On Oct. 23, 2014, the Georgia State Athletics web site published a feature on senior football player Sean Jeppesen.
 
The article chronicled Jeppesen's journey from former walk-on to special teams standout to starting linebacker and team leader. It also described his aspirations to become a dentist.
 
Read the article here: SMASH MOUTH FOOTBALL 
 
Fast forward six years later, and Jeppesen is traveling that journey as a third-year dental student at the Dental College of Georgia.
 
Much like his football experience, his post-college journey has had some bends in the road, but Jeppesen has always majored in perseverance, with a minor in adaptability.
 
"There were definitely times, especially right after football, when I thought, 'I don't know if I'll make it.' But football taught me that you can't give up," Jeppesen explained.
 
At Georgia State, he walked onto the team in 2011 and then earned playing time on special teams in 2012, but the following season, he had to prove himself all over to a new coaching staff.
 
He played multiple positions for the Panthers, including tight end, fullback, inside linebacker and outside linebacker, as well as appearing on every special teams unit.
 
"Playing for coach Bill Curry, who taught so many life lessons, was amazing," Jeppesen said. "Being part of the program is a better experience than anything I've had in my life. It was hard to get where I got, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."
 
After graduating from Georgia State in 2015 with a degree in biology and a minor in chemistry, Jeppesen spent two years working in the biomedical field.
 
He went on to earn his master's degree in biomedical science before he was finally accepted into dental school. He started at the Dental College of Georgia in July 2018.
 
Attending dental school during the pandemic has presented some unique challenges.
 
"We work in a huge clinic with hundreds of dental chairs," he said. "Now every other chair is empty to social distance, and we have all kinds of systems of place. We wear respirators and a lot of PPE (personal protective equipment). We have high-speed suction going all the time to catch any aerosols."
 
With a year-and-a-half of dental school remaining, Jeppesen is contemplating his next steps.
 
"I'm thinking about doing a residency to learn sedation and implants," he said. "That's the one residency I would be interested in. Otherwise I'll start practicing dentistry."
 
Jeppesen has attended several games at Center Parc Stadium, and he looks forward to being able to tour the football operations suite, especially the new weight room. That will remind him of what he misses most about his football experience.
 
"Now when I go to the gym, I miss having 100 teammates in there," he said.
 

GSU FOOTBALL ALUMNI IN THE MEDICAL FIELD
Michael Hall – Oral and maxillofacial surgery resident at Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C. READ MORE
Kalan Jenkins – Anesthesiology resident at Baylor Scott and White Medical Center in Temple, Texas  READ MORE
D.L. Stephens – Dental student at Tufts University in Boston
Sean Jeppesen – Dental student at Medical College of Georgia
Akil Hawkins – Physical therapy doctoral student at UAB