A six-foot-five, bearded Jew and retired Superbowl winner named Alan Veingrad walked into Shalhevet on Wednesday, Feb. 3. He described the enriching influence Judaism had on his life, mentioned the importance of achieving more than is required, and also touched upon the controversial topic of cheating to achieve goals.

In front of a school-wide assembly in the Beit Midrash during Period D, Mr. Veingrad spoke about his football career with the East Texas State Lions, Green Bay Packers, and Dallas Cowboys. He also talked about his Jewish transformation which occurred after his retirement from the National Football League.

“I am really jealous of you guys right now,” Mr. Veingrad related to the students. “You have the ability to benefit from Judaism so early in life.”

Judaic Studies teacher Rabbi Naftali Richler, a football fan and pious Jew himself, could easily relate to Mr. Veingrad’s experiences.  

“As beautiful as a life might seem with a football career and Superbowl ring,” Rabbi Richler said, “he realized that the real fulfilling life is in his own backyard with Judaism.”

Mr. Veingrad, who likes to go by his Hebrew name, Shlomo, described the deceitful beginning of his football career. Because he cheated and reduced his 40-yard dash time by 0.4 seconds on his application, he was nervous when a coach at East Texas State asked him to execute this sprint.

So, he took “a giant step forward” before the starting gun and ran a 39-yard dash in 4.9 seconds—the time he claimed on his application and an improvement from his usual time. Afterwards, he informed the coach of his one-yard advantage, but the coach understood and did not penalize him. 

“Today, I’d never do anything so deceitful,” he said.

Some members of the Shalhevet community were perplexed by the telling of this less-than-honest behavior. 

“He sent out a bad message,” said sophomore Karen Tal. “I think he should have emphasized that he regretted lying and cheating a bit more than he did.”

But others reacted positively to Mr. Veingrad’s messages.

“I think his story was something that we all have or struggle with at some time,” said Director of Student Life Yossi Kastan. “It teaches us that next time we’re faced with a moral or ethical issue to take a step back to see whether we will be able to maintain our dignity with its consequences.”

Sophomore Justin Brandt-Sarif appreciated the star’s truthfulness.

“It was very inspiring,” Justin said. “He was honest about his faults and was also honest about how he corrected them.”

Mr. Veingrad also promoted the idea of taking pride in over-achieving. During an NFL offseason, he was advised by teammates to take Tai-Quan-Do, to push a truck through the street, and to train using a punching bag, all to make him a better football player.

He explained that although it was not required in his football contract to improve his skills on his own time, he followed his teammates’ guidance.

“I believe we should strive to do better,” Mr. Veingrad said. “The National Football League taught me that.” 

Later in his life, Mr. Veingrad added more substance into his life with the help of Judaism.

After retiring from the NFL, he was invited to take a short Torah class. As a result of this course, he decided to reconnect with Judaism. To do so, he took an intensive seven year Torah course. 

With the help of this studying, he completed the road to the life of a religious Jew—he had been non-observant until then. It changed his life from one of materialism to a meaningful Jewish one, he said, where he finally achieved complete happiness.

Today, Shlomo works in real estate when he is not giving lectures about his experiences. He is still connected with Torah.

 “Judaism helps me take a step to becoming a better person every day,” he said.