AFTER winning two National Championships and spending six seasons in the NFL, a former Florida Gator has kickstarted his own business. <\/p>\n
One of the stars of the long-awaited Netflix Untold docuseries on Urban Meyers' Florida Gators, titled Swamp Kings, former linebacker Brandon Spikes has lived a remarkably varied post-NFL life. <\/p>\n
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Originally from North Carolina, football offered Spikes a path toward a brighter future. <\/p>\n
In the documentary, Spikes discussed his tough childhood, explaining how \"Football was my way out. Out of it all.\" <\/p>\n
In 2006 he headed for Florida, joining a Gators program that was on the rise under their young head coach. <\/p>\n
Spikes went on to solidify himself as a legend down in Gainesville, winning two BCS National Championships while being named a Consensus All-American twice, and an All-SEC First-Teamer three times. <\/p>\n
Come 2010, it was time for Spikes to take the next step, ultimately being selected in the second round of the NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. <\/p>\n
He spent four seasons with the Patriots, starting 39 of his 51 appearances, racking up 286 tackles, twelve defended passes, and four forced fumbles. <\/p>\n
In 2014, Spikes headed for the Buffalo Bills where he'd go on to play in all sixteen games that season, starting ten. <\/p>\n
He subsequently returned to New England, although this proved to be an ill-fated move as he was released less than a month later after running into trouble with the law. <\/p>\n
Spikes eventually pled guilty to having left the scene of an accident, as per The Athletic, and went on to miss the 2015 season. <\/p>\n
The following year, while working as a certified credit investor, he reached out to his former head coach Bill Belichick for help. <\/p>\n
\"I wanted to give up. I really did until I reached out to Bill,\" he told The Athletic. <\/p>\n
\"I reached out to everybody, people I trusted and loved, and they just couldn't give me an answer why I wasn't in the league. <\/p>\n
\"So I was like, 'F**k it, I'm about to call Bill.' So I called Bill Belichick, and of course, he answered on the first ring.\" <\/p>\n
Belichick put Spikes in touch with an agent, David Canter, who managed to get him a one-year deal back in Buffalo. <\/p>\n
Eleven appearances later, and his time in the NFL came to an end. <\/p>\n
Spikes' next career venture took him to Canter's agency where he worked for the post-career affairs department. <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, he also founded SpikesCBDX, which produces CBD-infused creams, oils, and gels. <\/p>\n
\"Throughout my career in the NFL, I always wanted to help myself and other athletes avoid injuries and recover quickly, without medications and their side effects,\" Spikes wrote on their website. <\/p>\n
\"This was the driver behind the Spikes CBDX product line, creating products all athletes could benefit from.\" <\/p>\n
Fast forward to 2023, and Spikes has gone on to enter a new chapter of his post-NFL career, as a student assistant coach for the Gators. <\/p>\n
Speaking to FloridaGators.com, he explained: \"I just want to bring value and basically get this thing back to how we left it. I've seen how it should be done. <\/p>\n
\"You don't come to Florida to be mediocre. The bar is set, and I will do everything in my power to enforce what is set here.\" <\/p>\n
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The rest is here: <\/p>\n
I was a National Champion with the Florida Gators and played in NFL now I run my own CBD oil business... - The US Sun<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" AFTER winning two National Championships and spending six seasons in the NFL, a former Florida Gator has kickstarted his own business. One of the stars of the long-awaited Netflix Untold docuseries on Urban Meyers' Florida Gators, titled Swamp Kings, former linebacker Brandon Spikes has lived a remarkably varied post-NFL life. Continue reading