NFL Hall of Famers Named Keynote Speakers at Work Truck Week 2024

Two of the most celebrated running backs in the history of the National Football League, Jerome "The Bus" Bettis and Emmitt Smith, will team up as keynote speakers for Work Truck Week 2024's NTEA Annual Meeting on March 7, 2024.

With four Super Bowl victories between them, Bettis and Smith will share their perspectives on teamwork, persistence, and success in a question-and-answer conversation moderated by Jason Ritchey, the president and owner of Curry Supply Co. and 2024 Convention Chair.

The event will be the third pairing of NFL legends to inspire and entertain NTEA Annual Meeting attendees, with tickets available for purchase when registration opens in October. 

The event, which will take place at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis from March 5 to March 8, 2024, is North America's largest work truck event and will include The Work Truck Show, Green Truck Summit, Ride & Drive, educational sessions, and more.

Learning from NFL Legends

Both Bettis and Smith left college after junior year to enter the NFL Draft. Each was selected in the first round.

Bettis was drafted by the L.A. Rams in 1993. In his first season, he was named NFL Co-Rookie of the Year, Sporting News Rookie of the Year and Rams MVP. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1996. In his first season with Pittsburgh, he won NFL Comeback Player of the Year. Over the course of his career, he was voted to the Pro Bowl six times and was named first-team All-Pro twice.

In 2001, he won the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award for his work with The Jerome Bettis Bus Stops Here Foundation that assists underprivileged inner-city youth. In 2006, Bettis retired from the NFL after helping the Steelers win Super Bowl XL in his hometown of Detroit. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015.

Bettis wrote two autobiographies and has had a successful broadcast career as a football analyst for national sports networks and as host of The Jerome Bettis Show in Pittsburgh on WPXI-TV. Bettis returned to Notre Dame to complete his education, graduating on May 15, 2022, with a business degree.

Smith, who remains the NFL’s all-time leading rusher, was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 1990. He spent 13 seasons with the Cowboys and two with the Arizona Cardinals, returning to the Cowboys for a day to officially retire with the team in 2005.

Smith is the only running back to ever win a Super Bowl championship, NFL Most Valuable Player award, NFL rushing crown and Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award in the same season. He led the league in rushing and won the Super Bowl the same year three times, in 1992, 1993 and 1995. Smith was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Florida. Since retiring from professional football, he has built companies spanning real estate, construction, technology, and renewable energy.

His current businesses include E J Smith Enterprises; E Smith Legacy, a premier real estate development firm; E Smith Advisors, a majority-owned joint brokerage firm; EJ Smith Construction, a Dallas-based commercial and civil construction management and general contractor; PROVA Group, Inc., an enterprise providing technology-based authentication solutions for memorabilia and high-value items; and Notable Live!, a mobile social platform connecting celebrities and notables with their fans.