Former NFL offensive linemen Todd Rucci told a group of McCaskey students, “You’ve got one chance go through this, one chance to go through school.”
Rucci visited students participating in the Police Athletic League, which is a program of the Lancaster Bureau of Police to provide opportunities for law enforcement officers and youth to build positive connections through sports and other physical activities.
Rucci told the students about his background, growing up with a single mom, under-resourced, in suburban Philadelphia.
“The things I wanted in life, I had to go get,” he said.
Rucci earned a full scholarship to play football at Penn State (“In my family, we didn’t have the dough to go to college”) and became a second-round draft pick by the New England Patriots in 1993. He started for the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI, which they lost to the Green Bay Packers, playing across his childhood icon and former Philadelphia Eagles great, Reggie White.
“Growing up, I had this big poster of Reggie White,” he remembered. “If you would have told me, I’m going to play in a Super Bowl against that guy that was on my wall, I don’t know if I would have believed that one.”
But, he said, being relentless and not giving up, he succeeded.
“I could have given in to a lot,” he admitted. “I lot of you guys know what goes on in the streets when you leave [high school].”
Rucci encouraged students to figure out what is important in their lives and then decide what they’re willing to sacrifice to achieve their goals. It starts in high school, which is when Rucci said he received the key advice from an adult in his life: You only have one chance at high school and college, so make the most of it.
“You only have this opportunity to go through one time,” he offered. “This is the time to sacrifice.”
He also said it’s a good time to fail, because failure is a great teacher, and there are adults who care.
“You’re not going to walk through this life alone and make it on your own,” he said. “If you can trust someone and you build that, then you have an advocate, you have someone in your corner.”
The Police Athletic League, known as PAL, is common in many police departments nationwide and started in Lancaster in 2014. In addition to hearing Rucci’s talk, the cub has gone fishing, canoeing, bowling, and attended a Hershey Bears game together, and is currently planning summer activities. PAL is open to any interested student at McCaskey.
“I think it’s great for them to be able to get out and see different parts of life,” said Officer Jeffrey Gerhart, who oversees the program. “They may not have had the opportunity before, and they get to see police maybe in a different light.”