HAVERFORD, Pa. – With the NFL season beginning last week, one Haverford College student-athlete has had the opportunity to experience the NFL from a unique perspective. Sophomore field hockey player Abby Frerotte's father, Gus, was a NFL quarterback from 1994-2008 with seven different teams.

Gus Frerotte was drafted in the seventh round by the Washington Redskins in 1994. He would go on to play for the Redskins, Detroit Lions, Denver Broncos, Cincinnati Bengals, Minnesota Vikings (twice), Miami Dolphins, and St. Louis Rams. He made one Pro-Bowl and is one of only 42 quarterbacks in NFL history to lead two different teams to the playoffs.

With Gus playing for seven different teams, Abby moved eight times before getting to high school. "It was definitely hard," said the sophomore goalkeeper about moving so frequently. "However, it'd helped me when I moved to college because I was able to make new friends quickly because it's something I've been used to doing."

During a NFL season, there were a lot of times when Gus was either away with the team traveling or at the team facility. "It was difficult especially when I was older because he lived away from us," said Abby. "We'd be in St. Louis and he'd be in Minnesota. However, I don't feel like he was absent from my life. I felt that he was always around when he could be and things were easier when we were living in the same place. It was hard, but our family adjusted pretty well."

Having a NFL quarterback as your dad made getting into sports an easy transition for the Kittanning, Pa. native. "It was obviously encouraged to get into sports, but it wasn't just from my dad," said Frerotte. "My dad's cousin [Mitch Frerotte] played in the NFL and my grandfather was a high football coach for 40 years so it was always a very big part of my life."

Some would argue that the quarterback is the most important position in sports which is one of the reasons that they are put into the public eye. As America's most popular sport, a quarterback's actions are dissected by the 65,000 fans at the game and the millions who watch it around the country. Abby spoke about some of the life lessons that her dad has taught her by saying "From watching him, he's taught me to always be composed. He's very even-keel and always emphasized the team over himself."

When looking at colleges in high school, Frerotte wanted to go back to Pennsylvania to be closer to her family despite living in the St. Louis suburbs at the time. "I fell in love with Haverford as soon as I found it," said Abby. "I had another visit lined up, but canceled it as soon as I met the team here.  It's a perfect fit for me with the Honor Code, the people, my coach, playing field hockey, the team and location."

Trying to balance academics and athletics is something that every Haverford student-athlete tries to achieve. For Frerotte, the ability to balance the two was something emphasized in high school. "The high school I came from was similar to Haverford in placing academics first, athletics second," said the sophomore goalkeeper. "My parents made sure I put academics over athletics. My father has always said that anything you do in academics, you can apply to sports."

After Gus retired from the NFL, he became a coach, coaching his sons Gunnar and Gabe in football. While Abby isn't sure if she'll follow her dad into the coaching realm after her playing career is over, she does have an idea on what she'd like to do after Haverford. "I'd like to be a veterinarian," said Frerotte. "I worked with a vet this summer and it was great, so that's something I'm leaning towards right now.