NASHVILLE – Former Titans linebacker Keith Bulluck and tackle Michael Roos are among four former NFL players who've taken up curling, and they'll appear in an SC Featured segment on ESPN's SportsCenter this weekend to tell their story.
"All Pro Curling" will debut in the 7 a.m. CT edition of SportsCenter on Saturday, and will re-air in other editions throughout the weekend.
As Kenny Mayne reports for SC Featured, the four players, led by Jared Allen, have been honing their skills on the ice as they try to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Team in curling. Allen, who played most of his career for the Minnesota Vikings, is joined by Bulluck and Roos, along with former St. Louis Rams quarterback Marc Bulger.
All four players live in Nashville.
"You guys are like a 2-14 NFL team trying to make the Super Bowl – with one year to get better," Mayne said in a clip provided by ESPN.
Bulluck and Roos appear in the segment on ice as they practice curling.
Bulluck makes it clear this is a serious endeavor.
"If they feel like we're disrespecting, they need to come on the ice with us," he said in the clip.
John Benton, coach and a former U.S. Olympic curler, knows the challenge.
"This has never been done," Benton said. "We've never taken athletes from another sport and made them into curlers. So as a coach this is my dream."
The four players want to compete in the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.
"We've set high goals," Allen said. "If we pull it off, it's like Miracle on Ice."
