Eagles Brandon Brooks goes back to school to talk finance

PLYMOUTH MEETING (WPVI) -- Brandon Brooks is a guy who makes his living protecting quarterbacks.

He also understands the importance of protecting his money. After all, Brooks just signed a 5-year, $40 million contract with the Eagles.

Brooks and sports reporter Jamie Apody were special guests at Mr. Coleman's Personal Finance class Friday at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School. Mr. Coleman also happens to be Jamie's husband.

There he spoke to the kids about the importance of financial literacy.

"It's extremely important. I honestly really didn't know the importance until I got to the NFL," said Brooks, Offensive Lineman. "Had I known at a younger age, I definitely would have strived to educate myself a lot better."

Brooks puts his money where his mouth is. He spends his off-seasons shadowing executives, and upon moving to Philadelphia, enrolled at the famed Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania to complete his MBA.

"Knowledge is power. Coming from humble beginnings, and even now it's like you can always lose it," said Brooks. "So it's like understand how to manage it, not just for me, but for my future generations."

Then it was time for some fun playing Visa's Financial Football, an interactive game that teaches financial concepts. Brooks captained one team, and Jamie captained the other

In the end, Brooks' team beat Jamie's 14-8.

On the field, off the field and in the classroom, this guy is money.