When Jaylen Brazzle ’28 began his summer internship, he knew he wanted to gain real-world experience in the sports industry. He didn't necessarily expect the experience to help him find his voice.
Brazzle, a junior studying sport and recreation management at St. Ambrose University, spent the summer working as an event coordinator with the Quad City Corporate Games, helping organize and run athletic competitions for employees from businesses and organizations across the Quad Cities.
The role put him behind the scenes of sporting events and, as the summer progressed, increasingly put him in charge. For Brazzle, who described himself as more naturally introverted, that responsibility became an opportunity to grow.
"I'm not really a talker, so I had to become comfortable to talk more and be loud," Brazzle said. "I feel like that's what I needed to grow and develop."
Learning to lead
Brazzle found the Quad City Corporate Games opportunity through St. Ambrose. After seeing the opportunity through an email from the Academic and Career Planning Center, he reached out and interviewed for the position.
“I wanted to learn about what the real world will look like outside of school,” Brazzle said.
Brazzle's work took him to events throughout the Quad Cities, where employees from area companies competed in activities including basketball, volleyball, track and field, pickleball, and dodgeball.
His responsibilities extended well beyond what participants saw during the competitions. Before events, Brazzle created brackets based on participating teams and added information such as game times, dates, and locations.
On event days, he picked up medals, coordinated with facility staff, helped prepare check-in areas, and answered participants' questions. Once competitions ended, he updated brackets and posted results. As he gained experience, his supervisor gave him opportunities to take on more responsibility.
One of Brazzle's first major tests came during a pickleball event when rain disrupted the outdoor competition. His supervisor wasn't there, leaving Brazzle to decide how to keep the event moving.
"I had to make calls," Brazzle said. "That was my first time really having to be loud and use my voice."
Brazzle found another location, made an announcement to the participants, and moved the competition indoors. Soon, the tournament was running again.
"After I made the call, I got everybody moved inside. I got the timing back up and running," he said. "It ended up running pretty smoothly."
The experience gave Brazzle an early opportunity to see that he could handle the unexpected demands of event management.
Later in the summer, he took on significant responsibility during a dodgeball competition, arriving early to prepare the venue and helping participants know when and where they needed to compete. Managing a competitive environment meant occasionally calming people down and making sure the event stayed on track.
By the end of the summer, Brazzle said the most rewarding part wasn't one particular event. It was realizing he had been able to meet every challenge put in front of him.
"There was not a moment where I was like, 'I can't do this,' or, 'This might be too difficult,'" Brazzle said. "Everything I did, I was able to overcome, even if it was something new or something I wasn't used to."
Bringing classroom lessons to the field
For Brazzle, pursuing a career connected to sports feels like a natural extension of something that has been part of his life for years.
The Texas native grew up watching his brothers play football and found his passion there as well. After beginning college in Texas, Brazzle transferred to St. Ambrose his sophomore year after connecting with the Fighting Bees football coaching staff.
Football also helped guide him toward studying sport and recreation management.
"I grew up with two older brothers. I was there for everything, so I just kind of followed in their footsteps," Brazzle said. "As long as I can be around the game, I'm pretty sure I'll be happy."
At St. Ambrose, classroom presentations helped prepare him to communicate in front of others, a skill he relied on throughout his internship. Over the summer, he also strengthened his time management and became more comfortable asking questions when he didn't know the answer.
That willingness to ask for help became another lesson Brazzle will carry forward.
"It's okay to ask questions. It's okay to not know what you're doing because you can get help," he said.
Finding a future in sports
The internship didn't just give Brazzle experience to bring back to the classroom. It gave him greater confidence that he is pursuing the right career.
"This definitely solidified the path I want to go now," Brazzle said. "What I want to do is continue to be around sports and into that sports management world and just be more with business outside of this."
Brazzle's own experience as a college athlete has been shaped by perseverance. He described himself as having an "underdog story," growing up undersized and feeling like he had something to prove.
"I feel like that fuels me more to do it," Brazzle said. "I'm wanting to prove myself, to prove that I can do it."
At St. Ambrose, he said having coaches and teammates who believe in him has helped him grow into a leadership role as he gets older. Now, he hopes to pass that confidence along to younger teammates.
"You can do it if you put your mind to it," Brazzle said. "You stay focused and you listen and just follow the path that they have for you. Everything will work out."
It's a mindset that extends beyond the football field.
After a summer of managing schedules, responding to unexpected challenges, and learning to lead with confidence, Brazzle is returning to St. Ambrose with a clearer sense of what he's capable of, and where he wants those skills to take him.
Want to see where you can turn your interests into real-world experience? Schedule a visit to St. Ambrose University and discover the opportunities waiting for you.
