Super Bowl Participant Bob Christian Transitions From Football To Flying

Former NFL Player Bob Christian enjoys the friendly skies.

"Ever since I was a little kid, I always dreamed of flying,” he said. “Finally, had a friend who took me up for a ride and I was hooked."

Christian says it became something that was constantly on his mind.  

"That passion for flying just kept hitting at me and I just decided I want to do aviation more than anything else," he explained.

And after 11 seasons in the NFL who can blame him? He played Fullback for the Falcons so he was used to physicality.

"I was always a physical boy; I always like contact," he stated.

The 1997 season, Christian's Falcons made a trip to Super Bowl 33.

"We came out of nowhere,” he said. “The rest of the public didn't understand that we were actually good that year until we made it to the Super Bowl.”

After pulling off one of the bigger upsets in NFL history, defeating Minnesota in the NFC Championship, things didn't go to well against Denver. But the experience was something he'd never forget

"Paul Tagliabue, who was the commissioner at the time, came up to me and said, ‘Hey, Bob.’ I was like wow. You kind of get the sense of how big that game is. We loved to give each other a hard time, but when it came down to it, everybody was excited when we got credit for it and we had so much fun that year," Christian elaborated.

These days, Bob spends time learning to be a pilot at Spartan College. He also helps coach football at Rejoice Christian.

And he says flying is just like football

"You got to study the playbook, got to study the opponent,” he added. “Flying, you got to study the airspace regulations, how to work the airplane, how to work in any situation."

And the skies have proven calmer than the grind of the NFL.