Brandon Copeland's résumé is an impressive one. He graduated from University of Pennsylvania, runs a non-profit, has two real estate companies, was voted the 2019 Alan Page Award winner by the NFLPA and is a professor at his alma mater, teaching a course about financial literacy called "Life 101." All of this on top of an NFL career is no small feat, and on Tuesday, he added another impressive achievement.
Copeland is included on the prestigious Forbes 30 Under 30 sports list for 2021.
The annual lists included 30 difference-makers across industries like sports, entertainment, health care, media, technology, commerce and more, and Copeland is among the 30 honored on the sports list for his work beyond football.
In a tweet, Copeland thanked those who helped get him to this point.
"Every interaction, conversation and experience has culminated in this! Look what WE did! If we have had any of the above (big, small or unknowingly) I mean it when I say, thank you for molding me into this version of myself," Copeland wrote. "Now... let's get back to work!!"
Despite being put on injured reserve earlier this season, Copeland has continued to use his time to offer financial literacy advice to local organizations and on national news programs, as well as helping families through his Beyond the Basics Foundation. He hit the ground running as soon as he arrived in New England, and he is just getting started.
Copeland is in good company among his fellow sports honorees. DeAndre Hopkins of the Cardinals, Chiney Ogwumike of the Los Angeles Sparks and Malika Andrews of ESPN are just a few of this year's list.
While Copeland is the latest Patriot to land on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, he isn't the first. Former Patriot Martellus Bennett earned a place on the list in 2017. The previous year, Bennett spoke at the annual conference, as it was hosted in Boston, and he made a splash talking about his creative process and being more than an athlete.
