Kayla, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I was a little girl, I always loved football. I would go to high school, college, and NFL games all the time. When I got to high school that’s when I started to realize I actually wanted a career in the football industry. I went to Desoto High School, which is a powerhouse school in Texas when it comes to sports so I was exposed to the environment early on. When I first started it was more like “Oh, I want to work in football” and I didn’t necessarily know what area a woman would fit into. There’s photography, physical therapy, athletic training, front office, coaching, broadcasting, PR and many more areas I could venture into. It wasn’t until I discovered an NFL agent named Nicole Lynn my senior year of high school. I’ve always known about NFL agents and that side of the football business but never knew women, especially black women, could break into that side of the game. After seeing 1 black woman in my field, it gave me all the encouragement I needed to know that it was possible. When I got to college I went straight to work. I worked in the University of Texas Athletic Department all of my freshman and sophomore year.
After getting some experience in working in college athletics. I wanted to try to branch off into the NFL. In 2019 I applied to ALL of the NFL teams’ internship programs and got denied from all. This was a turning point in my career because I wanted to give up. I tried everything to get into the football program at the University of Texas at Austin and the NFL but nothing was working…until things started to change. For years I would reach out to anyone I knew who worked in football at UT or even if they knew someone who did. I even had some of my friends who were football players help me out. And one random day in May 2021, Courtney Helom, the recruiting coordinator for UT at the time, DM’d me on Instagram with the opportunity that changed the course of my entire career. I’ll forever be grateful for Taylor Searles and Courtney Helom for giving me my start and Ansley for getting me connected with them. When I was first hired to work in football at Texas, I was so nervous. I wondered if the men in the office would be accepting of a woman being in a football office (I know it sounds crazy but you just never know working in this industry), but I have to say from Day 1 the coaches and staff at Texas have been nothing but supportive in all aspects of my career. From allowing me to sit in on position meetings, allowing me to run social media accounts, applying for internships, recommending me for jobs, and just overall giving me advice on life. I can truly say working for Texas football changed the direction of my entire career. Before working for Texas Football I worked the Super Bowl, March Madness, and other big-time sporting events but adding Texas Football under my belt made me even more valuable. I started chasing my career pretty early, so it worked out in my favor.
After doing a year with Texas Football Recruiting, my goal of being an agent never changed. I knew it was time to finally apply for a big-time internship on the NFL level. I felt more prepared now to compete for a position, so I did. I applied to my dream job at Athletes First. Athletes First is the #1 NFL agency and as someone who inspires to be an agent this was MAJOR.Thousands of people applied to this internship and only 1 person was selected in the Client Relations Department, and that one person happened to be me. The black girl from Texas who loves football. The feeling of getting that call was beyond fulfilling and the big break I needed. I didn’t think twice about it, so I packed my bags and moved to California for the summer.
I didn’t think twice about leaving Texas for the summer because I knew if I was going to be that bad-ass NFL agent, who could be a representation for other women who want to work in football, I couldn’t afford to second guess anything that furthered my career. Even though I’m actively still chasing my career and I haven’t fully made it yet, being young, in college, and going head first into a male-dominated field is something worth celebrating and talking about. All it took was me seeing 1 person that looked like me in that career to chase my dream, so if you needed a sign to go for any career that might seem “impossible”, here you go…be that 1 person that inspires the next girl coming up.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It hasn’t been a smooth road so far. Being a black woman in a white male-dominated field has challenges of its own. After being denied by many NFL teams and internship programs, I always thought it was impossible for a woman to succeed in a football office. When going into it you have to come in strong and be 3x as more qualified. If you don’t, sadly no one will take you seriously. Being a woman period in this industry you’re going to go through a phase where you have to find your own voice and learn how to use it. Some men (not all) will try to question your knowledge about everything and you just have to gain the confidence to just speak up for yourself and have that attitude of “I know what I’m talking about” while still leaving enough room to learn and grow. There has been a lot of men in this industry that have taken me under their wings and helped me grow, specifically the coaches and staff at Texas.
Being in the sports industry is also hard especially while still being in school. In order to network, I fly out to different sporting events on the weekend and have to be back in Austin ready for class on Monday morning. Although I’m very fortunate enough to have a supportive family, I created a savings account during covid by braiding hair in Dallas to be able to fund traveling and chasing my career by myself. I don’t want to sugarcoat anything, but the sad reality of chasing your career while being young is that your first few years it’s literally going to COST YOU. Unpaid internships have become especially controversial, often accused of exploiting students and exacerbating socioeconomic and racial inequality. Unpaid internships can make it more difficult for low-income individuals to access career-changing opportunities. So, the process I’ve had is definitely coming from a side of privilege and I 100% will make that known. 99% of my work in sports so far has been for free and out of my own pocket, but the benefits have put me places that would have taken me YEARS to reach. I wish the culture was different because so many amazing people miss out on opportunities because they simply can’t afford to work for free. I am a strong advocate for knowing your worth and not settling, but my process so far has included some major settling to build my resume. Do what you have to do to build your resume, but when it’s built, don’t settle for less than what you’re worth. Those companies CAN afford to pay you. & as far as me now? The price just went up.
Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
My thoughts on risk taking are very strong. I don’t second guess anything I want and I go for it head first. Many people who know me personally know I have a mindset that “Nothing is Impossible.” As soon as I figure out what I want to do, It’s done! I have many insecurities in my personal, career, and educational life, but when I think of all the positive things that can come, it always ends with “Why not me?” I feel like everyone should have the “Why not me” mentality with everything they face in life. Because when you have that mentality, you feel kind of unstoppable. It makes you want to take those risks and bet on yourself. I feel like the beauty of chasing your dreams and reaching your goals is that you can create whatever outcome you want by what you put into it. If you go in being timid and mediocre the outcome will be just that. But if you go in confident and willing to take a risk, the outcomes are endless because you never know unless you 100% try and put in that work.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itskaycamp
Image Credits
Johnathan Sherchand
