One grew up in Colorado, the other in Illinois. Two redheaded offensive lineman. Both received $2500 scholarships to play Division II football.Ryan Jensen headed south to CSU-Pueblo and Garrett Gilkey played for Chadron State. Their schools were in the RMAC and they quickly learned about one another.
The competition grew between the two, especially as Ryan and Garrett began getting noticed by national D2 publications and NFL Scouts. It continued after college: Garrett was invited to the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine and in the 2013 Draft, Ryan was picked one round ahead of Garrett. They still jab each other about it.
Their pro careers eventually led both to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Garrett was out of the league and getting his MBA as Ryan was getting a mega contract with the Bucs, being Tom Brady’s center and winning a Super Bowl. They stayed in touch and when Ryan was looking to build a house on some land in Colorado, he contacted Garrett to help with the process. Now the two are in business together with Gilk.
Listen to Ryan and Garrett’s story and conversation with Susie Wargin on the Cut Traded Fired Retired Podcast.