"So
I'll sound like a crazy person for much of the night, but I just need
to throw out all these scenarios throughout the evening."
It's
been a busy day for Andy Ross, an agent in Octagon Sports' football
group, which is responsible for managing 12 players in a 2013 NFL Draft
that starts in a couple short hours. He's representing two players in
this year's class, one a potential first-rounder who could hear his name
called on Thursday night. While preparing for what he calls an agent's
Super Bowl, he's had to spend a good portion of the day handling
concerns of clients already in the league. One client is facing a legal
issue which requires Ross to coordinate with the player's attorney in a
series of calls throughout the week. Another veteran free agent is
trying to get a new deal, something Ross is managing on a hourly basis
as he works with teams to arrange a new contract.
This juggle is
all taking place at his home, where he's set up for the first round. If
you're one of the agents who doesn't already claim to have ADD, draft
night will ensure that no one item keeps your attention for very long.
Camped out in his basement in suburban Washington, D.C., Ross is
comfortably nestled into his couch in a T-shirt and shorts. In front of
him are five televisions, a projector screen, two phones, two computers,
and several sheets of data he's assembled over the past five months.
Much like your average fan or blogger, he keeps a fullscreen of
Tweetdeck up on one computer while sifting through spreadsheets and his
browser on another. Those sheets keep track of every interaction he or
his clients have had with each team -- whether it's a pro-day session,
team visit, combine interviews, or any other form of interest a team rep
may have taken in one of his clients. The printouts track every player
at the same position as his clients, as well as the teams targeting
those positions. There's also a blank log where he'll manually keep
track of the draft with pen and paper.
Ross has been smoking a
sundry of barbecue items all day, and his neighbors and friends come and
go, grabbing food and beer and cracking jokes while he scrolls through
his phone and re-checks all the info in front of him.Shop the latest prada bags
on the world's largest fashion site. Despite the array of audiovisual
equipment, the scene is, at times, remarkably normal -- similar to the
fantasy draft in a friend's house with the best basement setup (or in
Rovellian terms, a "man cave"). Predictions and opinions on various
players are tossed around the room and much like any draft get-together,
it's an ostensibly casual affair. And then you realize that, unlike
your fantasy draft party, for someone in this room, once the picks start
rolling in, hundreds of thousands and potentially millions of dollars
will be gained or lost with each announcement.
Ross is one of
four agents in the Octagon Football group, representing 12 players in
the 2013 NFL Draft. He and other Octagon employees are hopeful that five
of those players hear their names called in primetime on Thursday, but
Oregon pass-rusher Dion Jordan is the only surefire first-rounder. C.J.
LaBoy, Ken Landphere, and Doug Hendrickson are the three other agents
with Octagon Football, and all three are assisting in the representation
of Jordan.
This year, Ross represents Missouri linebacker
Zaviar Gooden and Syracuse offensive lineman Justin Pugh. The latter is a
versatile tackle who had steadily risen up mock drafts into the back
end of the first round by the time draft week hit. Gooden is a potential
second-day pick, but could also fall as far as the top of the fifth
round on Saturday afternoon. With the draft now spread out over three
days, Ross spends much of the week managing expectations. On Wednesday
night, he has a conference call with both families, answering questions
and ensuring that the players keep their phone lines open and their
voicemail boxes empty. He tells his players to be prepared for both the
ceiling and the floor, reiterating to Pugh that he may need to be ready
to fly out to his new team if he's taken in the first round,We supply
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here. but at the same time not be disappointed if he drops to Friday.
It's a constant state of paranoia, bouncing from best-case to worst-case
and trying to keep your clients grounded in the understanding that they
now have no control.
Ross is a short, well-built man with what
he calls a motormouth (that seems to be a stereotypical requisite for an
agent, constantly pivoting from one call to the next). He's gregarious
on the outside while churning away on the inside. He calls me "bro"
within the first 15 seconds of meeting him, and he's continually
referring to the "24/7 grind" that is an agent's life.
Octagon
is the only place he's ever worked, and he's certainly not someone who
walked into the business with a network of connections in place and
hefty commissions at the ready. As a senior in high school in Northern
Virginia, Ross signed up for a sports marketing class because it
included a free trip to Disney World. In that class, an internship
opportunity came up at Advantage International, a predecessor to
Octagon. Ross sought the aid of his high school instructor, Paul
Wardinski, and learned to put together a resume and write a cover letter
in order to apply for the internship.When he called the company for the
address to send his application, he was told the internship had been
filled. Encouraged by his teacher, he put on his only suit, a cheap J.C.
Penney number, and went to the Advantage offices, where he asked for
Senior Vice President Tom George. He sat in the waiting room for hours
until George walked out and said, "Do I know your parents?" Ross told
him no, he was there for the internship. When George, a well-established
figure in the sports business world, said the opportunity had been
filled, Ross told him he'd work for free stapling documents or sorting
paper clips, whatever was asked. That response was enough to get George
to at least look over the resume. Ten minutes later, an incredulous
assistant emerged and said, "I don't know what you said to him, but he
wants you to be here on Monday."
Ross has worked his way through
the Octagon structure in the ensuing 18 years to become the
representative for multiple first-round draft picks. After selling
sponsorship opportunities to events,Discover the largest collection of gucci handbags
for women. he worked his way over to the sports side of the company,
setting up sponsorship deals for five sports. Ross took a particular
interest in football, where he apprenticed under Octagon's agents in San
Francisco. Most of his time was spent helping support those more
seasoned agents, but he was allowed to dedicate a small percentage of
his time recruiting college players.
His first big break came in
2008 when he signed eventual Houston Texans offensive lineman Duane
Brown, a fellow Virginia Tech product. Brown is considered by some as
the best left tackle in football, and Ross helped negotiate what was the
largest contract in Texans history prior to last season. One year after
the Texans took Brown, two more Ross clients landed in the first round
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now. Curry, selected fourth overall, remains the highest picked client.
But Ross has established a track record for pushing players into the
first round -- starting with Brown, continuing with Hood, and most
recently this April again along the offensive line with Pugh.