Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) during day 4 of the Colts preseason training camp practice at Grand Park in Westfield on Sunday, July 28, 2019. Colts Preseason Training Camp Matt Kryger/IndyStar via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Former Colts QB Andrew Luck 'Fell Out of Love' with Football Before Retirement

Originally posted on Stanford Cardinal on SI
By Dylan Grausz | Last updated Aug 18, 2025 4:39 PM ET

Andrew Luck is enjoying his new life. Years after retiring from the NFL, former Indianapolis Colts quarterback and Stanford football legend has taken a new job as the general manager of the Cardinal football program, where he will be tasked with rejuvenating a program that has struggled in recent seasons.

While Luck is back to his roots and is keeping himself busy since walking away from the NFL, he is now opening up about retiring early.

When Luck announced his retirement during the 2019 preseason, it sent shockwaves throughout the league. Still in his prime and coming off of one of his best seasons, the Colts expected Luck to be back and bring the team back to the playoffs for the second straight season.

Unfortunately, citing injuries and a whole slew of other reasons, Luck opted to hang them up and end his career just shy of his 30th birthday.

In 2022, ESPN released an article detailing Luck's decision to retire, with a big theme being both injuries and his marriage. But now, Luck is opening up even more about his decision to retire citing something even more simple: he fell out of love with the game that he had played all of his life.

"I was gonna play until I was 40 or 45," Luck told The Athletic. "You think you’re invincible. At least I did. I fell out of love."

After retiring from football, Luck thought that he was done with the game for a while. An NFL game would come on TV, and he would dread it. For a while, he would think about his life in the NFL and everything that he had left behind.

During that time, his brain was in a fog, almost feeling guilty that his once promising playing career was done by the age of 30. But then, over five years later, something he did not expect to happen happened--he got sucked back into the football world.

Re-enrolling at Stanford in 2022 to complete his masters degree, Luck spent two seasons as a volunteer junior varsity assistant coach at Palo Alto High School, returning to a football field for the first time since he retired.

But then, right after the 2024 season ended, Luck took the general manager job at Stanford, not only bringing him back to the game full-time, but putting him in a role where he would once again be at the forefront of an entire team.

Now, Luck dons glasses, slacks, a sports coat and a much skinnier frame than his playing days, and is attempting to bring Stanford football back into the national spotlight. From early morning/late night conversations with staff members, calling season ticket holders and recruiting players onto The Farm, Luck is back to being a natural-born leader, all while keeping his body healthy for a long and fulfilling life.

This article first appeared on Stanford Cardinal on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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