Keynotes

Hall of Fame wide receiver and three-time Super Bowl champion Jerry Rice is widely regarded as the best wide receiver to ever play in the National Football League, and arguably the greatest player of all time. During his 15-year career with the San Francisco 49ers, Rice won three Super Bowls (Super Bowl XXIII (’88), Super Bowl XXIV (’89) and SB XXIX (’94)) and one Super Bowl MVP. He enjoyed three seasons with the Oakland Raiders, including a Super Bowl appearance and one season with the Seattle Seahawks before retiring in 2005. Rice was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in January 2010, his first year of eligibility.

Rice’s meticulous preparation and work ethic during his 20-year NFL career became legendary. He holds 36 NFL records – a record in itself. Has scored the most touchdowns in NFL history (208) and holds virtually every significant career receiving record, including receptions (1,549), yards receiving (22,895), all-purpose yards (23,546), touchdown receptions (197) and consecutive games with at least one catch (274).

After his retirement, Rice’s celebrity grew beyond the football field. He finished second in the second season of the ABC hit reality show Dancing with the Stars, led his team to victory on the golf course against other NFL legends on Big Break NFL Puerto Rico and has appeared on numerous other television shows. He has extensive broadcasting experience including as an analyst for ESPN, NBC and is a contributor on 95.7 The Game FM radio in the Bay Area. He co-authored the New York Times bestseller, Super Bowl 50: 50 years 50 Moments as well as, America’s Game: The NFL at 100 with Randy O. Williams and published by Harper Collins.

This success off the field and renowned work ethic has appealed Rice to numerous corporations, including NIKE, Mitchell & Ness and Panini, where he is working as a brand ambassador and spokesperson. He is also an Honorary Chairman for the San Francisco 49ers Foundation, whose mission is to educate and empower Bay Area youth.

In 2020, Rice and his family launched G.O.A.T. Fuel, a privately held lifestyle brand that empowers individual and collective greatness. G.O.A.T. stands for “Greatest of All Time”, a nickname that has been widely used when describing Rice. G.O.A.T. Fuel promotes the unstoppable strength of a hopeful mindset through energy infused products, content and experiences.

Born in Crawford, Mississippi, Rice did not start playing football until he was a sophomore in high school. He was not recruited by many major college football programs and attended Mississippi Valley State University, public, historically black university and Division I-AA school. As a senior, he broke NCAA records for receptions, yards and touchdowns and acquired the nickname “World” because there wasn’t a ball in the world he couldn’t catch. He was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

Rice was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers and Hall of Fame coach Bill Walsh as the 16th overall pick in the 1985 NFL Draft. During his career, Rice was selected to the Pro Bowl a record 13 times, won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award in 1987 and was Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl XXIII. In 1999, he was ranked No. 2 in The Sporting News’ list of 100 Greatest Football Players – the highest-ranked active player and receiver – and in 2010, was voted the No. 1 player in the NFL Network's The Top 100: NFL's Greatest Players. In 2019, he was voted Greatest Player in NFL History by USA Today Sports and was also named to the NFL’s All Time Team.

Rice resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, Latisha, and has four children.

Steve Darnell is well-known for his success on the Discovery Channel hit series Vegas Rat Rods and as the creative mastermind behind Welder Up, the Las Vegas rat rod and fabrication shop. Steve is passionate about bringing history back to life, showing that his creativity knows no limits. Besides designing the craziest rat rods, Steve also enjoys interior design, set design, producing music videos, and short films. He created the post-apocalyptic set design, props, and vehicles in Five Finger Death Punch’s music video for “House of the Rising Sun.” Currently, he is restoring his historic property in Goodsprings, NV, which will be the new home of Welder Up, aka the “Carnival of Rust,” all while creating content for his popular YouTube channel and social media.

Steve was born in Las Vegas but spent part of his childhood in Montana. He learned to weld and fabricate early on while working with his dad at the family’s steel company in Las Vegas. After selling the family business, Steve started his own fabrication shop, which fueled his passion for cars. When the famous D-Rod rolled out of his shop featuring a twin-turbo 12-valve diesel engine that produced 1000 hp, the automotive world took notice of the unique builds Steve and his team were creating; so did the Discovery Channel. In 2013, the popular series Vegas Rat Rods took the world by storm. Steve’s creations soon appeared in multiple national publications like Hot Rod Magazine, Diesel World Magazine, Mopar Magazine, and more. He slowly but surely became known as the king of badass rat rods.

Today, Steve’s passion has expanded from rat rods to cover all aspects of the design-build industry. Besides revitalizing the Goodsprings, NV property, he is also restoring pre-war traditional hot rods to match the new location's theme. As a committed supporter of the welding industry, he is eager to share his years of experience and hard-won wisdom with aspiring welding students attending the WelderUp workshops.

Steve has always been dedicated to exceeding everyone’s expectations.