Darren Woodson to speak at Murray State University
By MSU Public Relations | Jul 13, 2026
MURRAY, Ky. — Murray State University welcomes three-time Super Bowl champion and five-time Pro Bowl selection Darren Woodson for an engaging program focused on leadership on Tuesday, Aug. 25 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at Lovett Auditorium.
The event is part of a premier leadership speaking series titled “Leadership by Design,” hosted annually on Murray State’s campus by BFW/Marcum Engineering, a firm led by Murray State alumnus and CEO, Mark Workman.
The event is free, but registration is required at https://bit.ly/4gteFSk.
BFW/Marcum invites the public to join Woodson for an extraordinary evening in historic Lovett Auditorium. Woodson is often recognized as one of the greatest players to wear a Dallas Cowboys uniform. His message will be on "Creating Cultures of Excellence" and what it takes to be competitive in today's market.
A native of Phoenix, Woodson played football at Maryvale High School as a running back and linebacker. He attended Arizona State University, where he was a converted linebacker for the Sun Devils and earned his Bachelor of Science in Justice Studies.
In the 1992 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys selected Woodson in the second-round (37th overall). Throughout his 12 seasons (1992-2004) with the Cowboys, he earned a reputation as one of the hardest hitters and most ferocious safeties in the NFL.
Woodson retired in 2004 as the Cowboys’ all-time leading tackler with 1,350 career stops and registering career totals of 11 sacks and 23 interceptions. Throughout his NFL career, his dependability, athleticism and aggressiveness helped lead the Cowboys to three Super Bowl Championships (Super Bowl XXVII, XXVIII and XXX) — securing him an elite position in the club’s history. In 2015, Woodson was inducted into the prestigious Cowboys “Ring of Honor.” He was also named to the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame (2009) and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame (2017).
Upon retiring from the NFL, Woodson joined ESPN as an NFL analyst in 2005. He appeared on “NFL Live” and “SportsCenter” and also participated on the network’s coverage of the Super Bowl, NFL Draft and NFL training camp specials. After 14 years with the network and commuting weekly to Bristol, Connecticut, Woodson announced his retirement in 2019.
Transitioning from the NFL to a post-playing career is not easy for most athletes — but Woodson has found consistent success. Woodson joined ESRP Advisory Dallas, LLC, “esrp”, in 2017 and bridged his storied football career and entrepreneurial spirit with commercial real estate. In May of 2022, esrp merged with Cresa, the world’s only global commercial real estate advisory firm that exclusively represents occupiers and specializes in the delivery of fully integrated real estate solutions operating from over 380 offices in 15 territories.
Woodson is an Executive Managing Principal at the Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters - The Star, Cresa’s primary office in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, and is directly involved with the firm’s overall vision, growth and strategy. Woodson focuses on locating, developing and defining business relationships across a variety of industries and markets. He brings his innate leadership skills and passion for creating winning strategies to meet clients’ real estate needs, while delivering a high-level of service. Clients include NTT DATA, Argo Data, ExamSoft and MTX Group.
"We are proud to partner with Murray State University for the fourth consecutive year to host our Leadership by Design event," said Mark Workman, CEO of BFW/Marcum Engineering. "This collaboration reflects our commitment to investing in the next generation of leaders. Excellence is a core value at BFW/Marcum, and we're excited to welcome Darren Woodson, whose championship-caliber approach to building a culture of excellence will inspire everyone in the room to bring that same winning standard to their own leadership."
“We are honored to welcome Darren Woodson to Murray State University as part of our continued commitment to providing exceptional leadership learning opportunities for our students, faculty, staff and the broader community,” said Murray State University President Dr. Ron K. Patterson. “His remarkable achievements on the field, combined with his success as a business leader and mentor, demonstrate the lasting impact of character, teamwork and servant leadership. We are grateful to BFW/Marcum Engineering and Murray State alumnus Mark Workman for making this outstanding event possible and for their continued investment in leadership development at Murray State.”
For event questions, please contact the Murray State Office of Development at 270-809-3001.