time back here, catching passes from UO quarterbacks to keep himself, and his routes, sharp.
Sometimes, a player will ask him about what it’s like to be in the NFL, and he’ll tell them about being careful to market yourself “as a brand” in the NFL, instead of playing for a college. A lot of it is professional advice. The most important thing they can do is not only hear his advice, but see what he’s doing for the community.
“You don’t necessarily have to have these million dollar contracts to give back,” he said.
In the long run, that’s the most important thing, and can have an impact that lasts much longer than any touchdown catch will.
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