BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — Troy Vincent had a long day at the office on Sunday — a workday for the National Football League and Vincent, the executive vice president of football operations. Since the former Wisconsin cornerback wears his Motion W on his sleeve, he still hadn't gotten over the loss the night before at Michigan.
"When they don't play well, it affects my Saturday night and Sunday," Vincent said of the Badgers, a 38-13 loser to the Wolverines whose starting left tackle, Jon Runyan Jr., is the son of former Michigan star Jon Runyan, the NFL's vice-president of policy and rules administration.
Vincent and Runyan are colleagues at the league's Park Avenue offices in New York City. They're also old friends from their playing days together with the Philadelphia Eagles. It was Vincent who recruited Runyan, a former congressman from New Jersey, to the administrative staff.
And it was Runyan who got bragging rights on Vincent after Saturday night's outcome.
"He sent me an e-mail," Vincent said, "and at the end of it, he signed, 'Go Blue.'"
That stung.
Yet despite the loss, the Badgers are still in the running for the West Division title and a trip to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship Game. Vincent will be waiting for them should they make it. As he was last year when the conference used the Lucas Oil Stadium forum to present Vincent with its 2017 Ford-Kinnick Leadership Award.
As accomplished as Vincent was on the field collegiately (1991 All-American and co-Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year) and professionally (15 NFL seasons, 200 career starts, 47 interceptions, five Pro Bowls), he has been equally accomplished as an entrepreneur, humanitarian and philanthropist.
In 2002, Vincent was the Walter Payton Man of the Year. A year later, he was the "Whizzer" White NFL Man of the Year. In 2005, he was the recipient of the Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award. In sum, they exemplified his character, leadership, community service and charitable donations.
Asked if he has been able to keep track of all the leadership awards that he has collected over the years — including the 2017 NCAA Silver Anniversary Award — Vincent said, "To be honest, I don't know how many begin with the term leadership."
But his narrative is full of references to it. "I'm just serving," explained the 48-year-old Vincent, a native of Trenton, New Jersey. "Me and my wife Tommi want to live a life of service — purpose over position. If someone wants to recognize it as leadership, we're just trying to do what we can do."
Whether Vincent is attending a game at Ohio State (son Taron is a freshman defensive tackle) or Towson (son Troy Jr. is a senior defensive back), he's still keeping tabs on his other family, the Badgers (his oldest daughter Desiré is married to former NFL linebacker DeAndre Levy. Both are UW grads.).
Vincent, in fact, may have had a Badgers flashback on Saturday night when Wisconsin started two true freshmen in the secondary against Michigan: cornerback Rashad Wildgoose and safety Reggie Pearson. In 1988, Vincent started as a true frosh against Illinois, his only start of that season.
"I was scared to death," Vincent recalled. "Here's a kid who played one year of high school football and I'm on scholarship playing Big Ten football. I'm 159 pounds and I didn't think I belonged. Talk about being nervous. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't even eat. I thought, 'This is a dream. Pinch me.'"
But then came the reality. The Badgers lost, 34-6; one of 10 losses in 1988. "The game was fast and it seemed like the guys were enormous," Vincent said. "I felt like a freshman. I looked like one and I probably acted as such."
But he persevered — part of the advice that he would share with Wildgoose and Pearson.
"Learn from any mistakes that were made," Vincent said. "Understand that you're probably not going to play under brighter lights; you've played in front of 111,000 people. The game is not going to get any faster and, quite frankly, you're probably not going to play against better talent this year.
"So, take what you did well and put it in your save folder. Because of stage fright, you were probably a little bit hesitant. But you have to know why Coach (Paul) Chryst brought you here and there's a reason why Coach (Jim) Leonhard put you on the field. Now, you have to believe in yourself."
As an undrafted free agent, fresh out of Wisconsin, Leonhard signed with the Buffalo Bills in 2005. The starting free safety was a 34-year-old veteran, Vincent, who warmly welcomed the rookie. Even though he was in the twilight of his career, he was more than happy to be a mentor to a Badger.
"There are only a few players — just a handful that I've either watched or played with — that just had that knack of being around the ball and he always had that knack," Vincent said of Leonhard. "As they would say, he was a coach that was playing. Tremendous, tremendous football IQ.
"Now this is showing up as a defensive coordinator. I hear Coach (Rex) Ryan talking about him all the time when he talks about the smartest players he's ever coached."
Vincent also stays in touch with many former Wisconsin teammates. Like Rich Thompson, the chief human resources officer at Adecco, the largest temp staffing firm in the world. Like Mark Mangum, a Vincent business partner, and co-founder and CEO of Eltekon Management group. Like so many others.
"Some of the greatest people that I've ever met have been from the state of Wisconsin and, in particular, from Madison," said Vincent, who endowed a scholarship at the UW in 2003. "They are special people — pleasant, kind, helpful, resourceful. And it's rubbed off on me. It was contagious."
On receiving the Big Ten's Ford-Kinnick Award, honoring the late Gerald Ford and Nile Kinnick, Vincent said, "I'm a representative of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and that's what makes it special. They could have chosen a lot of individuals. I'll be walking into that facility as a proud Badger."
Vincent will keep the light on, too, since he's expecting plenty of company in Indy.
