Patrick Mohorcic volunteered with Tim Tebow and Imagine Dragons while with the Good Works Team at the Allstate Sugar Bowl.

Watch Mohorcic's ESPN Interview | Watch Mohorcic's Allstate Sugar Bowl feature

The College of Wooster's Patrick Mohorcic was selected as one of the 22 members of the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, and went on to win the subsequent fan vote that determined the captain of the team. Mohorcic traveled to Atlanta, Ga., as the captain for the 2017 Home Depot College Football Awards where he was interviewed live on ESPN. Then, on Dec. 30, Mohorcic and his brother, John, traveled to New Orleans, La., to represent Wooster at the 2018 Allstate Sugar Bowl. Upon returning from New Orleans, Mohorcic reflected on both trips with this first-person account.

By Patrick Mohorcic '18

I am going to be honest; I have been living the life these past few weeks from police escorts to five-star hotels. The people I have met are truly inspirational and the unwavering support from Wooster fans, alumni, and students have truly made this experience all the more worthwhile.

I was blessed to be named to the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®. I was one of 22 players from Divs. I, II, and III, and the NAIA, to be named to the team. With the help of Scots fans everywhere, I was voted the captain of the team, which sent me to the 2017 Home Depot College Football Awards ceremony in Atlanta.

Atlanta

After rushing to finish all my final projects before I left, I hopped on a 7 a.m. flight to Atlanta on Dec. 7. At the gate, my brother and I were met by security to escort us to our driver at baggage claim. We were picked up in a Cadillac SUV which took us to the Omni Hotel. Once I arrived, my program director, Aly, checked us in and gave me my schedule for the day. After a short lunch, I had a 2 p.m. interview with the News-Herald and then was escorted to the College Football Hall of Fame for a production meeting and walk-through. Once the production meeting was over, I finally had time for a short nap.

Finally, the moment we have all been waiting for – the Red Carpet Show. Aly met us in the lobby and I was sent to the green room. There I met Baker Mayfield, J.T. Barrett, Saquon Barkley, Bryce Love, ESPN personality Kirk Herbstreit, and many more players. It was humbling to be in a room with the best players in all of college football and being the only non-Div. I athlete in the room. My name was called and I was escorted to the red carpet where I was met by the craziest Scot fan ever, my roommate Trevor's dad, Jay Bowden, who made the trip to see me walk. Once I reached the carpet, I was met by college football fans from all over the country, and was busy signing autographs and taking pictures. To my surprise, many knew about The College of Wooster.

Once I made my way to my seat, I enjoyed the award ceremony until it was my turn to be interviewed. The lights were bright and my heart was pounding. Then all of sudden, Tom Rinaldi shook my hand and said "you'll do great." I was so happy to get my message out there and represent The College of Wooster on a national level. I was then ushered to my press conference where I answered questions from reporters.

New Orleans

Picture this, a 6-5 275-pound man in slippers and a beanie running through Chicago O'Hare International Airport to make his connecting flight. That was me. I would also like to formally apologize to my brother who I may have knocked over to beat him to the gate. You will be happy to know we made our connecting flight and landed safely in New Orleans, where we were not only met by our driver, but a police escort. That was cool. Driving through New Orleans with a police escort is quite an experience. Upon arriving, we were met by Dan Keats, director of sponsorship marketing for Allstate and a Kenyon College alumnus, who had nothing but nice things to say about Wooster. After a formal rules meeting, my brother and I did some sightseeing on Bourbon Street, which was everything you could imagine. 

The next morning, we loaded a bus and went to the APEX Youth Center, where we helped build a recording studio for underprivileged youth. There I got to work with Dan Reynolds, lead singer of Imagine Dragons. Next, our PR director Emily pulled me into a room, where I got to meet my childhood hero, Tim Tebow. Being the team captain, I got to sit down with him for about ten minutes or so and just talk. It was a surreal moment. I've looked up to Tim my whole life and had his poster in my room since I was 10-years-old. It was one of the best moments of my life.

After our service project, we were shuttled to our float for the Sugar Bowl Parade. Let me tell you, there is a certain satisfaction you get from throwing beads at people. It was so much fun! After the parade, we had some down time to prepare for the House of Blues New Year's Eve party, where we had VIP tickets to the Imagine Dragons concert. I forgot how many good songs they have. It was blast to bring in the New Year that way! 

Patrick Mohorcic and fellow Good Works Team member Courtney Love.

The next day we had a formal breakfast where Tebow and other guests spoke to us and thanked us for our work. Next, we had a production meeting on the field at the Superdome where we walked through our halftime script. We were then taken to our suite on the 50 yard line. We had incredible seats to take in such an awesome game. At the beginning of the second quarter we were taken to the field to prepare for halftime and then escorted onto the field. It was loud to the point where I could not hear myself think! I was thankful to have my own personal tribute on the video board and on ESPN as well. I was so excited to show off The College of Wooster to the world!

Thank You

I would like to take this time to thank someone very special who made this all happen, Kevin Smith, our sports information director at The College of Wooster. Kevin nominated me all the way back in May and has been instrumental in coordinating all my travels and scheduling all my media events. Kevin, thank you for making a dream come true and giving me the experience of a lifetime! I would also like to thank our coaching staff, specifically Coach Colaprete for his support as well. This year was rough off the field for both of us with the death of Clayton Geib, and without his guidance, I don't know if I would have made it to Atlanta. Thank you for taking a chance on me coach and all your support you have given me these past four years!

Lastly, I would like to thank my classmates, alumni, and Scots fans everywhere. I would not have earned the captain award without your relentless voting and support! After my interview in Atlanta, my phone broke due to all the tweets, text messages, snapchats, emails, and direct messages congratulating me on my accomplishments. The truth is, this is our accomplishment, we did this together, and we showed the world who the Fighting Scots are and we will continue to do so!