Former NFL player making an impact as a CPA

If you want to learn what it’s really like to be a professional football player, ask a professional football player. If you want to know what it’s really like to be a CPA, ask a CPA.

Or, you could just ask Richie Brockel.

“Those three letters at the end of my name help give credibility to who I am and what I do,” said Brockel, who became a CPA in 2016.

Before that, Brockel had three different letters associated with his name: NFL.

From 2010–2015, Brockel played tight end and fullback, predominantly for the Carolina Panthers, his playing days concluding a couple of months before the Panthers played in Super Bowl 50 (Super Bowl LIX kicks off Sunday). Before that, he starred at Boise State University. Brockel was on the field for a pair of unforgettable plays — one still referenced to this day by college football fans everywhere and one held in special esteem by NFL fans who love trick plays and football movies.

Brockel returned to Boise, Idaho, after his playing days, earned his CPA license, and now leans on his background to excel at Amherst Madison real estate brokerage and in a football commentary role with his alma mater.

A past guest on a podcast (Journeys of Accountancy) hosted by a pair of Boise State accounting professors, Brockel recently connected with the JofA to talk about his favorite three-letter acronyms.

First of all, Richie, can you tell us what you do when you’re not co-hosting a pregame show for Boise State football?

Brockel: The bulk of what I do right now is real estate sales. Mostly residential, some commercial transactions. I also have a small tax practice where I’m using my license, and it goes hand-in-hand because a lot of people are doing 1031 exchanges, a lot of people have rental properties and short-term rentals. A lot of my real estate clients end up being my tax clients. With real estate, having the CPA credential gives you more credibility.

Exactly how does your CPA license help?

Brockel: There’s a lot of trust that goes with that stamp for obvious reasons. People see that and say, “This person is obviously intelligent. They were able to pass a CPA Exam. They’re definitely trustworthy to be able to keep those letters at the end of their name, so they’re probably going to do the right thing. They have high ethical value.” I think that it automatically puts you ahead of a lot of other people. Now, other people have those characteristics, but mine just happens to be in the title with my name. It just stands out.

In a much different field — or rather on a different field — the letters “NFL” also afford you a certain cachet, wouldn’t you say?

Brockel: Oh, 100%. Playing a professional sport has this intrigue around it. Not many people get that opportunity, but everyone grew up dreaming about it. Everyone wants to know what it’s like.

With the Super Bowl upon us and the first 12-team College Football Playoff just behind us — a playoff that included your alma mater — could you put on your commentator’s cap and share your thoughts on the seemingly unstoppable force that is football?

Brockel: The NFL has created a more exciting product than the other professional leagues. There is so much parity, with the average margin of victory over recent years hovering around a single touchdown. The league has set itself up for that type of competition with a hard salary cap, profit sharing, inverse draft ordering, and nonguaranteed contracts — all of which work to spread out the talent and make it possible for a franchise to turn things around with one great offseason. Fans are drawn to that level of competition.

At Boise, it was electric this year. It was so fun. They’ve done such a good job of just creating an awesome fan experience, and that hope for a playoff berth all year just made everything so exciting. People were going nuts, and it was the talk of the town all the time. I would like to see college football just go ahead and expand the playoff to 16 [teams]. I think they could even just get rid of the conference championships, just take one through 16, start the playoff immediately when the regular season is done and just roll.

Brockel’s claims to fame: ‘So special’

In the NFL, Richie Brockel played in 47 career games primarily as a blocker and contributor on special teams, catching or carrying the ball just eight times. One of his touches, however, was his one touchdown, a trick play affectionately dubbed the “Annexation of Puerto Rico” in reference to its similarities to a play in the 1994 movie Little Giants.

And, in Brockel’s first season at Boise, he was on the field for one of the Broncos’ three unbelievable trick plays that helped them knock off juggernaut Oklahoma 43-42 in the still-celebrated 2007 Fiesta Bowl.

“The Annexation of Puerto Rico, that’s a hallmark trick play when you look at the highlights of all time,” Brockel said. “That game at Boise State, that’s one of the greatest college football games ever. To be a part of that is so special.”

You were at Boise State for 4½ years and earned undergraduate and master’s degrees in accounting while playing football?

Brockel: I was like, “Hey, they’re going to pay for this? I might as well get it and not have any debt.” So I got my undergrad in accounting in three years and then I did my master’s in a year and a half. Coach Pete [then-football coach Chris Petersen] summed it up. He said, “Everything you’re doing, just ask yourself, is this getting me closer to or further away from my goals?” I took that to heart with everything. It’s easy after you ask yourself that.

Is it true that while in the NFL, you completed an internship at Deloitte during the offseason?

Brockel: Correct. In 2014. It was wild that I had these two worlds overlapping. I’m sitting in an office doing tax returns, and I’m also trying to negotiate a new contract with the Panthers. It was crazy, but I would go work out with the team at Boise State first thing in the morning, then I’d go into the office, put on my dress clothes and finish out my internship.

I figured I was probably getting to a point in my football career where it was like, “I need to plan for something afterwards.” I don’t know when that will be, but I was thinking I probably would do something with tax.

Obviously, math plays a role in tax and real estate, and it plays a role on the football field. How big of a role?

Brockel: Everybody always says, “You must be good at math.” Well, yeah, I like spreadsheets, and I’m pretty good at adding and subtracting and doing a few percentages here and there, but that’s the bulk of the number crunching. The bigger piece of it is being able to take those high-level overlooks of things and be like, “What’s really going on here? How does this all fit together?”

I think that’s the bigger thing, and that’s when you really get good at football, too: When you can step back and you’re like, “OK, I know I have to block this defensive end, but what’s he going to do?” I’ve got to look back at the safeties and figure out what their coverage is. Where’s the linebacker? Are they blitzing? What’s the down and distance? You got to figure all those things out from a high-level overlook.

Finally, speaking of high-level overlooks, how would you encapsulate what it’s like being a CPA? And, who’s going to win the Super Bowl?

Brockel: Being a CPA, it’s interesting because there are always things happening. It’s dynamic, it’s always changing. It’s not just like, “Hey, I’m going to sit at this desk and do XYZ.” There’s a lot going on, and you can take any path you want, which is the exciting part about it. “Interesting” is the best way to describe being a CPA. It’s a very interesting job.

As for the Super Bowl, I am rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles. My former Boise teammate Kellen Moore is their offensive coordinator, and I would love for him to get a Super Bowl win for his coaching résumé. I think between Kellen’s creative play-calling and their rushing attack led by Saquon Barkley, the Eagles will get it done. In the Super Bowl, being able to run the ball is a huge advantage. Eagles 31, Kansas City Chiefs 27.

— To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Bryan Strickland at Bryan.Strickland@aicpa-cima.com.