From King of the Football Field to King of the Burger

by Elizabeth Denham

One thing Doug Plank knew for sure when he was playing in the NFL for the Chicago Bears was that at some point, it was going to end. What he didn’t know was when. But he was not going to wait around for life to happen to him. He decided to make a future for himself, ready and waiting for his post-football career.

“As my career progressed, I began to see the impact of football on my body,” Plank said. “I started having more injuries, and I wasn’t bouncing back as quickly. I always knew it would end, and I wanted to be prepared.”

Plank grew up as a multi-sport athlete in high school and went on to play football for The Ohio State University. In 1975, he was drafted in the 12th round by the Chicago Bears where he had an 8-year career. He was known as one of the hardest hitting safeties in the game and was dubbed along with teammate Gary Fencik “The Hit Men.” Following his playing career, Plank coached in the NFL and Arena football and has worked as a football analyst for Fox Sports, NFL and NCAA radio broadcasts, Arizona Cardinals and Arizona State games to name a few.

Plank said during the off-season from the NFL, he often went into Burger King to sign autographs – sometimes making more money in the off-season than he did during the season.

“I averaged $45,000 back then with the Bears,” he said. “We weren’t making the kind of money players are making today, and 75 percent of players never plan for the day it will end. I wasn’t going to let that happen to me.”

One year, when signing autographs at a Burger King, Plank struck up a conversation with the location’s owner. He asked him about his business, learned about opportunities with the franchise and made plans to get approved as a franchisee himself.

“If you are not proactive, nothing is going to just happen,” Plank noted. “I worked for two weeks in a Detroit Burger King location as an NFL player. It took another two weeks to get approved. You have to spend six weeks in a store before you open your location, so when that fateful day came and I was let go from the Bears, I was ready.”

Plank’s last day came as many do, without much warning or fanfare. He was called on a Friday night to come to the Bears’ office and was asked to clean out his locker. He was escorted off the property by security with his trash bag of belongings and the knowledge that he had his future mapped out. Plank used his football career to help with funding his first Burger King location. After he was cut from the Bears, he was offered a position with the United States Football League (USFL) to play for one year. That one year paid for his Burger King location and 30 days after he left the USFL, his store opened.

“I didn’t have long to mope about it,” Plank mused. “I couldn’t feel sorry for myself. I had to transition, get over it quickly and get to work because I had a store to open 30 days later. And I had to buy equipment.”

“One thing Doug Plank knew for sure when he was playing in the NFL for the Chicago Bears was that at some point, it was going to end.

Plank credits much of his success to his strong desire always to learn and ask questions. Over the years, he took CPA courses and got his real estate license. He recently secured his life and health insurance licenses and is currently studying for his series 65 securities license. He is also pursuing his residential contract license for the second time. “If you have the knowledge, you gain credibility,” Plank observed. “You understand the language and the terminology of the different aspects of business. You have to do your due diligence and – as they say – those that don’t read are no better than those who can’t read.”

Plank believes his football skills translated well into franchising. “It works the same as a team sport,” he said. “You are not a lone ranger. I worked with my wife and built a great team. A great football player can look terrible when surrounded on the field by ten bums. Everything happens down the field, so the better the people are around you, the better you will be.”

Plank sought out relationships with other Burger King franchisees to build relationships with and learn from. He partnered with Dan Fitzpatrick of Quality Dining, Inc. and was energized.

“Working one year with Dan was better than five years on your own,” Plank said. “Was I that smart? No. But Dan was. Dan came in like a tornado, and he didn’t take well to mediocrity.” Plank said his new role in franchising was met with some derision by his football peers who referred to him as “flipping burgers” in his new career. “There is nothing wrong with flipping burgers,” he noted. “But I was the ‘coach’ – I was managing all aspects of the store. I think it is important for players to have a plan for the second phase of their careers. And I would love for them to understand the advantages of franchising and how well the skills you have playing sports adapt to the franchising industry.”

Plank mentioned the skills that helped him transition from sports to franchising, including working within a system, building a team, leadership and creativity.

“In football, you build strong bonds with your teammates. It’s the same in franchising,” he said. “And with a franchise system behind you, if you go off course, there is someone there to back you up and help you get back on track.”

Plank has owned 20 stores over the last 20 years. While he has sold his locations, he maintained the real estate and manages the properties. He is an approved franchisee for Wendy’s and Culver’s.

“A lot of people, NFL players included, want to go out and start a business,” Plank said. “And the chances of failure are high. But franchising is powerful. You have brand recognition, and people supporting you. You have systems in place, and you can make money much faster than on your own. I am really passionate about it, and I would love to see more NFL players taking advantage of it and planning for their futures.”