Big money player: former Miami Dolphins fullback Rob Konrad knew the US stock market was on the brink of a downturn several years ago when the 300-pound offensive linemen he shared a locker room with were bragging about their online stock trades.

"I know what these guys are doing all day long. They're in meetings with me," says Konrad, who recently retired from football to be a full-time partner at AllenKonrad Asset Management Inc. in Boca Raton. "I don't think any of these guys have a clue as to what's going on with the market. They're just throwing darts at the board and it's going up. Something didn't seem fundamentally right."

Konrad was right four years ago--the stock market continued the slide that began in 2000. Now he uses that business and finance savvy, as well as his football celebrity, to attract investors. AllenKonrad specializes in the world of "alternative investments," such as private equity deals, private real estate purchases and debt financing. The company also runs its own hedge fund.

Most of the company's deals are in the $5 million to $25 million range. Konrad and his business partner, Tim Allen, oversee $200 million worth of investments for celebrities, athletes, institutions and other wealthy clients.

"There's this stigma about football players being dumb jocks," says Konrad, who graduated in 2000 with a finance degree from Syracuse University in New York. "I always planned on working in Wall Street. I was always endeared to finance for some reason."

At Syracuse, Konrad played football with current Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb. The two led the Orangemen to an 8-3 record, a Big East conference championship and a berth in the 1999 FedEx Orange Bowl game.

Within the National Football League, Konrad was a talented player with a modest salary. Though he says his position of fullback usually earns the second-lowest salary in the National Football League because not many teams use fullbacks, Konrad's last contract, signed in 2003, was a four-year deal worth $4 million, according to The Miami Herald.

Despite his success on the field, Konrad says he never saw himself playing past the college level; he thought the finance business would be his pro career.