NFL alum Rashard Higgins lasted longer in the league than most fifth-round draft choices.
Higgins, who played his collegiate ball at Colorado State, was drafted by the Browns in 2016. He played six seasons in Cleveland and ended his career with the Panthers after the 2022 season. The wide receiver finished with 137 catches for 1,800 yards and 12 TDs. He returned to Ohio after playing to sign a ceremonial one-day contract with the Browns.
The Dallas native, who turns 31 tomorrow (10/7), earlier this year followed through on his post-NFL calling. He revealed on Instagram late last month that he is now training to be a firefighter in his hometown.
Higgins is open about having gone through the same worries and concerns that many of us had after playing football our entire lives.
“When football ended,” Higgins wrote in his Instagram message, “I kept asking myself: What now? What’s next? If I simply become a stay-at-home dad, what kind of example would that be for my three kids? They need to see drive in me. Becoming a firefighter gives me that chance to show up when people need it the most…to be the one running in when everyone else is running out. I found my purpose, and the same rush I felt under the lights in football is the same rush I get when I put on my boots and step toward that fire.”
Higgins started at the Dallas Fire Academy last May and recently finished the first step in his new career. He simply needs to complete his EMT paramedic training before he gets to work full time in the field.
The diligent Higgins believes that often used “One game at a time” mantra in football also applies to his new occupation.
“One thing that we focused on at the Academy is just winning the day,” he explains. “We go in, work hard, get everything done we need to do and we win the day. This was my calling; I prayed on it.”
We at NFL Alumni pray that Higgins successfully finishes his training and that he stays safe in the often-perilous job of fighting fires. Meanwhile, he certainly is accomplishing his goal of setting a good example for those three young kids at home.
