Growing up in North Carolina, Tony Creecy knew he wanted to be a football player. He began playing at the age of 6. His rare blend of speed and power made him a star from a young age, both in the backfield and split out wide while a student at Southern Durham High School. While there, his life would change with the passing of his mother. Wanting to stay close to home near his family, he would sign on to play at North Carolina State University.

With the Wolf Pack, Creecy would find success and become a key team leader for the squad. He would go on to earn a training camp invitation with the New England Patriots in 2015. Now, in addition to being the part owner of Plan C Sports, he is also a successful regional manager with Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Recently, he took some time away from his busy schedule to reflect on his time in football and his time as an inaugural member of the U.S. National Football Team.

EM: When you first started playing football, what about the sport did you love?

TC: I love the actual discipline of the game. The game doesn’t just teach you about football, it teaches you about life. It teaches you important things like how important it is to be on time, working with a team, and a lot of other important life qualities.

EM: What is football like where you grew up in North Carolina?

TC: I would say that football is really growing here. There are parts of North Carolina where it is really huge. I think it is migrating to the whole state and I think  you can see that in some of the guys that have come from here that are now going into the NFL. Guys like Todd Gurley, Eric Ebron, and Keenan Allen – it’s definitely growing here.

EM: How did you decide to go to school at North Carolina State?

TC: The main reason I chose NC State was that it was close to my home. I had lost my Mom about four years before that, so I wanted to keep close to my Father so he could come and see all of my games. I wanted to also become something like a hometown hero, so I wanted to stay close to here.

EM: What are some of your favorite football memories of playing at NC State? Do you have anything you remember from the rivalry game with the University of North Carolina?

TC: My favorite memories definitely have to include when we beat Clemson in 2012. It was a fun game. The North Carolina game is really hectic. I remember one year when their students came to campus and painted over the Free Expression Tunnel, which is a really big deal for us. When they did that, it was like ‘OK, now it’s on. Let’s play ball.’ I still go to a few games at NC State each year. I love my time there and love being part of the Wolf Pack family.

EM: Before we talk about your Team USA experience, let’s talk about what you’re doing now. Did you have a plan for when you were done with football? How did you become involved with Enterprise Rent-A-Car and with Plan C Sports?

TC: I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do when I was done playing. I have a son so I just knew that I wanted to take care of him and take care of the rest of my family. I had a friend who was working with Enterprise and he said I should apply with them. I really enjoyed it and now I have two branches with them.

Plan C was started as a personal business with a good friend of mine. I would get a lot of emails asking me to train people so I thought why not. My friend, A.J. brought me on board and it has really taken off. This is all letting me do what I wanted to do, take care of my family and live a great life!

EM: When did you learn about the opportunity to play for the U.S. National Football Team?

TC: I had originally wanted to play in the North Carolina versus South Carolina Shrine Bowl game, but I wasn’t invited to that. I knew I wanted to play in an all-star game though. My Dad had heard about Team USA and asked if I wanted to try out for that. Once he explained it to me, I knew I wanted to do it. He sent my highlights in and [USA Football] gave me a call.

EM: What do you remember about those first practices? What was it like being around all of these great players for the first time?

TC: Tyrann Mathieu and I got pretty close during that week. Both of us had a lot in common and we were hanging out the whole time we were there. I remember the practices being really great and it was a great experience to be a part of that.

EM: Overall, what was your favorite part of the whole experience of being a part of Team USA and the first International Bowl?

TC: My favorite part was getting to represent the country. My Dad was in the military and he got to represent the country in a different way, of course. But to have the opportunity to represent the country as a football player was an amazing experience.