Brenard Wilson, an All-Southeastern Conference safety at Vanderbilt, was putting his economics and business administration degree to good use as a loan officer for a Nashville bank when he took time off to try out for the Eagles.

An undrafted free agent in 1978, Wilson was playing well during Philadelphia's training camp until he suffered a hamstring injury. Released by the team, he returned to the bank, but later re-signed with the Eagles for the '79 campaign.

"The first year I had to be more of a question mark in terms of my injury," says Wilson. "I had recovered, but I don't know if they felt I had fully recovered enough to play the entire season or to take a chance on releasing a veteran or whoever it would be, in hopes that my hamstring would hold up and I would be able to play the entire season.

"The second training camp, there were no injuries. That in itself gave me an advantage. I made the team and became a starter."

S Brenard Wilson

In his first game, the season-opener against the Giants, Wilson offered a good explanation of why head coach Dick Vermeil had put him in the starting lineup.

Trailing by six with 48 seconds left in the fourth quarter, New York's late drive was squelched when Wilson intercepted a pass at the Philadelphia 10-yard line and returned the ball what would be a career-high 50 yards. The Eagles went on to win 23-17.

"Joe Pisarcik was the quarterback (for NY). It was a play perhaps they thought was successful earlier and they came back to the play," Wilson explained.

The following season, Wilson led the team in interceptions with six and led the team's defensive backs in tackles. More importantly, however, Philadelphia posted a 12-4 record and earned the NFC title.

"The key, I think, without a doubt was being able to stay healthy. If I recall, most of our players were healthy the entire season," Wilson said. "We got a real good early start and gained momentum. We beat some pretty good teams along the way and just gained confidence. And, of course, beating the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game was one of those things that you won't forget for a long time.

"Just to realize that you're going to the Super Bowl... just that feeling at the moment that the clock ticked down to zero, that was unbelievable. We were actually going to the biggest game in professional sports. I could replay that moment a few times."

The "biggest game,' otherwise known as Super Bowl XV, occurred two weeks after the Eagles dumped Dallas, when Philadelphia met its AFC counterpart, the Oakland Raiders.

"Actually, I would have liked to have played the game the next week," said Wilson, referring to the extra week the teams had before playing the Super Bowl. "Between that and the meetings and the press and all of that, once you got to the game, for me, it lost something in terms of... We had so much preparation; I felt it took a little bit off for me.

"I was so excited at the NFC Championship Game; actually, I could have played the next day. So that's kind of what I was looking for. We had so much time in between (games). Now that's not an excuse, but I would have savored the moment a little bit more had I known how difficult it is to return.

"Football has a business side to it, but I still think it's a game."

Wilson retired from the game following the '86 season. Missing only three games during his eight years with the Eagles, Wilson played strong safety, free safety and cornerback, collecting 17 interceptions and 251 return yards.

But that's not what he treasures most about his career.

S Brenard Wilson

"I would say the respect that I got from teammates, the relationships," said Wilson. "I think most of the guys, when we get together, we can speak fondly of each other. I'm proud of that. I know that's not true in all cases. Some guys that played together, they really don't like each other. That wasn't the case (with the Eagles).

"Dick Vermeil did a great job in terms of assembling quality players that were not just good athletes, but were good people. To be a part of that, I'm proud of that because of the respect that we had for each other."

Nowadays, as the president of Brenard K. Wilson Investments, Inc., Wilson and his wife, Genora, are in a business they began to be involved with when he was playing for the Eagles.

"We're in the real estate business in Nashville," Wilson said. "It initially started out, we were buying real estate for our own personal investment portfolio and then other people started asking us to do it for them. So we just incorporated and started doing it for other people.

"In the offseason for three years, I came back and worked for the bank that I was originally employed by. I started out by lending money to real estate investors and I thought, 'You know what? I'd like to do that.' So the next year ('83) I came back and actually got my real estate license and trained under the Century 21 system.

"It was a great opportunity for me to come back and do something you enjoy. You work for yourself, but you also had to get in your workouts. My primary employment was still professional athletics with the Eagles, so that's where I devoted most of my time. But then in the evenings, I could work on the property, painting or researching.

"As I said, we decided to do it for other people and now we're a full-service real estate company."

The Wilson's have two daughters: Raeshell, who is attending medical school at NYU; Kanetha, a senior at the University of Tennessee; and a son, Brenard II, who recently graduated from high school and is headed to the University of Tennessee this fall on a track scholarship.