When an athlete is injured, it leaves them with a lot of down time. It’s time that makes them think a lot about the future and a lot about life after they retire from their respected sport.

“I had a lot of time to think. I just really wanted to know what it was I wanted to do,” Clemson running back Zac Brooks said earlier this week.

Brooks missed all of last season after breaking his foot in practice the week before the season-opener.

“It was a come to Jesus moment where I was realizing what it is I like to do,” Brooks said.

What Brooks realized? He enjoys decorating. That’s right, decorating.

“I love to decorate the house. I love to design my room and I find myself doing that all the time,” he said. “I talked to Jeff Davis, I talked to my father and I talked to my influences and everybody said that is a great idea.”

Brooks came into Clemson doing graphic communications and throughout that process he figured out that it was not what he wanted to do. Then he went into digital production art. He liked it, but again, it was not exactly what he wanted to do.

That’s when he came to the conclusion he had aspirations to be an interior designer all along.

“It is just something I love to do. My room is art of its own,” the senior said. “I wish I could take that room and show it. I love doing it. I play with apps on my iPad and things like that. It is just something I would really love to make a career out of.”

Brooks says his room is not like anyone else’s on the football team.

“A lot of people go out and buy a lot of posters,” he said. “I go out and buy a lot of canvas and spray paint them. It is very unique.”

Clemson’s third leading rusher is on schedule to graduate in December, and though he was granted a redshirt last season due to his broken foot, he has decided this will be his final season at Clemson. It’s a decision he made at the beginning of the year. He said it was based on how his college career has gone to this point.

“I’m going to the NFL. This is all subject to change. It is just a discussion I had with Coach (Dabo) Swinney,” Brooks said. “It is just something I wanted to put in as an insurance policy.”

Brooks’ numbers are not exactly that of a guy that warrants entering the NFL Draft. He has 24 carries for 164 yards and three touchdowns so this year, while he also has four receptions for 66 yards and two more scores.

“I’m very confident. I’m confident in anything that I do,” he said.

And Brooks is confident this is what’s best for him. He came back to school, and wanted to give this season all he had, while giving his teammates all he had to offer at the same time.

“I’m not going to flip a switch and do that much more than I have done,” he said. “I go out there every time and do what I can and do the best that I can do whenever I get a chance to touch the ball. There is nothing different. I try to score every time I touch the ball.”

He also tries to lead whenever he can. Brooks realized early on this year he was not going to be the starter so he came to grips with that and accepted he had to play a different role on the team. So he became a leader, not just a leader by example, but a vocal leader, a teacher, an extra set of eyes.

“I feel like I was put in that position for a reason. I feel like everything happens for a reason,” he said. “God allows things to happen for a reason. I felt like I was put in Wayne’s (Gallman) life. I was put in the running backs room to make an impact on those guys, and I feel like I have. I’m leading from a situation that I’m not used to. I’m used to leading from being out in front and doing it by my example.”

Instead, he is leading in the shadows. He tries to give advice and during the game he is quick to tell Gallman what he is seeing from the sideline.

“I will definitely miss (football) because it is a great game to play. It is a game with many lessons to learn. It is a game about brothers and a game about teammates. Football is like life, really. If you really dissect it and understand it, and realize the lessons you learn in football will carry over to life,” he said. “The decisions you have to make and the growth you have in football that I have had has really helped me.”

And it helped him decide on a career after football.

“I have plans after football that I’m very excited about. I love football,” Brooks said. “I want to continue to play and hopefully I can play in the NFL if I get the opportunity. But interior design is something I see as a long term career.”