From Arizona Athletics
Arizona football and head coach Kevin Sumlin have announced the addition of former Arizona wide receiver Syndric Steptoe to the Wildcats staff as director of player development.
A letterwinner at Arizona from 2003-06, Steptoe was a captain as a senior, before being drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2007. The wide receiver had an illustrious career with the Wildcats that included twice being named All-Pac-10 second-team and a first-team nod in 2006 as a kick returner.
“As a Wildcat who has been an active part of our program and an individual who is dedicated the betterment of young people, we couldn’t be happier to have Syndric joining the program in this new role,” Sumlin said. “His life experiences and successes before, during and after his time as a student-athlete at Arizona give him a unique perspective that our current and future student-athletes will be able to benefit greatly from.”
Following his NFL career, Steptoe went back to school pursue his Master’s degree, which he received in 2015 from Argosy University. He then accepted a position with Arizona Athletics as the associate director of C.A.T.S. Life Skills working with student-athletes on career and professional development.
Steptoe continued his career with a position with the University of Arizona Alumni Association as the director of alumni careers and professional development. He oversaw the operations of the UA Career Lab and also served as the Vice President for the non-profit organization, “Life Athletix.” Its mission is to work with youth football players in the Tucson area to gain life skills through football.
In addition to his role with the Alumni Association, Steptoe served as an adjunct lecturer in sports management at the Eller College of Management.
“For Coach Sumlin to have the insight of understanding the importance of this position and what it leads to as far as student-athletes being successful off the field is very exciting to me,” Steptoe said. “I can’t express it in words, but through my actions taking this job head-on. It will be very rewarding to help our student-athletes navigate through the challenges of being a Division I athlete and a valuable asset to the Tucson community and their individual communities. When I played here, I wished there was someone here to help connect me to all the resources we have on campus, and I look forward to doing that for our current student-athletes.”
Arizona football and head coach Kevin Sumlin have announced the addition of former Arizona wide receiver Syndric Steptoe to the Wildcats staff as director of player development.
A letterwinner at Arizona from 2003-06, Steptoe was a captain as a senior, before being drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2007. The wide receiver had an illustrious career with the Wildcats that included twice being named All-Pac-10 second-team and a first-team nod in 2006 as a kick returner.
“As a Wildcat who has been an active part of our program and an individual who is dedicated the betterment of young people, we couldn’t be happier to have Syndric joining the program in this new role,” Sumlin said. “His life experiences and successes before, during and after his time as a student-athlete at Arizona give him a unique perspective that our current and future student-athletes will be able to benefit greatly from.”
Following his NFL career, Steptoe went back to school pursue his Master’s degree, which he received in 2015 from Argosy University. He then accepted a position with Arizona Athletics as the associate director of C.A.T.S. Life Skills working with student-athletes on career and professional development.
Steptoe continued his career with a position with the University of Arizona Alumni Association as the director of alumni careers and professional development. He oversaw the operations of the UA Career Lab and also served as the Vice President for the non-profit organization, “Life Athletix.” Its mission is to work with youth football players in the Tucson area to gain life skills through football.
In addition to his role with the Alumni Association, Steptoe served as an adjunct lecturer in sports management at the Eller College of Management.
“For Coach Sumlin to have the insight of understanding the importance of this position and what it leads to as far as student-athletes being successful off the field is very exciting to me,” Steptoe said. “I can’t express it in words, but through my actions taking this job head-on. It will be very rewarding to help our student-athletes navigate through the challenges of being a Division I athlete and a valuable asset to the Tucson community and their individual communities. When I played here, I wished there was someone here to help connect me to all the resources we have on campus, and I look forward to doing that for our current student-athletes.”
