#51 Ben Utecht: Concussion Conversations with Super Bowl Champion, Motivational Speaker, & Concussion Advocate

Concussion Corner

🧠🎙Welcome to SEASON 3 of Concussion Corner!!! 🥼📻
Concussion Corner is your trusted resource for interdisciplinary conversations related to all things concussion-related in healthcare, advocacy, and sport.
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Benjamin Jeffrey Utecht (born June 30, 1981) is a former American football player who was a tight end for the Indianapolis Colts and the Cincinnati Bengals. He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2004. He played college football at Minnesota. He earned a Super Bowl ring with the Colts in Super Bowl XLI over the Chicago Bears.
Following his fifth concussion, Ben ended his football career to focus on reinventing himself after the NFL as a musician, motivational speaker, and entrepreneur. In 2014, Ben released his single "You Will Always Be My Girls" dedicated to his family in form of a letter to his wife Karyn and his 4 daughters, as he feared that one day that his brain injuries will lead him to not know them.
Today, just as he always has, Ben continues to chase his dreams, finding his way from a small river town in Minnesota to a Super Bowl championship field. He has established himself as a prominent corporate and motivational speaker in the areas of leadership and culture. Both of his programs, The Champion’s Way™ and The MVP Program™, stem from lessons he learned in the locker room with Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy and in the huddle with future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning. Both programs illuminate dynamic ways to succeed in business and life.
Ben has found success in many realms, sitting on the prestigious board of the American Brain Foundation, authoring Counting the Days While My Mind Slips Away with Simon and Schuster, and releasing award-nominated albums as a professional singer. However, without question, Ben would tell you his greatest accomplishment is being a husband to his beautiful wife and a father to their four daughters.
Following his fifth concussion, Utecht ended his football career to focus on a second career in music. He maintained an interest in performing throughout high school, college and his professional football career and had intended to pursue a musical career after football. Utecht has recorded several albums including a Christmas album for which he was nominated for a 2012 Dove Award. He also went on tour in January 2012 and was featured on the cover of the March/April 2012 issue of Making MusicMagazine.
Utecht, who suffered five known concussions during his football career, was already experiencing memory loss by late 2011 when he was 30 years old.
#FOAMed
Ben Utecht: http://bit.ly/BenUtechtHomePage
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Ben Utecht Book: https://amzn.to/2UpGYHm
American Brain Foundation: http://bit.ly/AmericanBrainFoundation