Tony Wyllie, born December 31,1967, is the CEO of The Collective Engine.
32 Facts About Tony Wyllie
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Tony Wyllie has previously worked as senior vice president of communications for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League, as well as an executive for the St Louis Rams, Tennessee Titans, and Houston Texans.
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Tony Wyllie is a five-time recipient of the Pro Football Writers of America Pete Rozelle Award for public relations, and the only executive to receive it for their work on three different teams.
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Tony Wyllie graduated from Texas Southern University with a degree in journalism, and later earned his MBA from Rice University.
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Tony Wyllie's job included public relations tasks, including interacting with the sports journalists in the Houston Oilers press box.
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In 1994 Tony Wyllie replaced David Pearson as the assistant director of public relations for the Los Angeles Rams.
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Tony Wyllie remained with the Rams when the team moved to St Louis in 1995, becoming the St Louis Rams.
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Tony Wyllie was the spokesperson for the Rams during the transition between cities, handling press requests and providing media responses regarding the logistics of the move from Los Angeles to St Louis.
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In 1997 Tony Wyllie was awarded the Pete Rozelle award for the top public relations team in the NFL by the Pro Football Writers of America.
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In 1998 Tony Wyllie became the youngest public relations director in the NFL when he was selected by the Tennessee Oilers as their PR director.
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Tony Wyllie was awarded his second Pete Rozelle award for his work with the team in 2000, after the team had been renamed the Titans.
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Tony Wyllie was selected by the NFL as the public relations person for the 1999 Pro Bowl.
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Tony Wyllie stayed with the Titans until 2000, and during his tenure the Titans went to the Super Bowl only to lose to his previous team, the Rams.
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In 2000 Tony Wyllie left the Titans to become the Vice President of Communications for the Houston Texans during the team's first year of operations.
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In 2010 Tony Wyllie was awarded the Spirit Award from the Houston Association of Black Journalists.
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In May 2010 Tony Wyllie became a Senior Vice President with the Washington Redskins, in charge of the communications department.
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One of the more controversial decisions Tony Wyllie advised Redskins owner Daniel Snyder on was Snyder's libel lawsuit against the Washington City Paper.
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NBC Sports quoted Tony Wyllie as saying that the move was not done as a part of Tony Wyllie's attempts to manage the team's image, but rather in order to demand better accuracy and responsibility by journalists critical of Snyder.
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Tony Wyllie's job has involved working directly with each team's upcoming stars on their early career image and injuries, such as Robert Griffin III, as well as with their veteran players.
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In 2014 game against the Dallas Cowboys, Tony Wyllie prevented ESPN reporter John Sutcliffe from interviewing the Redskins' quarterback Colt McCoy after Sutcliffe attempted to interview McCoy without prior arrangement.
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Work in the NFL after this included in 2020, Tony Wyllie inducted Isaac Bruce into the NFL Hall of Fame.
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Over his career Tony Wyllie has been on the public relations team for the NFL for eight different Super Bowls.
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For example, during Super Bowl XL Tony Wyllie helped players from the competing teams with arranging and executing national interviews.
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In 2019, Tony Wyllie left the Washington Team on his own accord to become the regional president and managing director of the Special Olympics North America.
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Tony Wyllie is on the County Christian School board in Ashburn, VA.
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Tony Wyllie is a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi and Sigma Pi Phi Fraternities.
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Tony Wyllie is married to his wife Natasha, with whom he has two children, James Anthony and Toni Simone.
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Tony Wyllie is currently a professor at the Georgetown University Sports Industry Management faculty.
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In 2004 Tony Wyllie was awarded Texas Southern University Distinguished Alumni Award.
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In 2007 Tony Wyllie then received an MBA from Rice University, being sent to the school by Texans owner Bob McNair.
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Tony Wyllie delivered the Winter Commencement speech to the class of 2013 at his alma mater Texas Southern University on December 13,2013, and received the Outstanding Alumni Award from that school in 2017.
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In 2020 it was announced that Tony Wyllie was selected by Isaac Bruce to be his presenter into the Football Hall of Fame Tony Wyllie will be the second PR Executive to serve as a Hall of Fame presenter since Gary Wright from the Seahawks in 1995.