Now he’s making use of his expertise to show the following era as head coach of the NFL Academy, external, which goals to unearth the most effective expertise from throughout Europe and Africa.
The academy launched in 2019 in London, and is now primarily based at Loughborough College, the place gamers between the ages of 16 and 19 prepare 5 days every week alongside full-time training.
That is with a view to equipping them with the talents and {qualifications} to seal a spot at a Division One or Division Two faculty crew within the US – and finally a spot within the NFL draft.
This yr, there shall be 72 gamers from 19 totally different international locations and territories concerned, with 34 newcomers from greater than 2,500 candidates.
There are at the moment 19 academy alumni enjoying in Division One and English former rugby participant Travis Clayton was drafted by Buffalo Bills in April, having hung out within the academy and later becoming a member of the worldwide participant pathway.
A second academy is because of open in Gold Coast, Australia, in September, opening up the pathway to younger folks in different components of the world.
“We do what American footballers do, they play their sport and so they go to highschool,” Hagen stated.
“In the end, we might like for these guys to have an prolonged soccer profession. We have taught them sufficient in order that they’ll go to proceed to play in America, that to me is success.”
He added: “And that they seize the usual of this programme for his or her life and get rid of common in their very own life. They change into knowledgeable, a technique or one other.
“Not everybody’s going to change into knowledgeable soccer participant however they’ll change into knowledgeable physician, lawyer, plumber – it would not matter what they do, after which they’ll change into a father and a husband and be a extremely good, sound particular person.”