Math, Football, and the Myth of Specialization
When a NFL player refuses to sideline his love for math -- John Urschel's story of rewriting the rules.
It’s game day. The stadium is electric, thousands of fans on their feet. John Urschel explodes off the line, using sheer strength and precision to hold back a 300-pound defender. The play ends. The crowd roars. The game continues.
Later that night, in a quiet room, the scene couldn’t be more different. The roar is gone. The only sound is of a pencil against the paper as Urschel works through a complex proof, one that most people wouldn’t even attempt to understand.
This was his life.
As a Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman and an MIT PhD candidate in mathematics, Urschel defied expectations. His story is not just about talent but about passion, discipline, and the power of an unconventional path. How did he manage to juggle the brutal demands of professional football and the intricate challenges of advanced mathematics?
“Many people see me as a walking contradiction. They think that the pursuit of excellence in football makes the pursuit of excellence in mathematics impossible. They think that a strong interest in one makes a strong interest in the other improbable. But we all have multiple and sometimes diverging identities. In different ways, math and football are both essential to me” – John Urschel [from Mind and Matter]Let’s explore the strategies, mindset, and lessons that made his extraordinary dual career possible, and how you can apply them to your own life too!
The Origin Story: A Numbers Guy on the Field
John Urschel’s journey was not a sudden leap but the result of two passions nurtured from an early age.
His mother, recognizing his natural talent for spatial reasoning, encouraged his love for mathematics. From an early age, he was drawn to puzzles, blocks, and problem-solving, developing an early foundation in math.
At the same time, football captivated him. As he entered high school, he set his sights on playing at the highest level, dreaming of competing in the Big Ten Conference. Despite his mother’s hopes for him to attend Princeton or MIT, he was called to pursue football with all his heart. That took him to Penn State, where he of course majored in math.
At the end of his undergrad, John was drafted for the NFL. After playing for a couple of months he felt that something was missing and realized that being away from math was making him unhappy. He needed to rebalance his paths. He then applied for PhD programs in math. Most players saw football as their singular path. Urschel saw something different.
The Dual Life
Balancing professional football and an MIT PhD isn’t for the faint hearted, it requires making hard choices every day. Urschel built his life around a system that kept him moving forward:
Early Mornings, No Excuses – In college, he made sure his classes were in the morning so afternoons could be dedicated to football. That habit stuck.
Studying on the Sidelines – Even during the season, he refused to put math on hold. He took the MIT coursework remotely, working through problem sets in between practices and games.
Seasonal Focus – When the football season ended, he shifted completely into his academic world — full-time coursework and research, attending classes and collaborating with professors.
Mental Switching – Whether on the field or in a math lecture, Urschel was fully present in each moment, and not thinking about his other commitments.
After a few years in the NFL, John decided to retire and spend more time on math. This was also the time he became a dad. So the proportion of his paths changed again. Today, as a professor of mathematics at MIT and member of Harvard Society of Fellows, he is an inspiration to many! Another current path for John is mathematical outreach, he deeply cares about inspiring young students to find beauty in mathematics.. 🙂
What Can We Learn from Urschel?
You don’t have to be an NFL player or a math PhD to take something from his story. His approach offers lessons for anyone trying to chase more than one passion at a time:
🔹 You don’t have to choose. If you love two things, pursue both—just be strategic. There will be times when you will have to rebalance your paths. Trust your inner voice.
🔹 Passion makes the grind worth it. Urschel’s love for problem-solving fueled his academic success, while his drive to play “big-time football” propelled his athletic career.
🔹 Be prepared for the discipline. Balancing the demanding schedules of an NFL player and a PhD student required exceptional discipline and a strong work ethic.
🔹 Skills transfer across fields. John mentions how the resilience he built as a football player helped him tackle hard research problems in math.
🔹 Dedicate focused effort. When engaged in one passion, be fully present and dedicated to it. Avoid half-hearted efforts and strive for excellence in each of your chosen areas.
🔹 Your path doesn’t have to look normal. There’s no single “right” way to succeed. Urschel’s journey proves that excellence can come from non-traditional routes. He wasn’t trying to fit in a mold. He built his own.
What Passions Will You Pursue?
Too often, we’re told to specialize. Pick a career. Stick to it. For polypaths, that’s not the only way.
What’s stopping you from exploring the things that excite you?
What’s one passion you’ve put on the back burner because it "doesn’t fit" with the rest of your life?
Urschel’s example proves that diverse passions can coexist, and even complement each other.
So take a step forward. Whether it’s science and art, business and music, or sports and academics, your unique path is yours to carve. Embrace your inner polypath and explore the full range of your potential.
After all, Urschel tackled both linebackers and linear algebra.
He rewrote the rules.
So can you :)