FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 21, 2010 Contact: Keith Hagarty khagarty@radford.edu (540) 831-7749 radford.edu

NFL Prospect Scores With Social Media Blitz

When National Football League teams gather in New York’s Radio City Musical

Hall tomorrow night for the 2010 NFL Draft, Radford University student Nick Schrank,

22, will join thousands of college football prospects across the country, anxiously

waiting to hear his name called. But unlike his peers, mirroring the tireless

determination of Bear Bryant and the keen promotional skills of Cecil B. Demille,

Schrank’s NFL odyssey revolves around an explosive social media campaign and self-

marketing blitz.

After nearly being blinded in one eye from a teenage paintball accident, the

sparkplug 6’2”, 210 lb. linebacker, blessed with talent which earned him the East Coast

MVP award in the semi-professional North America Football League’s All Star Game in

Miami last November, is no stranger to adversity.

Adopting the motto of “Comfortable in the Uncomfortable” Schrank refuses to

be pigeon-holed or lost in the vast sea of draft prospects. Instead, Schrank, of Fauquier

County, put fate on his shoulders, using the explosive growth of the Internet’s emerging

social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.) to launch a tactical, never-say-die game

plan targeting the NFL. His website www.NickSchrank.com is a vibrant multimedia

playground chronicling his ongoing journey, including his specialized Fre Flo Do

workout training sessions, highlight game footage, daily blogs, photos, videos and

much more.

Rubbing elbows with NFL greats, such as former Tennessee Titans’ legend Eddie

George and Reggie Bush of the world champion New Orleans Saints, helped fuel

Schrank’s NFL aspirations, with his cyber marketing showcase gaining the attention of

Web-surfers by the thousands and media outlets throughout the region and state,

including a recent on-campus profile of Schrank broadcast Tuesday, April 20 on the

Roanoke-based WDBJ7 News.

Schrank is the perfect example of how new media technology and cutting-edge

marketing strategies are sweeping in a new wave of communication resonating across

all fields and industries, including sports, said Christopher Finley, former president of

the Public Relations Society of America, in Roanoke.

“Social media isn’t a fad, it truly is a fundamental shift in the way we

communicate, creating powerful new ways to correspond and share information,” said

Finley. “Social media has revolutionized the industry.”

Schrank lives and breathes his goals, both on and off the field, showing how a

powerful combination of drive and commitment can help achieve anything. Just don’t

say Schrank “dreams” to be in the NFL. Dreams aren’t reality for Schrank, just pie in the

sky fantasies.

“It leaves a bitter taste in my mouth because I don’t believe it to be a dream,” he

said of his NFL prospects. “It’s not a dream; it’s a tangible object I see before me.”

Radford University is currently celebrating its Centennial year, having been

founded by the Virginia General Assembly on March 10, 1910. RU was named one of

the nation’s “Top Up-and-Coming Schools” in the U.S. News and World Report’s 2010

Guide to America’s Best Colleges and one of the “Best in the Southeast” in Princeton

Review’s 2010 Best Colleges: Region by Region. RU is also recognized as a Top 20 Public

Master’s University in the South by the U.S. News & World Report. Located in the heart

of the New River Valley, Virginia, RU features a student body of approximately 9,000,

and nationally recognized faculty-student collaborations. RU offers 67 degree

programs at the undergraduate level and 20 fields of study at the graduate level that

have 18 options or specializations and seven post baccalaureate certificates. RU has

recently opened a state-of-the art visual and performing arts center, is breaking ground

on a new, $44 million building for the College of Business and Economics in May, and

added doctoral degrees in psychology, physical therapy, and nursing practice, and a

master’s in occupational therapy. Outside the classroom, RU supports a culturally

diverse student population through a wealth of student led and directed activities and

events, outstanding NCAA Division I athletics, a commitment to environmental

sustainability, and a beautiful 191 acre campus located along the banks of the New

River.

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