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Get Scouted Scouting CareersSanto Stephens is not someone you easily miss when he’s nearby.
At 6’4″ and 250 pounds, Stephens has a dominant physical presence, to say the least. For instance, it has become a normal thing for everyone in an NSR meeting room to turn their heads his way when Santo enters the room.
Yet, unless someone whispered over his shoulder to you that Stephens was a four-year NFL veteran linebacker, you’d think he was just another nice guy. A big, nice guy, granted, but just a nice guy.
See, Stephens is one of those people who could command the spotlight but he has no need or desire for it. Humble and gentle, Santo is the antithesis of what you might naturally imagine a man would be like who once made his living in the most violent of professional sports.
Then when Santo speaks, it becomes apparent that he is also intelligent, humorous and genuine. In other words, Santo Stephens is just the person to lead football for the nation’s oldest and largest high school scouting organization, National Scouting Report.
“When I first met Santo a couple of years ago, I was hopeful that he would be as good with kids as he was with his peers during initial training. Thankfully, he was, and more,” declared Rusty Rigney, president of NSR, the Birmingham, Alabama, based company. “He draws attention because of his size and once other sports-minded folks discover his background, they gravitate toward him.”
“But it is who he is not who he was that impresses everybody who comes into contact with him,” Rigney asserted. “You will not find a nicer man. We are very lucky to have him as part of our company. He has been a terrific NSR scout in the South Metro Atlanta area. His client-families love him. Santo has a very strong work ethic which is essential in our line of work. That success made him an easy choice for me when choosing a national football leader. I am confident he will do a wonderful job for us.”
Stephens is a native of Capital Heights, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C. He attended Forestville High School. Recruited by a number of D-I programs, Santo eventually chose to play for Temple University in Philadelphia after a life-changing phone call.
“I didn’t have the SAT score I needed early on and all the other schools backed off,” Stephens said. “Then I received a call from Temple’s Head Coach Bruce Arians.”
Arians, who is currently the head coach of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, said to Stephens, “I know you will get the score and we’ll be here when you do.”
“That showed what I could expect from him as an athlete in his program,” Santo said.
After four years with the Owls, and securing his degree in Communications, Stephens became an undrafted free agent in the NFL where the Kansas City Chiefs signed him. He subsequently also played for the Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars before leaving the NFL.
Since then, Stephens has held positions with Walmart and LensCrafters in general manager roles and with Mutual of New York (MONY) as a financial advisor to NFL players. But his desire to help young people continued to pull at his heart.
That is where NSR came in.
“When I received Santo’s resume, I called him at once,” exclaimed NSR’s Coach Robert Cagle. “His history of successfully working with and leading people popped off the page. When we talked, I was so impressed with his grasp of what we at NSR does that it was a no-brainer to invite him to be a scout for us.”
Stephens took to scouting right away following his training in the NSR home office.
“The entire staff was immediately impressed with Santo,” exuded Cagle. “He fit us like a glove. From the first day, we knew he would be a big success.”
As for Stephens, NSR was an extension of what he had already been doing.
“I saw NSR as a partner that could provide marketing services for athletes and for answering questions I was already fielding (from parents). Over the years I have made calls to assist families in the recruiting process,” Stephens explained. “It is still amazing to me how little information is shared with parents and student-athletes about the recruiting process. If you decide to become a part of the NSR Family or not I think everyone should get accurate information about this process.”
Being asked by Rigney to be NSR’s National Director of Football was something Santo had not expected, but he was happy to accept.
“NSR has so much to offer high school prospects in every sport,” Stephens said. “In football, I expect our organization to expand on the ground to every corner of the nation. We will continue to identify solid football prospects for college coaches at all levels. I want NSR to be synonymous with football and football coaches.”
Moreover, Stephens added, “Strategic partnerships will be the key to boosting the NSR brand (in football). There are organizations across the country that are doing great work with NSR student-athletes and we want to be a part of that. The Blitz Combine Series is also a great vehicle that we can use.”
“We will recruit, train and empower great scouts across the country to seek out the best student-athletes that this country has to offer and assist them with an opportunity to play at the next level,” Stephens declared. “Bringing on great people with a real focus on recruiting football will revitalize the sport for our company.”
“We will also capitalize on our ability to use technology and social media to continue to hammer our message. We are the authority. We are NSR!” exclaimed Stephens.
Earning a college football scholarship is extremely hard. Only one in ten prospects actually lands one. Yet, football prospects in every state have the opportunity to be professionally represented and aggressively promoted to college coaches by the best scouting organization in America.
NSR has knowledgeable, connected football scouts. They work together to help all NSR football prospects to get recognized, evaluated and recruited.
Call the NSR scout near you today. Find out if you qualify athletically and academically to be a college football player.
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National Scouting Report is dedicated to finding scholarship opportunities for athletes who possess the talent, desire, and motivation to compete at the collegiate level. We’ve helped connect thousands of athletes with their perfect college.