Evan Brennan ('15)

Evan Brennan (’15)

When Evan Brennan (J.D. ’15) was asked why his Professional Responsibility textbook was covered in linear tabulations and tally marks, he smiled humbly. Evan then politely responded that he was calculating the probability, based on past years, of college football players being on a college all-star game watch list, and after having gone through training camp and the NFL Draft, actually making an NFL team (while studying, of course). When asked “Why?” he smiled again and answered, “I want to ensure that the all-star game that I am looking at is a good indicator of NFL talent-to be, as opposed to a list of the other several thousand whom had the aspirations, but not the transferable talent from college to the pros.”

In laymen’s terms, this means Evan is on the prowl for his next client. While attending Chapman’s Fowler School of Law, Evan became one of the very few law students in the country to pass the National Football League (NFL) Agent Exam. He is, without a doubt, a go-getter who possesses a rare combination of street smarts and book smarts. His success can be attributed to years of hard work, research and networking.

After graduating from BYU with a bachelor’s degree in history, Evan faced the difficult decision many college graduates must make: he needed to quickly find a direction in which to take his career. He took into account earning potential, the skills at his disposal, and passion. This process led him to his “Jerry Maguire moment” and to his decision to pursue becoming a sports agent.

Evan found he had the most connections and interest in football over other sports. “My playing days were over, but I wanted to do anything to be involved with that sport,” he said. Armed with his interest and connections, he decided to earn his master’s in Sports Management at California State University, Long Beach; he also completed an award-winning capstone research project in which he devised a business plan for a sports agency. Conducting interviews with CPAs, agents, players, and individuals in finance for this project helped Evan lay the foundation for establishing his own agency one day.

Now that Evan has passed the Agent exam, he plans to execute the business plan he created while earning his master’s degree. “I’ve been fortunate that I’ve been around and seen so many others’ successes and failures, that I have a good idea of what to do and what not to do,” he said. He also intends to practice law in order to better serve his future athlete clients and hopes to find a law firm that will recognize the value of hiring a sports agent. “My future athlete clients will benefit from a real legal practitioner, rather than a guy with a J.D. who does not actually practice law.” In an effort to get a head start on his legal resume, Evan has recently accepted a clerk position at a law firm that specializes in personal injury. In an ideal world, Evan will not only work with athletes after he graduates, but he will also work in a law firm while exercising his skills in copyright, trademark, tax, business litigation and transactional matters that are commonplace for sports agents.

Until that time comes, Evan is taking advantage of every possible learning opportunity in sports law that Chapman has to offer. He is involved in Chapman’s Entertainment and Sports Law Society and he is currently taking Professor Leigh Steinberg’s sports law class. Steinberg is a sports agent and a lawyer who happens to be the real-life inspiration for the movie Jerry McGuire. Evan is also in IP Law Society and just joined the Alternative Dispute Resolution team, where he will get ample opportunities to improve his negotiation skills.

Evan offers this valuable advice for others looking to become sports agents in any capacity: “Becoming an agent is not as difficult as remaining an agent. I would strongly caution those that think of doing this to have a very well thought out business plan that has been crosschecked and evaluated by those in the business.”