Nyheim Hines is the MDA National Spokesperson - An Interview

Nevermind that Nyheim Hines scored 7 touchdowns in a single game on more than one occasion in high school.

When he was in college at basically hometown NC State, the school called him The Nightmare on Hillsborough Street in this ad. He said he’d been nicknamed Nightmare since high school, but recalls this time fondly. What can we say? He’s a nightmare with the ball in his hands.

Nyheim also ran track at a high level at high school and while at NC State. The Colts got a two sport Division 1 athlete in Hines, and at 5’9” 196lbs., the traditionally undersized running back has become a nightmare not only as a running back, where he averaged more than 4 yards per carry and finished the season trending upward as a runner in 2020, but as a pass-catcher, where he led the Colts and was top 50 in the NFL in receptions with 63 in 2020 . Additionally, Nyheim returns punts (quick throwback to the 2 punt return game in 2019).

Nyheim Hines has several family members who have lived with, or are living with, muscular dystrophy. The MDA is very close to his heart and he is always motivated to support the neuromuscular disease community any way he can. The Muscular Dystrophy Association is celebrating 67 years of partnership with IAFF, The International Association of Fire Fighters. The IAFF has been fundraising for MDA for over half a century!

This is also very close to my heart as both my paternal grandparents have died of a neuromuscular disease and flatly, it’s an awful way to die so let’s fight it!

Earlier today, Colts RB/PR/gymnast/stuntman Nyheim Hines was announced as the MDA National Spokesperson!

• FanDuel has partnered with MDA on a Duel for a Difference contest, one of FanDuel’s signature initiatives, where they create a special daily fantasy contest and all money raised goes directly to MDA. “During COVID, our charitable efforts have been focused on supporting families and individuals impacted by COVID-19 and frontline workers. We are now excited to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) alongside the NBA, two organizations we really enjoy working with via a simple daily fantasy basketball contest on FanDuel.”

• Duel for a Difference is a daily fantasy contest where a celebrity or pro athlete plays against fans with proceeds and entry fees donated back to a charity or organization that the celebrity or pro athlete works with or for.
• When Nyheim learned about FanDuel’s Duel for a Difference, he knew that playing fantasy basketball on the first official night of the NBA playoffs would be a lot of fun and a unique way to raise money for a great organization.
• The contest will cost $5 to enter and it will take place on the first official day of the NBA Playoffs (Saturday).
• Nyheim is going to draft his own team and play alongside everyone. You can go to www.fanduel.com/nba tonight for more details on the game. It’s easy to sign up, donate and play.

After we talked at length about MDA and Duel for a Difference, Nyheim and I got to chat about some other things. Since this was a phone call, I don’t have a way to record and relay that to you, so you’ll just have to take my word for it (like we did when I interviewed Pat McAfee).

First of all, since I’m going to register and play against Nyheim, I figured I’d start by asking him if he watches the NBA and it turns out that he’s a huge basketball fan but obviously, he hasn’t gambled on sports since he got into the NFL and this FanDuel partnership with MDA allows him to draft a team and compete against fans to raise money for charity without him getting in trouble for sports betting. How cool is that?

We talked about whether he takes a break or stays on his grind when the season ends and he makes sure to step away to relax on a beach somewhere until Valentine’s Day but then he’s back to it and he really gets after it. We talked about maybe in the past guys would grind 365 days but we agreed that things are different now. Players are encouraged to work on their mental health and take breaks regularly. Mostly, though, taking a break is about recovery.

Ultimately, our time got cut awfully short and instead of trying to squeeze in a couple of questions, I just made sure to let Nyheim know that my friends, family and colleagues are all big fans of his and that I appreciate he and the Colts for meeting with us and sharing the good news for a good cause! He made sure leave me with the knowledge that he reads what we write. Hi Nyheim!

Go throw $5 at www.fanduel.com/nba

Leave a comment after so I can say thank you personally.