From The Field To The Flight Deck: How NFL Player Kevin Houser Became An Airline Captain

Taking a closer look at an unconventional career story.


Photo: American Airlines

Have you ever wondered what it takes to become a pilot? The most common path is a bachelor's degree in aviation followed by flight school, but it turns out that pilots can come from all sorts of different backgrounds. Let's take a closer look at the career of Kevin Houser: a former NFL player turned airline captain.

Childhood and early career

Even before he became a football player, Houser had an affinity for aviation. As a child, he repeatedly alternated Halloween costumes between various NFL players that he admired and a pilot, remaining unable to decide which field he wanted to pursue a career in for the longest time.

Houser graduated from Ohio State University in 2000 with a Bachelor of Business Administration and finally decided that he was going to pursue a career as a football player in the NFL. He was drafted to the Saints as a long snapper, where he remained for eight years until he was traded to the Seahawks in 2009. Unfortunately, Houser had a very short run with the Seahawks as he suffered an injury in a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was picked up by the Ravens the following year. It was at that time that he realized that his time in the NFL was limited. After all, he was pushing 11 years in an industry where most only lasted three. It was time to make a career change.

Flight school

During his tenth and final season in the NFL, Houser revisited his childhood passion and completed his private, instrumental, commercial, and certified flight instructor certifications. Once he had earned his wings and finished his last season, Houser went all-in on a career in aviation and found work as a certified flight instructor, which he continued to do for six years before he signed with CommutAir (which operates flights on behalf of United Airlines as United Express), where he currently trains new pilots to fly the Embraer E145.

Houser's journey is, without a doubt, an unusual one, but his success as both an NFL player and a pilot serves as a testament to his sheer determination and his unwillingness to compromise on his childhood dreams. Reflecting on a childhood flight experience that inspired his passion for aviation, Houser said,

"One morning when I was a child, we arrived at the airport and got on board a flight to visit my dad at work. I was wide eyed and took everything in. I remember the distinct smell of the aircraft, my seat, and being with my brother and sister, mom and dad. As the engines of the 727 roared to life, the feeling of acceleration, the pure power, and the increased g-forces at we took flight. Looking out the window and seeing Cleveland from a bird's eye view for the first time was breathtaking."