Leading a Religious Life in the World of Sports

With a league of 14 universities participating in 28 sports and over 10,000 students competing, the Big Ten is the oldest and most prominent intercollegiate sports conference in the United States. For the last four years Adam Neuman has been one of the most instrumental leaders impacting the Big Ten. As Chief of Staff, Strategy and Operations & Deputy General Counsel, Adam oversaw the additions of USC and UCLA, took responsibility for the rights and wellbeing of student athletes, managed legal matters, scheduling, rules and regulations, HR, PR and so much more. All while making mental health and therapy a priority for his student body. Oh, and his first year at the job was during the Covid pandemic.

Adam with Lebron James

Now Adam is heading to his hometown to work as the Chief of Staff of the Baltimore Ravens and as Special Advisor to the President of the team. Adam’s resume includes two NFL teams, a prestigious New York law firm, and a crucial role in the Office of the President of Yeshiva University.

Not bad for a 33-year-old observant Jew.

By most expectations, operating as a critical liaison in the most chaotic and demanding entities in the sports world, one might think keeping a kosher diet and taking the mandatory day of Shabbat off each week would be totally incompatible. Yet, not only has Adam excelled in the role of senior leadership, he’s done so while constantly striving to be an exemplary Jewish role model.

During his transition from the college world to professional football, I sat down with Adam to learn what drives him, how he has achieved his dream job, and how he balances his religion with the non-stop demands of the athletic world.

How do you do it? How do you handle so much responsibility?

By relying on a lot of good people, working really closely with the universities and schools, and then being really diligent. I work really, really long hours. I’m working anywhere from 7 in the morning till 10 at night. I’m working every Saturday night, I’m working every Sunday. It’s not a job for someone who doesn’t want to work. It's great to be at a national championship, it’s great to be at the Super Bowl, it’s great to be at a lot of these cool events, but at the end of the day there’s a ton of work and people have incredibly high expectations. You’re dealing with a lot of athletes who have been working their whole lives who are incredibly diligent and you sort of have to match that attitude and practice.

Adam with Big Ten Commissioner (and mentor) Kevin Warren and his wife Greta Warren

For everyone who is hustling to land their dream job, what do you think most people are missing?

I think people are too focused on exactly what it is they want to do. I talk to students and I know pretty quickly if I think they’re going to make it in sports. It’s not so much about the talent, but the sacrifice and things you have to be willing to do.

It’s hard not to know that I’m an Orthodox Jew within 10 minutes of knowing me.

I hear kids say they want to work for the Knicks or the Yankees or the Rangers… and I see that geographic limitation as a real problem. Because people are willing to mow the lawn in Timbuktu to get a job in sports for free. So if you’re only willing to work for a New York sports club, it’s not going to work for you. You have to take what’s available and you can’t be super, super picky on college sports versus professional sports. You have to maybe look at some of the up and coming leagues as serious opportunities and the sports world is very connected. You’re not going to get exactly what you want right away. You might never get exactly what you want in this world.

How have you dealt with being religious in such a demanding field?

It’s hard not to know that I’m an Orthodox Jew within 10 minutes of knowing me. It’s challenging to keep kosher in Iowa, it’s challenging to keep kosher in Alabama. These are not places that are flooded with people that understand a lot about our community necessarily. It is my job to say to myself, I have to figure this out.

Kevin Warren with Adam and Rachie at their wedding

Walking around Indianapolis after sundown on a Friday night because something goes late and not being able to get into a car and having to walk in 26 degrees for three miles with no GPS and you have no idea where your hotel is… is not the most fun thing that you have to do.

How do you approach people about those restrictions?

At the end of the day I’ve found that if you stand true to your principles, people more often than not, will respect it. I am responsible for educating others in a way that is thoughtful, communicative, friendly, and in a way that is non-intrusive. A lot of it is just preparing people. Don’t tell someone the night before Rosh Hashanah that you’re not going to be available for two days. I regularly send out an email in, like, the middle of June that gives every single time and date of all those holidays. I explain, this is what I can do, this is what I can’t do, if there is an emergency this is what you can do to get to me.

I don’t think what the fair thing to do is to walk into these situations and ask everybody to just cater to you. In this generation we see a very me oriented attitude. “Respect me, look at me, find me.” And I’m trying to do this in a way that doesn’t put pressure on my teammates or people that I am working with, or a way that doesn’t respect their time.

How do you respond to people who say, “It’s not realistic being observant in the professional world?”

I’ve heard over and over again, “It’s not realistic, it's too challenging,” or “There are all sorts of issues around it.” But I saw a vision for myself of how it could work. Luckily, I’ve been blessed to be around people that have encouraged me to think that way and have colleagues who have supported me. Strangely enough, in the sports world I have found that it is met with respect rather than negativity. Similar to an athlete, there’s a very serious discipline to it.

In the sports world I have found that being religious is met with respect rather than negativity.

Being religious my entire life, I don’t expect to get respect for things that I’ve always done. For me, I’ve kept Shabbos and kosher for my whole life. It’s not something that I’ve ever struggled with. But people in the collegiate athletic world can’t believe it. They view it as a massive sacrifice. So that just goes to show that if you put God first, you have a good shot at doing anything as long as you're honest about why you’re doing it and what your goals are.

Adam and his wife Rachie with the mascot Brutus Buckeye at the Ohio State vs Michigan Game

I’ve always been very passionate about working in this industry and I felt like I had a lot to give from various different angles, and the Jewish angle is a huge piece of that. I think it’s actually been part of my package of who I am and makes me more desirable.

Which Jewish biblical leader inspires you the most?

I’d probably have to go with Abraham, the Jewish People’s first forefather, for two reasons. I think he was the greatest leader when it came to personal responsibility. That’s where I think you always have to start. You have to hold yourself responsible before you hold others responsible. I don’t ask folks to do things that I wouldn’t do or haven’t done. I don’t clean up the floor unless I’m willing to clean up the floor. Now, everybody has different roles on a team, but it’s really important that you’re all in it together.

What I also admire about him as a leader is that he’s the consummate host. He was hosting right after he had his circumcision. He was always encouraging people to join him and be a part of something. Showing you care is a great way to reach people, and hospitality is all about showing that care. We all know what it feels like to be the lone person trying to encourage folks to do something. It’s not easy. Especially when it’s not the most popular thing. So when I’m trying to convince people of a certain course or direction, I look to what he did.

In your leadership talks, you’ve advised audiences, “Make sure you can recognize success in all of its disguises.” Meaning, just because a candidate or choice isn’t rated #1, you shouldn’t dismiss it. But for a student or an athlete who all too often feels boiled down to a grade or a statistic, how can they utilize this outlook?

It’s about rising above the bottom line, so to speak. Rising above the end result. Judaism in general is critical of trying to control results because that’s an impossible task. There are very few winners. It’s very hard to be THE BEST and win everything. Even if you win your big rivalry game, you might lose your conference championship or you lose in the NCAAs or any tournament in between. Paul Goldschmidt was the national league MVP last year and he’s not in the Major League All-Star game this year. He’s having a very solid season, but the Cardinals just didn’t do that well. So he’s out. It’s not his fault.

It’s not wise to only focus on results, and that’s why Judaism puts more focus on the effort.

It’s not wise to only focus on results, and that’s why Judaism puts more focus on the effort. So for my leadership style, you want to focus on the here and now. You want to focus on doing your best. But ultimately, you want to go to bed at night and ask yourself, “Did I actually do my best today? Did I actually put forth the maximum effort I could? Did I help people today?” Don’t just focus on that end result, because if you get lost in statistics and measurements, unless you're Tom Brady, you’re not going to have a lot of success in your career. Especially in sports.

How have you recovered from setbacks and failures in your life?

Once again, it’s all too easy just to look at that bottom line. But the reality is that on anyone’s scorecard there are a lot of mulligans and bad rounds. I’ve had internships that haven’t worked out and other demoralizing experiences. I think it’s about recalibrating yourself to the purpose of what you’re doing. I really try to live intentionally and with a sense of purpose. I don’t always succeed. If I’m going to watch Ted Lasso tonight, there's a reason I’m watching Ted Lasso tonight. If I am going to synagogue tonight, there’s a reason I’m going. If you live with a sense of intentionality, then you always know what the main goal is. That’s like your north star.

Adam with the Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott

As you grow up, you realize there’s no one path to get to that north star. There have been so many times in my life that I’ve said, “If I could only get this, or if I got that, then I’m going to get to my north star.” But it turns out that something else happens and it took me a much quicker route to getting close to my north star than the other routes.

I had no aim to work in college sports. I wanted to be in the NFL. So I spent three years in Minnesota as an intern trying to get a job with the Vikings and then was told at the end, “We love you, you’re great, thanks for working five 6-week long internships, but sorry we don’t have any employment opportunities here.” I had no idea that Kevin Warren [the COO of the Vikings] would then become the commissioner of the Big Ten Conference and ask me to manage the New York office. And after almost four years there, I’m heading to the NFL after all.

I am responsible for the planning and the process but I’m not responsible for the results.

So when you have a setback, remember that there’s no one route to success. There are multiple avenues to getting towards a dream and you do not understand all the different things at play. You have to step back and realize that a lot of this is out of my hands and ultimately, it’s in God’s. I am responsible for the planning and the process but I’m not responsible for the results. With that in mind, then you’ve got to decide how you’re going to try climbing the mountain a different way.

What’s your biggest obstacle to connecting to God?

There are a lot of obstacles. But I think the biggest one is patience. You really need to have a great deal of patience and understanding because you don’t know what you don’t know. It’s really hard to have that mindset on a day to day basis. We all think we know the answer of what should happen or why something should happen. So when an obstacle gets in the way of what you want to do, it’s very easy to become impatient and place blame on God. You say, “I did everything I’m supposed to do and it’s not happening and it’s not adding up.” But the reality is that God is not always 2 plus 2 equals 4. Sometimes God is 2 plus 2 equals negative 1 and sometimes God is 2 plus 2 equals 10 million! That’s what I think is exciting about life. You don’t know what the answer is or even what the question is.

Adam speaking at a TedX Talk at Yeshiva University

Our generation is all about “instant coffee.” We want immediacy with everything at the snap of our fingers. That’s just not the way relationships work and that’s not the way the world works. God is patient with people and we have to be patient the way He is.

Now that you’re headed to the Baltimore Ravens, what are you most excited about?

The Baltimore Ravens stand for consistency, winning, and giving back to the community. The opportunity to be a part of an organization like that in my hometown where I still have three grandparents, two parents, two siblings, and six nieces and nephews was like a dream come true. The opportunity to work for the President Sashi Brown and under the leadership of Steve Biscoitti [the owner of the Ravens], these are two remarkable leaders, not only in the National Football League but quite frankly in the world. So to work for two world class leaders and under an organization with so many gifted practitioners and an incredible group of people that make up the Baltimore Ravens and what they bring to the community is just a wonderful gift.