I am so thrilled I followed up on a lead Nils sent me one evening. Nils is a listener and asked whether I would be interested to chat with Dieter Eiselen. Dieter is currently the only South African in the National Football League in the United States! He plays for the Chicago Bears.
I am grateful for this suggestion because like Dieter, I too enjoy gridiron, and also discovered (and loved) the sport in my teens. Gridiron football is not popular in South Africa. But I have tried to catch the Super Bowl each year but the time difference makes things a little impractical.
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Why gridiron football?
Dieter’s story is one of fantastic contrasts.
He speaks with a natural sounding mid-Atlantic American accent – no hint of ‘the Pretoria boytjie’ in there. He grew up in Pretoria, attending Paul Roos in Stellenbosch.
Dieter says unlike rugby that is a contact sport, NFL is a collision sport with many layers. He sums it up as ‘chess in action’! He loves the technical aspect of the sport. And I can well believe that, given what is discussed in ‘the huddle’ between offensive plays.
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Hearing Dieter reveal what and how they plan their next move is fascinating. It’s extremely technical, and demands such concentration and application from the players. He is a center and performs the ‘snap’. He snaps the ball back to the quarterback to start each offensive attack.
The basics of football is that teams are divided in offensive and defensive units. As the name suggests, each side has a specific role. Dieter plays on the offensive line for the Chicago Bears.
There are also units of the team that receive a kick off, and a unit that supports the kicker during a field goal attempt or as part of touchdown conversion. This may well be the same unit I describe.
Since our conversastion on THT Dieter has returned to the US to start his pre-season training, followed-up with training camp. The new season starts in November.
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‘Lots of hard work lies ahead’
He is so excited and setting his sights on being in the starting line-up for the new season.
The Chicago Bears is a recognizable NFL brand, but under performed in recent times. Their fans are some of the most passionate in the NFL. They think nothing of braving minus 27 degree winds to support their team. Dieter says no amount of thermal gloves help under those conditions. ‘Your hands still feels like it wants to fall off’ he confesses!
Dieter’s route into the NFL was through education. He attended a prep school and qualified to attended Yale University. He graduated double major in economics and political science. ‘I now have renewed interest to resume my love of the sport,’ Dieter may well inspire other South African’s to follow in his footsteps. ‘It’s not easy and is a privilege,’ Dieter acknowledges and says it further motivates him to succeed.
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