TAMPA, Fla. - He’s a football player.

A father.

A college graduate.

And a Mayor?

“I knew that I loved my community. I started to think what else can I do?” KJ Sails said.

That something else involved politics. For one day, former USF defensive back KJ Sails was the Mayor of Tampa. He shadowed elected Mayor Jane Castor, learning the ins and out of running a city.

“We have the ability to affect a lot of lives and we have the ability to inspire a lot of people on a day-to-day basis,” KJ said.

KJ’s trained for this moment. A mentorship with Mayor Castor sparked the interest. But he also sees a correlation between the skills he’s learned playing football and carrying them over into politics.

“Football players, I think we should try to get into politics more to impact the communities we actually grew up in and that we lived in,” he said.

KJ’s inquisitive nature comes naturally, Never timid and always asking questions, this East Bay High School product doesn’t shy away from the difficult topics. In fact, he jumps right in. This past summer, KJ helped organize a unity walk at the height of the social justice movement.

“Seeing the city the way it was when George Floyd passed away, it just, it was heavy on my heart and I’ve never seen anything like it,” he said. “And I wanted to bring my community together in a positive way.”

KJ already had gained a greater appreciation for his hometown. Tragic deaths in his family prompted him to come home. So he left the University of North Carolina and finished his college career at USF. The move sparked an activism fire.

“Coming back and being closer to home made me realize that my family is all that I have and my community is all that I have. Before football and before it all, that’s all I had was my community,” KJ said.

KJ’s continued his football training and hopes to be drafted by an NFL team. Football remains his future, but he’s preparing for life after. And that life will involve politics in some way. Mayor Sails? Senator Sails? President Sails?

“God willing, hopefully,” he said. “One step at a time though. I’ve got to accomplish one thing at a time, one step at a time.”