Walk-on walks off the field for a job too good to pass up

Rice Owls defensive end Brian Nordstrom was a redshirt freshman walk-on with the football team in 2011 when he arrived at Rice. As a redshirt, Nordstrom was allowed to practice with the team, but he wasn’t permitted to suit up and play in his first year at Rice. The redshirt tag, however, allowed him to keep four years of playing eligibility.

Now set to graduate in May, the senior has chosen to forgo his final year of NCAA eligibility as a fifth-year senior and instead enter the workforce. Arguably the Owls’ best would-be returning defensive player, Nordstrom received healthy media coverage here in Houston and nationally for his decision.

In his time at Rice, Nordstrom has been named All-Conference USA first team, led the league with 17 1/2 tackles for loss and was named in December to the 2014 Capital One Academic All-American Division I football team.

For Nordstrom the decision was easy. The Woodlands High School graduate came to Rice not even sure if he wanted to play college football. As a junior at The Woodlands, he tore the ACL in his knee and played in only one game his senior season — a playoff game that ended his high school career.

“I wasn’t sure I wanted to play football in college,” Nordstrom said. “But after that (the injury), I decided I didn’t want to leave the game like that and I didn’t want to go out like that. I wanted to dictate how I left.”

Also helping Nordstrom’s decision to play at Rice was the fact that his older brother, Matt, was a senior at Rice when Nordstrom arrived as a freshman.

Nordstrom photo courtesy Carl Henry

“My brother was a big reason I came to Rice,” he said. “I’ve been around the program since he was here, going to games and talking to him about it. Matt was just a great example for me, an inspiration really. I’m not sure I would have made it through my time here at Rice if I didn’t have that example to look at and rely on.”

Nordstrom, who will graduate with a degree in civil and environmental engineering, made his decision after being offered a job with a company in the energy sector where he had done an internship though the annual Rice career fair last fall.

“I went to the Rice job fair and there were a lot of great companies that obviously know what Rice students can do,” Nordstrom said. “They’re looking for talented kids who are well-rounded; I found my internship and career that way.”

Nordstrom will assist project managers and project engineers at the oil and gas company when they need a civil engineering prospective on their individual projects.

“I feel that I’ve always had an affinity for the math and sciences,” he said. “I’ve always known that I wanted to do engineering. As far as civil engineering, when looking at the different disciplines that Rice offered, civil was the one that I felt was what you could see the impact of what you were doing. To be able to see the stuff you build and how it impacts the community, that’s what really did it for me.

“I decided to take this job offer because I felt like when I came here as a walk-on, education was my first priority,” Nordstrom said. “I just didn’t think this (the job) was something that I could pass up.”

Nordstrom photo courtesy Hawaii Media Source

Reflecting on his time at Rice both on the field and in the classroom, Nordstrom said the moment in the locker room with his teammates after the Hawaii Bowl win will be a lasting memory. That was his last game as an Owl, and he said he remembers “just how happy we all were and how excited we all were. It was nice to end the season on a high note and to play in front of a national audience on television.”

Nordstrom credited Jamie Padgett, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, as having  a strong influence on his academic pursuit. He cited the opportunities that Padgett gave him in the classroom and noted that she allowed him to conduct research with her group in the summer after his sophomore year.

“You can really tell that she cares about the learning experience of her students, and that meant a lot to me,” Nordstrom said.

“Brian was a standout in the classroom,” Padgett said. “He took my structural analysis class, which is a pretty demanding and rigorous course, and he stood out at the top of the class. Because of that, he ended up doing undergraduate research with my group. It was impressive to watch him manage his classes, football and research work.”

Nordstrom is giving himself about a month off before starting his new job in mid-June.