Q&A With Alan Faneca: Battle With Epilepsy, Steelers' Outlook With Kenny Pickett, Coaching Future

Even at this stage in his career, Alan Faneca is making a huge difference in the world.

Faneca has partnered with SK life science as part of the STEPS Towards Zero campaign to raise awareness about epilepsy. This is an important cause for him since he was diagnosed with epilepsy in his teenage years.

Despite dealing with epilepsy at a young age, Faneca managed to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Now, he’s trying to inspire others going through the same situation to reimagine their goals and strive for zero seizures.

We caught up with Alan Faneca to discuss his work with the Steps Towards Zero campaign, the Steelers’ future with Kenny Pickett and much more.

The Spun: Can you tell us about your work with the Steps Towards Zero campaign?

Alan Faneca: I think the fact that more people have joined the conversation is what's been the biggest positive. More people have engaged and been a part of the campaign, which is great to see. And again, if you're just joining it, SK life science came to me and it made too much sense not to be a part of their steps toward zero campaign. But it was really trying to activate and re-engage the epilepsy community to revisit their health care providers and to rethink what zero can mean to them and how they can improve their medical path, as well as to destigmatize it. We want to let people know that here's this Hall of Fame football player who has it. So just to go out there and let people know and try to educate them.

The Spun: What would be your advice for people going through the same experience?

AF: I think one of the big things for me was my circle of trust - my family, my doctors, everybody that was there to help guide me. If you have them, lean on them. If you need them, find them - whether it be a doctor or somebody else, there's always somebody there. You're not alone. You can go to StepsTowardsZero.com and there will be people out there for you. You can join the conversation and meet other people and hear their experiences that are probably a lot like your experiences. You can gain some strength in the community through that.

The Spun: What are you early impressions of Kenny Pickett?

AF: You know, there are ups and downs like every rookie or most rookies that come into the NFL. You know, I think he has shown some flashes of good stuff. And I think as an organization, they have to be excited about what they see because the more time he gets in there, the more experiences he has to see the game. Those experiences are going to become longer and there'll be less gaps between them until you start seeing the end product of what Kenny Pickett is all about.

The Spun: Do you think Brian Kelly will quickly turn LSU into a College Football Playoff team?

AF: I'm fairly confident [he will]. They were one or two games away even though it was a little bit of an up-and-down season. But I think if you look at it overall, there was growth. You know, the team was trending upward all year long, even with some of the losses there at the end. You wouldn't sit here today and have the conversation that we're having about Brian Kelly in Week 1 after they lost the Florida State. So I definitely think he's moving us in the right path and I think there are good things to come. I hear good things about their next two recruiting classes being strong.

The Spun: Have you thought about coaching in the NFL?

AF: Sure I have. A couple of years back, I went and did some summer internships with the Steelers for back-to-back years. I really enjoyed the process of of doing it. So much of what I enjoyed with playing football was kind of the chess match, the X's and O's. That's really all that coaching is about, putting the pieces in the right place and letting them go to work. So I did really enjoy that. I could see myself at some point doing it on that level. It's definitely intriguing.

The Spun: Your former teammate Hines Ward is eligible for the Hall of Fame - again. Do you think this is the year he gets in?

AF: I hope so. I don't know though. It gets it gets tricky and hairy. It turns into a little bit of a political process when new guys become eligible and you still have the seniors. I know he's going to get in. I just want him to get in sooner than later. I feel for the guys that have to wait 20-30 years to get into the Hall of Fame or maybe more. They didn't just become a Hall of Famer, they’ve been a Hall of Famer their whole life. They're just finally getting recognized. If there is a way to fix that, I would be all for that.

The Spun: What’s one aspect of playing in the NFL you miss? And on the flip side, what’s one thing you don’t miss?

AF: The easiest thing is the locker room. That locker room environment can never be duplicated. I think that's what most guys, when they walk away from the game, miss the most. The thing that you can have is all the training, all the weightlifting, all the 4-6 hour workouts. You hit a point where you’re like, ‘I don't think I can do that anymore. I don't think I can put the effort and energy into the game that's required to play at the level I want to be at.’

The Spun: Who’s the most unique personality you’ve been around in the NFL?

AF: Unique personality, Rex Ryan. He’s just completely different. Organized chaos and destruction is what I would maybe call his coaching style. There are so many guys - Joey Porter. James Harrison comes to mind in Pittsburgh. You take all these guys from all over the country in different walks of life, you put them in a locker room and they go play ball. It's just a unique environment.

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