UNT football player cuts playing career short to become a firefighter

DENTON, Texas - People may remember him for his unforgettable trick play during UNT's big win over Arkansas last season. But even though he still has two years of eligibility left, Keegan Brewer has decided to trade his football uniform in for firefighter's gear.

“I have a trick play that I thought really wasn’t going to work, but it ended up working out pretty well. I tried to do a fake fair catch, really. And practiced it probably, I’d probably say over 100 times,” Brewer said. “Probably 50 yards down the field, like, I just now thought, ‘Wow, this is working.’”

But even before he was being featured on national sports highlight shows, Brewer had attended the fire academy and knew he wanted to be a firefighter.

"With me graduating in May, I had to make a decision whether I was going to stay or [go]," he said. "But as a walk-on, it was kind of an easy decision for me to go and actually become a part of the community and actually do what I want to do.”

Brewer enjoyed his moment of notoriety, but he is now committed to being a firefighter.

“I guess one of the trick plays of the year right now. It caused an uproar on all social media. I was just a kid from Lake Dallas who never really had anything like that, so it was cool. It was a good experience to have,” he said. "I’m more focused on being a firefighter here, than, ‘Oh, he’s the football player.’”

Battalion Chief Jake Leeper has been impressed with Brewer and knows his experience as a college athlete will come in handy for the Frisco Fire Department.

“Somebody that understands that kind of work ethic, what it takes to be a college athlete, somebody that’s already in really good physical condition. Those sort of things really help, kind of, elevate somebody’s potential,” Leeper said.

And while Brewer knew he could have continued playing for the Mean Green, he was ready to join a new team.

“It’s all team-oriented, and it’s a brotherhood is what it is. And, that just how it is in the locker room on a football team. Everybody likes to be around each other, everybody wants to hang out, and going to practice isn’t a bad thing in football because you’re friends with everybody," Brewer added. "And that’s just like it is here. Going to work isn’t a bad thing because you get to be with your guys.”