Last week, I spoke with band manager Christen Greene, a former Division I basketball player who left athletics for the music business. In her words, Greene "fell out of love" with basketball; the demands on her time and energy eventually outweighed the thrill and competition of games. Falling out of love is as good a reason as any to leave a highly demanding career. However, for some athletes, the choice to leave sports can be one their bodies or their body politic makes for them.

Former NFL offensive lineman Brian Barthelmes is the frontman of the indie-folk band Tallahassee. After growing up in rural Ohio -- between Cleveland and Pittsburgh -- Barthelmes landed a scholarship to the University of Virginia. He red-shirted his first year, then started the next four years on the offensive line. Picked up as a free agent after the 2006 draft, Barthelmes signed with the New England Patriots as a center and swing guard. After spending parts of the next two seasons on the Patriots practice squad, Barthelmes made the decision to move on from football.

"I was never a big fan of football culture, nor big business," he says. "The moving and life style were aiding in some of my mental illness problems. I decided to take a year off to sort out my health and then decided to stay out of the game."

Given that statement, it makes sense that a life as an independent musician would be so appealing and prove more satisfying. As Barthelmes further explained, being a musician has created a more healthful, creative, and fufilling environment for him than professional sports. But unsurprisingly, he's brought a few things he learned in his football career to life with his band: A pre-show ritual of stretching, the practice of practice, and a love of men singing close-harmony in the shower.

 

 

Erin McKeown: Why did you stop playing football?

Brian Barthelmes: I think in retrospect it was the nature of the institution, my own values, and my mental illness. Someone who has mental health troubles should not be bashing their head into other people's heads daily. That is not a prescription for health.

I am a creative by nature, and in football, there isn't some much time for creative growth. For my particular needs, I have to devote a large part of my person to creating, whether it be visual art, sound art, bridging communities, reading, thinking, etc. Professional football (and I would assume all professional athletics) is all consuming. It is a delight for those who are fulfilled by that work, but it wasn't fulfilling enough for me. I compromised [my needs] for money and an incorrect interpretation of the term "stability." I took the scariest plunge ever by quitting football.

I really miss a lot of my friends and the culture of a large team. You have guys from all walks of life who all get each other because they have been a part of this intense institution forever. It's extreme, but you can't get it if you haven't seen 80 of your co-workers naked daily. You become so used to that reality that vocal harmonies in a shared shower seem totally normal.

McKeown: What are your first memories of playing sports? Of playing or experiencing music?

Barthelmes: My father and I would play catch for hours in the back yard. He was teaching me [to catch] pop flies, and well, I caught it with my eye. Bag of peas and anhour later I was fine.

I grew up in a very conservative household. As a kid I would record 107.9 "The End" alt. radio onto cassette tapes. Then, with headphones on, I would lip sync Nirvana while jumping off my bed.

McKeown: How separate did the worlds of sports and music feel foryou growing up, how about now as a professional musician?

Barthelmes: Growing up my sister was highly involved in jazz bands and symphonies. It took her the same dedication and discipline that sports took me. Insofar as playing them they felt very separate, but I listened to music non-stop, whether playing sports, drawing, or reading alone in my room.

Now sports are more for leisure. I play basketball with the band and lead stretches while on tour. We sometimes have yard sport days including bocci ball, badminton, horses, and lawn darts. You know, the ones you can have beer with.

McKeown: Do you find being in a band in any way relates to your experience on athletic teams?

Barthelmes: Absolutely. Both being in a band and being on an athletic team are exercises in similar discipline. The both take incredible amounts of attention to detail, extraordinary work ethic, the ability to work well with in a team environment, and the ability to do your job well while trusting that your teammates are also doing theirs to thebest of their ability. Also both are full of long work hours, close quarters and copious amounts of dude jackassery.

 

McKeown: For many athletes music is a part of a pre-game ritual. Was it for you? Now, is there some equivalent in your pre-show ritual where you warm your body up or otherwise prepare physically for a show?

Barthelmes: It is funny. My pre-game rituals have stayed the same really. In football I listened to intense music -- a variety of metal and hardcore -- and I would stretch, both to prepare for the game and to get anxiety out. Now, we listen to [Michael Jackson's] Thriller before shows, thanks to Scott [Thompson, guitar player in Tallahassee]. I still stretch. People are often caught off-guard when they see this giant hairy man pulling his head between his legs. But it really gets me ready to perform.

McKeown: Both musicians and athletes have to spend quite a bit of time practicing. Tell me about how you practiced in football and now in music.

Barthelmes: The guys often joke about my "practice schedules." In football, practiceis broken down into about 10-13 sections, nearly minute by minute. Before every practice with the band, I sit down with everyone and create a very similar detailed outline for that day’s work.

I have learned from football the importance of muscle memory. Daily, we would work onthe most simple footwork drills, at varying paces. [In Tallahassee] we do a thing called "slow practice," where we play at half tempo to improve muscle memory and hand and vocal control. It's really a very similar concept to football practice.

McKeown: What professional teams you follow?

Barthelmes: [The Pittsburgh] Steelers. [My] family grew up watching them, and my best friend still plays for them.

McKeown: What are the last three albums you listened to?

Barthelmes: Hallelujah The Hills' No One Knows What Happens Next; Townes van Zandt's Delta Mama Blues; and Diamond Doves' Eat Your Heart Out.

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Tallahassee has just released its third album, Old Ways. Check out the official video for "Old Brown Shoes" below. Brian is the 6”6’ guy in the middle.

Erin McKeown is a musician, writer, and producer. Her latest album is MANIFESTRA, out now on TVP Records. Follow her sports podcast “ * ” (@AsteriskPodcast) when it debuts in the summer of 2013.