A total of 22 former Ivy League football standouts grace
NFL rosters this season. However, that number grows to 66 when the Ivy alums who work behind the scenes in the NFL are included.
In total, 44 former Ivies serve in leadership roles for NFL teams or the League office itself, including four owners and two head coaches.
Breaking down the numbers:
- 20 Ivies serve in leadership positions for 16 teams
- 12 Ivies are scouts for 11 teams
- Nine Ivies work in the NFL league office
The list of Ivies working in professional football is not just former Ivy football players. Bengals Executive Vice President
Katie Blackburn played hockey at Dartmouth, NFL Special Counsel for Investigations
Lisa Friel is a former Big Green basketball and tennis player, Lions Vice President of Player Personnel
Kyle O’Brien is a Harvard lacrosse alum, NFL Chief Strategy & Growth Officer
Chris Halpin played golf at Princeton, and Eagles Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Aileen Dagrosa is a Yale volleyball alum.
IVIES IN THE NFL
Head Coaches
Bill O’Brien, Brown – Houston
Jason Garrett, Princeton - Dallas
Front Office
Michael Borgonzi, Brown – Director of Football Operations, Kansas City
Mark Donovan, Brown – President, Kansas City
Robert Kraft, Columbia – Owner, New England
Javier Loya, Columbia – Owner, Houston
Tyseer Siam, Cornell – Football Operations/Data Analytics, New York Giants
Mike Brown, Dartmouth – Owner, Cincinnati
Katie Blackburn, Dartmouth (Ice Hockey) – Executive VP, Cincinnati
John Idzik, Dartmouth – Special Assistant to the GM, Jacksonville
Tony Pastoors, Dartmouth – VP, Football & Business Administration, LA Rams
Dan Rooney, Dartmouth – Player Personnel Coordinator, Pittsburgh
Andrew Berry, Harvard – VP Football Operations, Philadelphia
Paul DePodesta, Harvard – Chief Strategy Officer, Cleveland
Josh Lucas, Harvard – Director of Player Personnel, Chicago
Kyle O’Brien, Harvard (lacrosse) – VP of Player Personnel, Detroit
Rob Rogers, Harvard – Executive Director of Player Finance and Football Research, Carolina
Jake Rosenberg, Penn – Vice President of Football Administration, Philadelphia
William Clay Ford Jr., Princeton – Vice Chair, Detroit
Judd Garrett, Princeton – Director of Advance Scouting and Special Projects, Dallas
Brian Shields, Princeton – Senior Manager of Football Scouting Research, NY Jets
Mark Wilf, Princeton – Owner/President, Minnesota
Aileen Dagrosa, Yale (volleyball) – Senior Vice President & General Counsel, Philadelphia
League Office
David Gardi, Brown – Senior Vice President of Football Operations, NFL
Kevin Boothe, Cornell – Director of Football Development and Strategy, NFL
Lisa Friel, Dartmouth (basketball, tennis)– Special Counsel for Investigations, NFL
Sean Estrada, Penn – Senior Manager of Labor Operations, NFL
Keith Elias, Princeton – Senior Director of Player Engagement, NFL
Chris Halpin, Princeton (golf) – Chief Strategy & Growth Officer, NFL
Hans Schroeder, Princeton – Executive Vice President and COO, NFL Media
Damani Leech, Princeton – COO, NFL International
Josh Helmrich, Yale – Director of Strategy and Business Development, NFL
Scouts
Zac Canty, Cornell – Scout, Arizona
Andrew Johnson, Cornell – Scout, Cincinnati
Chris Blanco, Dartmouth – Scout, Houston
Colton Chapple, Harvard – Scout, Cleveland
Tosan Eyetsemitan, Penn – Scouting Assistant, Cleveland
Tom Hayden, Penn – College Scouting Coordinator, Houston
Isaiah Barnes, Princeton – Scout, LA Chargers
Phil Bhaya, Princeton - Scout, Philadelphia
John Hill, Princeton – Scout, Oakland
Chisom Opara, Princeton – Scout, Minnesota
Nick La Testa, Yale – Scout, New York Giants
Deon Randall, Yale – Scout, Denver
Grant Wallace, Yale – Scout, Miami