Orlando Franklin’s unconventional path to the NFL started in Jamaica. He was born to a single mom who wanted a better life for her and her sons. She applied for Visa’s in three countries and only one accepted her: Canada. So, Orlando’s path went north.  

His mom married, but then widowed when her husband tragically passed away. That life change put Orlando and his family in a women’s homeless shelter for a year. Next was Section 8 housing. Then he found football and loved it.  

Not only did Orlando find football, he found trouble. He ran with a crowd that made some bad choices and was arrested for the first time when he was 12. The second time he was arrested, his mom told him she wouldn’t bail him out unless he made a contract with her to turn his life around. He did and she still has that contract.  

Big O and his mom moved to Florida soon after. He got letters from over 70 colleges, and he chose the Miami Hurricanes. From there, he was the Broncos 2nd round draft pick in 2011. Over the next four years, he started 70 of 71 games. In 2015, he thought Denver was going to resign him, but they never called. Begrudgingly, he went to San Diego and Washington over the next few seasons. He called it quits in 2018 to be a very present father to his kids, something he didn’t have growing up.  

Listen to Orlando’s story and conversation with @susiewargin on the Cut Traded Fired Retired Podcast. Links to listen on your favorite podcast platforms in the @ctfrpodcast bio!

She went to the Olympic Trials for swimming when she was 16. She became a pro triathlete after she graduated from Yale. She met her husband (also a pro triathlete) when he sat next to her on a plane. She designed the first running skirt and created a business that empowered women to feel amazing in their skin. She also became a mom.  

Nicole DeBoom is always smiling, which may lead one to believe she’s only encountered positives in her life. Not quite. Along with all the highs have come some lows, like waiting tables and putting on a mascot costume with a degree from Yale. She was also a black out drinker (sober now) and found herself fighting like crazy for space in the apparel world once the big brands realized (and copied) what she was doing with Skirt Sports.  

Today, Nicole, Tim and their daughter Wilder live in Steamboat after uprooting from Boulder four years ago. She had sold her business and went to find her purpose. She may have just done that by coming full circle with a big announcement in the podcast.

Most athletes walk away from sports because they “get too old.” The opposite can happen in the sport of golf and Matt Schalk is a prime example.  

Growing up in Boulder, Matt was a baseball guy. Until his dad won a game of gin at the local country club and the losing golf pro didn’t have the money to pay up. So, Matt’s dad bartered and got the pro to give golf lessons to his sons. One lesson and Matt was hooked.  

He kept up the game until just before high school. The Schalk family finances were struggling at the time and the pricey sport of golf went on the shelf for a decade. After a couple of years at Metro State, Matt picked up his clubs again and decided he wanted to go pro. He made some money, but usually only enough to pay for the next entry fee.  

Once Matt and his wife started a family, it was time for a real job. Of course he started at a golf course, picking up range balls by hand. He eventually worked his way to what he’s doing now as the GM and Director of Golf at Colorado National Golf Club.  In the meantime, he also turned 50, which meant he could start competing in senior events and trying to make the cuts for bigger tournaments. Not only did he make some cuts, he won some championships. Championships that could turn into much bigger victories than he ever had in his younger years. He truly is getting better with age.

Ask anyone in the circle of baseball about Marc Johnson and chances are  they either have a tie to him or know someone who does.  That’s because for more than 50 years, Coach Johnson led one of the best baseball programs in the state of Colorado. A program that produced more than 50 professional players and several that became household names.  

He grew up in Nebraska and followed his father’s passion for the diamond. He played baseball throughout high school and found himself becoming more enamored with how the game was played. After getting his degree from the then Colorado State College (now University of Northern Colorado), he got a job teaching in the Cherry Creek School District.   

He wasn’t there long before he was drafted… into the Army and he was set to head to Vietnam. Until he got a phone call asking if he’d rather go to Vietnam or coach baseball on a base in Texas. He chose the latter.  

After leaving the Army, and with some coaching under his belt, he came back to Cherry Creek and started to teach again and coach. In the spring of 1973, he took over as the head coach for the Bruins and stayed there until he won his 9th State Title in June of 2024. Now it’s time for retirement.

Despite the fact he was a very accomplished swimmer in high school, Sean Moran’s dream was to play professional football. Which he did.  

Sean graduated from Overland High School in Aurora and headed north to play for a coach he thought was perfect for his college career at Colorado State University: Earl Bruce. Unfortunately, Coach Bruce was fired after Sean’s first year and he considered transferring. He was asked to be on and advisory board to hire the new football coach and after hearing Sonny Lubick’s interview, he said he’d stay if Sonny got the job.  

Sean thrived under Coach Lubick and left with numerous accolades great moments including running a fumble recovery 72 yards for a touchdown against #6 Arizona in 1994 – a game no one expected the Rams to be a contender, let alone win. In 2004, Sean became a member of the CSU Athletics Hall of Fame.  

He was drafted in the 4th round by the Buffalo Bills in 1996 and spent the next 8 years between the Bills, St. Louis Rams and 49ers. He played for some great coaches (Wade Phillips, Mike Martz and Dennis Erikson) as well with a number of future Hall of Famers.   

After football, Sean became a fire fighter and paramedic which he continues to do today along with being a husband and father to three children.

Growing up in Washington, Tyler Brayton played a lot of sports. His grandfather was a baseball coach and he thought he was destined for the diamond. That was until his lanky body got coordinated and he started to excel at football in high school.  

He was recruited by a number of schools and felt drawn to Boulder where Rick Neuheisel was the head coach. After his first season, Coach Neuheisel left and Gary Barnett was hired. Normally a new coach would make a first-year player nervous, however Tyler had been recruited by Coach Barnett’s previous school, Northwestern, so the familiarity was already there.  

Tyler racked up some nice numbers for the Buffs as a Defensive End: in 74 games, he had 47 starts, 152 tackles, 12 ½ sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and 6 passes defensed. Heading into the NFL was an obvious next step and Tyler thought he’d be a 2nd or 3rd round pick.  Instead, he was picked in the 1st round by the then-Oakland Raiders.  

In 5 seasons with the Raiders, Tyler had 4 different head coaches. His first-year stats were impressive as he started all 16 games under Bill Callahan. After that, however, his numbers started to decline and with one year left on his six-year contract, Tyler nullified his deal and became a free agent.  

He resurrected his career under John Fox and the Carolina Panthers where he spent 3 seasons and then finished his NFL career with the Colts. He wasn’t ready to be done, however when no one called, he knew it was time.  

Today, Tyler is the head football coach of Arapahoe High School and enjoys spending time with his wife and their 3 children.

Growing up in Cheraw, South Carolina, Fisher DeBerry spent his time playing multiple sports: football, basketball, baseball and track. In high school, he was All-State in football and baseball. He’ll try to tell you that’s because there wasn’t much competition. Highly unlikely.  

Fisher got a small scholarship to play football and baseball at Wofford College. He also worked a few jobs to pay for school as well as enlisted in Amry ROTC. After graduation, he served his commitment, earned his master’s degree and started coaching football and baseball at the high school level.  

His coaching path led him back to Wofford, where he was introduced to the Wishbone offense by head coach James Brakefield. Coach Brakefield brought Fisher with him to Appalachian State where for nine years, the Mountaineers dominated on offense.  

In 1980, Ken Hatfield asked Fisher to join his staff at the Air Force Academy and Fisher took a huge leap leaving the south. He started as the Quarterback’s Coach, moved to Offensive Coordinator and got the Head Coaching job when Coach Hatfield left for Arkansas. Over the next 21 seasons, Coach DeBarry’s Falcons would win the coveted Commander in Chief trophy 14 times, secure a few conference championships as well as bowl game victories.  

After retiring in 2006, Fisher and his wife LuAnn amped up their Fisher DeBerry Foundation, helping single parent families, as well as spending time with their two children, grandchildren and now great-grandchildren.

It would have been easy to walk away from the NFL after being released over and over again. Afterall, Jordan Norwood could head into the real world with his degree from Penn State and find something right? But he didn’t. Instead, he used his down time to stay in shape, rehab injures, plan for the future and work in philanthropy. Today he’s reaping the rewards of his planning and charity work and has a Super Bowl ring because he toughed it out.  

Jordan grew up the son of a football coach and his family of 7 moved around often. He also learned football from a coaching perspective, which proved very fruitful in the NFL as he was constantly learning new schemes and adapting to wherever a team placed him.  

His “natural” position was wide receiver which is why the Broncos signed him. Denver also made him a return specialist, a position he had never played before, but quickly excelled in it. In Super Bowl 50, Jordan set a Super Bowl record by returning a punt 61 yards, helping to set up a field goal for the Broncos.  

After retiring from football, Jordan started some business ventures. Today he is the CEO of DIME MKTG, a company helping athletes realize and improve their brand and value. He is also on the board of directors for The Denver Dream Center and runs a yearly golf tournament to help raise funds for youth and sports programs.  

Many think he should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Afterall, he’s one of only four defensive players on the NFL 1970’s All-Decade team not in Canton and the only corner back on that same list without a bust. But to Louis Wright, all that matters is what his teammates thought of him.  

He grew up in California and gravitated to track and football in high school. He spent one year at Arizona State where he was moved from his high school position of defensive end to defensive back. As Louis says he “partied” his way out of ASU after one year and returned home to attend junior college where he ran track and sat on the bench for the football team.  

He got back to a Division One school when San Jose State offered him a track scholarship. Then a very smart assistant football coach saw him running and convinced him to join the football team. He rode the pine again, until the Spartans played ASU (coincidentally) and Louis was called in for a play. He made a spectacular tackle and never sat on the bench again.  

The Broncos chose Louis with the 17th overall pick in the 1975 draft. His 12-year career with the Broncos included accolades like 5 Pro Bowls, 4 First-Team All-Pro, Ring of Fame, 50th Anniversary Team, two Super Bowl appearances, 26 career interceptions and 11 fumble recoveries. His stats are not as high as other DB’s because quarterbacks feared what might happen if they threw his way, so many times they didn’t.  

After he retired, Louis finished his degree and eventually earned his teaching certificate as well. He recently retired from 28 years of teaching and coaching in the Denver area. He continues to run (in his 70’s), stay in touch with teammates and keep his humble attitude.