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John Michael Sciarra (born March 2, 1954) is a former professional
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly di ...
in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...
for the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...
from
1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government). * January 6 ...
to 1983. He also played receiver for the British Columbia Lions of the
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...
. He played
college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...
at
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
. Off the field in 1977, John Sciarra established a career in qualified retirement plan administration, as a Third Party Administrator (TPA). He formed National Retirement Services, Inc. ("NRS") in 2001. He sold NRS in 2016 and is currently a consultant and conference speaker for a wide range of businesses and industries.


Early years

Sciarra was born in Los Angeles, CA the youngest of three children. His parents, Edith and John J Sciarra, raised John and his two older sisters in Alhambra, CA. John attended Bishop Amat Memorial High School in La Puente, California, where he was a National Honor Society student and starred in both football and baseball. He was named the CIF Southern Section Player of the Year for football in 1971. His maternal grandparents were Italian immigrants.


College years

After graduating from high school, Mr. Sciarra was heavily recruited by major college football and baseball programs, and was also drafted on the 3rd round by the Cleveland Indians to play professional baseball. Ultimately, he chose to attend
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
where he graduated cum laude in 1976 as one of four outstanding seniors to be honored for overall excellence and achievement, and was a member of the Student Legislative Council in 1974. Sciarra was quarterback for the Bruins 1972-1976 and named a consensus
All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...
n in 1975. He starred in the 1976 Rose Bowl in which UCLA upset favored
Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pub ...
, which was unbeaten ranked number one in the nation, by a score of 23–10. Sciarra was named Most Valuable Player in the game. He ran for the most career yards by a quarterback in UCLA history. Sciarra was later inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994, and National Football Foundation (College Football) Hall of Fame in 2014.


Professional career

After graduating from UCLA in 1976, Sciarra was the third pick of the Chicago Bears in the National Football League draft. He opted to sign a two-year contract with the
BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first seas ...
of the
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...
on May 26, 1976. During the 1977 off season, Mr. Sciarra started his business career with Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. with a focus on selling life insurance within qualified pension plans.


Business

In 1978, Mr. Sciarra formed a company with two other colleagues, which included pension administration. In 1988 Mr. Sciarra sold his stake to his partners and joined Dun & Bradstreet Pension Services (“DBPS”) as Director of West Coast Operations. In 1994, DBPS was sold to U.S. Pension Services (“USPS”). Mr. Sciarra became a shareholder and held Director of Marketing & Sales and Operations Manager positions. USPS was sold to First Data Investor Services Group (“FDISG”) in 1998, whereby Mr. Sciarra was named Vice President of Sales. Shortly thereafter, FDISG was acquired by PFPC, a subsidiary of PNC Bank. Mr. Sciarra was named Senior Vice President & COO of PFPC’s Retirement Services. With revenues of approximately $70 million and 650 employees, he was tasked with the responsibility to strategically develop a plan for long term growth and profitability. Through his analysis it was determined that a certain segment of the retirement services business be divested. Mr. Sciarra offered to acquire that segment of the business and it was accepted in June 2001. With that business, Mr. Sciarra, and a long time co-worker, formed National Retirement Services, Inc (“NRS”). Mr. Sciarra became the President & CEO of NRS. Together, with the help of many outstanding co-workers, Mr. Sciarra positioned NRS for success. NRS became one of the largest privately owned Third Party Administration (TPA) firms in the country. Mr. Sciarra led NRS in providing a full range of qualified retirement plan administration services, including plan documents, non-discrimination testing, trust accounting, 5500 filing, and plan-level administration. NRS’s top priorities were to provide 100% customer satisfaction, enhancing its services and offering the best-qualified retirement plan solutions to its clients. NRS services approximately 2,000 qualified retirement plans nationwide with offices in Huntington Beach, San Diego, and San Mateo, California and Charlotte, North Carolina. After 16 years as President & CEO of NRS, and 40 years of service in the qualified retirement plan administration industry, Mr. Sciarra sold NRS to an industry leading pension administration and record keeping company, Ascensus, in December, 2016. Mr. Sciarra is currently a business consultant and conference speaker for a wide range of businesses and industries.


Professional football


BC Lions

John Sciarra signed a two-year contract with the
BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first seas ...
of the
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...
on May 26, 1976. He was converted to Slotback early in the season and had 34 receptions for 563 yards. He earned the CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie Award in 1976. The next season, he tore is hamstring during the opening game of the 1977 regular season against Calgary. He returned late in the season with 5 receptions for 53 yards.


Philadelphia Eagles

The
Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The cl ...
signed Sciarra, and the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...
traded an undisclosed draft pick to Tampa Bay in exchange for Sciarra in 1978. While with the Eagles, he played for coach
Dick Vermeil Richard Albert Vermeil (; born October 30, 1936) is a former American football coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons. He was the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles for seven seasons, the St. L ...
, who had been his college coach at UCLA. Sciarra played 6 years with the Eagles (1978-1983) as Defensive Back, Punt Returner, and was named Most Valuable Player for Special Teams in 1979 and 1980. He was the NFC Punt Return Leader in 1979, and was named Captain of the Special Teams in 1982 and 1983. The Eagles won the NFC Championship in 1980 and played in Super Bowl XV.


Awards and honors

On August 8, 1991, Sciarra was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 1994 and was inducted into the
College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vo ...
as a member of the Class of 2014. Sciarra was the keynote speaker at UCLA's 2009 Sociology Department graduation ceremony, where graduates included Hall of Fame quarterback
Troy Aikman Troy Kenneth Aikman (born November 21, 1966) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. After transferring from Oklahoma, he played college football at UCLA, ...
, then-current quarterback
Kevin Craft Kevin Craft (born October 15, 1985) is a former American football quarterback and Head Coach for the IBM Big Blue in the Japanese X-League. He played college football at UCLA. High school years Craft attended Valley Center High School in V ...
, and former linebacker Marcus Reece, who had come back to UCLA to finish his degree. Sciarra served on Advisory Councils for John Hancock Financial Services, Retirement Division, Nationwide, Retirement Services and Massachusetts Mutual, Retirement Services. Mick Jagger wore Sciarra's Eagles jersey at the Rolling Stones concert at JFK Stadium (Philadelphia, PA) on September 26, 1981.


Personal

John Sciarra married his wife Michele in 1977 and together they have three children.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sciarra, John 1954 births Living people All-American college football players American football quarterbacks American football safeties BC Lions players Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners College Football Hall of Fame inductees Philadelphia Eagles players UCLA Bruins football players Players of American football from Los Angeles Canadian football quarterbacks Players of Canadian football from Los Angeles