To make a football analogy, George Barnes' decision to appear as a contestant on NBC's "Deal or No Deal" was akin to an NFL free agent signing for the league minimum and being faced with the challenge of having to prove himself in the face of long odds.
Forget about the pressure of making the right call on the game show itself, where gobs of cash are on the line. The 30-year-old Barnes, had just accepted a job with the Indianapolis school system when he got the call from "Deal or No Deal." But his new employers wouldn't let him take off to fly to California.
Barnes called an audible. Actually, he called his old bosses at Charles A. Tindley Accelerated School, where he was making less money than he would have made at the new job, and asked if they'd find a place for him if he suddenly found himself out of work. When they said yes, Barnes made the trip.
That decision was the equivalent of Peyton Manning checking off at the line of scrimmage and throwing a game-winning touchdown in the Super Bowl.
Before you get sick of the football analogies, here's the catch: When Barnes, a die-hard Colts fan, was brought on stage for his "Deal or No Deal" appearance, he was stunned to learn it was a special NFL-themed episode. There was Pro Football Hall of Famer Marcus Allen. There was Marshall Faulk. And Jerry Rice. And Terrell Davis. The briefcase models wore NFL jerseys.
If you want to know how Barnes fared on the show, you'll have to wait until it airs on Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
While you're watching George Barnes on "Deal or No Deal," you can go to NFL Auctions to place a bid on items signed by NFL legends who appeared on the NFL-themed episode of the show. Proceeds of the auction will be directed to the new Retired Players Medical and Assistance Fund, which coordinates medical support services for former players in need of medical care. Click here to check it out.
Just appearing on "Deal" had the potential to be a life-changing experience, but the NFL angle has taken it to another level. After meeting the former players on the show as well as league employees, Barnes was invited to participate in the Kickoff festivities leading up last week's Saints-Colts opener.
Not only was Barnes rewarded, but so too was Tindley Accelerated School - which re-hired Barnes as its vice principal. Last Tuesday, Hall of Famers Anthony Munoz and Eric Dickerson visited the school and spoke to one of the classes. On Wednesday, Tindley was one of the schools invited to take part in NFL youth football clinics in downtown Indianapolis.
"We don't even have windows in our school," said Barnes, noting that 92 percent of the students at Tindley live at or below the poverty level, "so just to be outside and running around was great. All the kids were excited. We did all these drills, and I'm very proud of the way our kids behaved."
Wednesday night and Thursday were all about getting out and mingling with NFL luminaries. Barnes and his wife, Leah, sat next to Hall of Famer Deacon Jones at a reception on Wednesday night. The next day, before the Kickoff concert, Barnes spent time chatting with Kordell Stewart and Marcus Allen.
The VIP treatment was great, but Barnes said the best part of the experience was getting to see that his football idols were down to earth and easy to talk to.
"I was raised with the idea that these guys would be rich and too cool to hang out with me," he said. "But they were genuinely interested in talking to us and hearing about what was going on in our lives. These guys are great."
It would be easy to say that Barnes' 15 minutes of fame are up, but that's hardly the case. Somewhat lost in all the excitement of Kickoff week is the fact that Barnes' appearance on "Deal or No Deal" is coming up on Sept. 19.
When he gathers with family and friends to watch, it will be like Peyton Manning reviewing game film from Super Bowl XLI… an MVP performance.
