As a youngster growing up in Kansas City, Mo., Daniel Lavin '08 dreamed of a career in sports.
In high school, he played soccer and basketball, but didn't quite have the talent to play competitively in college.
He earned a bachelor's degree in history at the University of Missouri-Columbia and later completed WSU's sport management graduate program in 18 months.
Now, at age 26, he is the building services superviser at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, the venue for Super Bowl XLVI.
"I kind of fell into this career," he says. "I got this job and six months later, here I am working the Super Bowl." As superviser, he's in charge of making sure the 70,000-seat stadium is ready for whatever event is booked, including NFL games featuring the Colts. The 1.8 million-square-foot, seven-level stadium is massive or, as Lavin puts it, "a monster."
He fully enjoys his job, and its perks: A few days before the Super Bowl, he was on the field during a photo shoot featuring the Lombardi Trophy. He got permission to pose with the prize, handcrafted by Tiffany & Co. The result is the photo above. Not seen in the shot, however, is a hovering security guard with a close eye on the trophy. "They told me I couldn't touch it," Lavin says, "and they meant it."
