This
article was published in the January 2024 edition of NTEA News.
Registration
is available for NTEA’s Annual Meeting — held during Work Truck Week on the
morning of Thursday, March 7 — which will feature two of the National Football
League’s greatest running backs — Jerome Bettis and Emmitt Smith as keynote
speakers.
The
Annual Meeting keynote will be a question-and-answer conversation between
Bettis and Smith moderated by Jason Ritchey, 2024 NTEA Convention chair, and
president and owner of Curry Supply Co.
About
Bettis and Smith
Both
Bettis and Smith entered the NFL Draft after their junior years in college and
each was selected in the first round.
Bettis
was drafted by the L.A. Rams in 1993. In his first season, he was named NFL
Co-Rookie of the Year, Sporting News Rookie of the Year and Rams MVP. He was
traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1996. In his first season with Pittsburgh,
he won NFL Comeback Player of the Year. Over the course of his career, he was
voted to the Pro Bowl six times and was named first-team All-Pro twice. In
2001, he won the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award for his work with The
Jerome Bettis Bus Stops Here Foundation that assists underprivileged inner-city
youth. In 2006, Bettis retired from the NFL after helping the Steelers win
Super Bowl XL in his hometown of Detroit. He was elected to the Pro Football
Hall of Fame in 2015. Bettis wrote two autobiographies and has had a successful
broadcast career as a football analyst for national sports networks and as host
of The Jerome Bettis Show in Pittsburgh on WPXI-TV. Bettis returned to Notre
Dame to complete his education, graduating on May 15, 2022, with a business degree.
Smith,
who remains the NFL’s all-time leading rusher, was drafted by the Dallas
Cowboys in 1990. He spent 13 seasons with the Cowboys and two with the Arizona
Cardinals, returning to the Cowboys for a day to officially retire with the
team in 2005. Smith is the only running back to ever win a Super Bowl
championship, NFL Most Valuable Player award, NFL rushing crown and Super Bowl
Most Valuable Player award in the same season. He led the league in rushing and
won the Super Bowl the same year three times, in 1992, 1993 and 1995. Smith was
inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Pro Football
Hall of Fame in 2010. Since retiring from professional football, he has built
companies spanning real estate, construction, technology and renewable energy.
His current businesses include E J Smith Enterprises; E Smith Legacy, a premier
real estate development firm; E Smith Advisors, a majority-owned joint
brokerage firm; EJ Smith Construction, a Dallas-based commercial and civil
construction management and general contractor; PROVA Group, Inc., an
enterprise providing technology-based authentication solutions for memorabilia
and high-value items; and Notable Live!, a mobile social platform connecting
celebrities and notables with their fans. He earned a bachelor’s degree from
University of Florida.
Register
Registration
is required to attend NTEA’s Annual Meeting — sponsored by Ford Pro. Tickets
are available for purchase separately at worktruckweek.com.