Hitting the Books and Gridiron: A Look at Some Business Majors Drafted by the NFL

While millions will watch Super Bowl LVII on television, a few Cal Poly business graduates have a unique perspective on the game – including one who owns a Super Bowl ring.

Through the years, several business alumni have been drafted by the NFL, having excelled at the game as a member of the Mustangs football team. Many went on to use their business degrees in post-football careers. With an assist from Cal Poly Athletics, here are a few notable examples:

Ramses Barden (2008)

Ramses Barden (2008)

Barden is a Super Bowl veteran, having been a member of the New York Giants team that won Super Bowl XLVI in 2012 against the New England Patriots.

Known for his size, speed, and strength, the 6-foot-6 receiver was drafted in the third round and played four seasons with the New York Giants. His highlights included a September, 2012 Thursday night game against Carolina, when he caught nine Eli Manning passes for a game-high 138 yards.

At Cal Poly, Barden owns virtually every receiving record, including 206 career catches for 4,203 yards and 50 touchdowns.

Barden works at Flintridge Preparatory School in in La Cañada Flintridge, Calif., where he has also coached football and basketball. He also serves as a motivator, sportsman, educator and pronounced activist in the field of wellness empowerment, generating strategic game plans for charitable, educational and professional institutions.

The Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Famer (2019) has served as an analyst on Cal Poly football and men’s basketball broadcasts.

Seth Burford (2002)

Seth Burford (2002)

Drafted in the seventh round of the 2002 NFL draft, Burford is best known at Cal Poly for a remarkable game when he passed for 566 yards in 2000, crushing the prior record of 410 yards.

Burford threw four touchdowns in that game against 24th-ranked Idaho State and was remarkably precise, connecting on 34 of 49 passes.

The game helped him set a Cal Poly single-season record of 2,672 passing yards (which still stands) and 23 touchdowns that no doubt impressed NFL scouts. Known for his size, speed and strong arm, he was drafted by the San Diego Chargers, whose roster already boasted star QBs Drew Brees and Doug Flutie. Burford later played for the Barcelona Dragons of NFL Europe.

Today, he works as the chief financial officer/estimator for G. Hedgecock, Inc. , a commercial grading and paving contractor in Modesto, California.

Asa Jackson (2012)

Asa Jackson (2012)

The last Cal Poly player to be drafted by an NFL team, Jackson played in the league for six seasons before eventually returning to his alma mater in 2022 as an assistant coach in charge of cornerbacks.

After finishing his college career with 42 starts in 43 games as a defensive back, the All-American and two-time top defensive player in the Big West Conference was drafted in the fifth round by the Baltimore Ravens.

His 307 yards off eight interceptions is still a school record, and he ranks second with three touchdown interceptions.

Over his NFL career — 2012-15 with the Ravens, 2016 with the Detroit Lions and 2017 with the San Francisco 49ers — Jackson played in 26 games with eight starts, recording 38 total tackles (30 solo) with four pass deflections and one tackle for lost yardage. Following his playing career, Jackson served as a defensive backs assistant at Ohio State for the 2019 and 2020 seasons followed by one year as defensive coordinator at Christian Bros. High School in Sacramento, where he was a star quarterback. He also has worked as head of business operations at DB Select in Sacramento, which helps train student athletes to pursue excellence on and off the football field.

In addition to his coaching duties with Cal Poly, he also is the team’s social media liaison.

Louis Jackson (1981)

Louis Jackson (1981)

A member of the memorable 1980 Division II National Championship team, Jackson held CalPoly’s rushing record for 18 years, having carried for 3,330 yards. His career touchdown record – 32 TDs – held for even longer, 28 years.

His many college achievements – including a 267-yard game in 1978 and a 1,424-yard season in 1980 – appealed to the New York Giants, who drafted him in the fifth round of the 1981 draft.

In 1999, Jackson, who also played for the USFL, was inducted into the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame and remains one of Mustang’s all-time best rushers.

Jackson served as a police corporal for the Clovis Police Department for 20 years (1995-2015) and currently works as emergency manager for Fresno Pacific University.

Robbie Martin (1981)

Robbie Martin (1981)

Martin, who scored all three touchdowns for Cal Poly in the NCAA Division II national championship game in 1980, played six seasons with the Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts,. He excelled in the NFL as a leading punt returner and ran kicks back for touchdowns three times.

A receiver in college, Martin compiled 2,249 yards on 117 catches, including 19 career touchdowns. When he was selected to the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005, he was Cal Poly’s No. 2 leader in touchdown receptions and No. 4 in receiving yards.

In the NFL, he was a receiver and top punt returner, setting single-season return records in the latter role for both the Colts and Lions. He finished third in punt return yardage in 1981, second in 1982 and fourth in 1985.

His longest punt return, 81 yards against the Pittsburg Steelers, occurred before 77,000 Detroit fans on Thanksgiving Day in 1983. The game helped the Lions to a Central Division championship.

Martin is now president of RLM Properties in San Jose, a commercial real estate firm focused on development, investment sales and leasing in the greater Silicon Valley area.