Former Notre Dame quarterback Rick Mirer has found himself again in life as owner/founder of Mirror Wine Company.
After studying marketing at Notre Dame and graduating in 1993, Mirer was taken #2 overall by the Seattle Seahawks where he was a tremendous bust. The debate that year was over taking Mirer or Drew Bledsoe. It’s pretty obvious the New England Patriots made the right choice on that one! Mirer flamed out in Seattle and eventually the Chicago Bears came calling. He was pretty terrible in Chicago too.
When football was done with him the San Diego resident called upon his marketing roots and launched his own wine company in 2008. So he’s doing just fine without the game.
From the Notre Dame alumni association email newsletter:
As he’s building the business, Notre Dame is not far from Mirer’s mind.
“There’s Notre Dame everywhere,” he said. “We’re going to say, ‘Hi,’ to the alumni group in Atlanta when I’m there for another event. It’s an easy introduction, it’s an easy conversation. It’s generally a room full of people who are highly motivated and successful and nice enough to listen to what we say.”
This instant connection feels like home.
“Notre Dame to me means family,” he said. “There’s a connection regardless of vintage, regardless of era, I feel like I meet people from all corners of the country, from the Class of ’66, Class of ’81…”
There’s a lot of mention of Notre Dame in there, not just because of the audience for the article. I didn’t introduce Mirer as a Seahawks QB or Bears quarterback, because no one remembers him as that. I introduced him as a Notre Dame QB, because he accomplished nothing on the gridiron beyond college football. That’s why it’s good to see his story has a positive ending. Having a winery- that’s pretty good. I’d be happy with that.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports
A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio all over the world; and he’s a member of the Football Writers Association of America, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Society of Professional Journalists. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too.