Many college students graduating this spring still have no idea what they want to do in life.
But Anthony Lynn already has a very lucrative job — he's the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers. Despite his professional success, the 49-year-old Lynn always regretted leaving college a few hours shy of his degree in 1992 to pursue an NFL career.
Lynn set out to change that, enrolling in online courses in 2014 with the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Saturday, he'll finish the journey he started 30 years ago, as he graduates from UNLV with a degree in interdisciplinary studies.
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Lynn's family and Chargers owner Dean Spanos will be on hand for the ceremony in Las Vegas. Lynn told the Los Angeles Times he had not wanted to march in the graduation, but realized his story could be an example for others.
"I just wanted my papers. Mail me my damn diploma, I'll give it to my mom, and I'm done," Lynn said. "When I told my counselor, when I told her what my plans were — she had just assumed that I was walking the whole time. I never assumed I was walking.
"The disappointment on her face when I told her I wasn't coming, it was tough. I thought about it. She made me rethink it. I decided to walk because if it could inspire one person, then it's worth it."
Lynn, who went undrafted after playing four seasons at Texas Tech, went on to play six seasons in the NFL as a running back and special teams member with the Broncos and 49ers. He says he always intended to finish his degree, but as he began his coaching career in 2000, that goal faded away. Lynn credits a friend, Dave Szott, with convincing him to go back to school.
He's especially happy his mother will be on hand for Saturday's ceremony.
"I was the first person in my family to go to [college], and my mother sat there and watched my son graduate, watched my daughter graduate," Lynn said. "And I just think she's going to enjoy watching her son graduate."