Keith Bruce, Illinois ’87, ran the most celebrated Super Bowl in the event’s history, the record-setting Super Bowl 50. The former SigEp vice president of recruitment says he learned the power of team work and collaboration as an undergraduate brother.

With his three-year term as CEO of the 50th Super Bowl behind him, Bruce shared some of his favorite moments and proudest accomplishments with SigEp’s associate director of advancement, Jake Bredstrand, Washington State ’11.

Jake Bredstrand: You achieved your goal of being “the most giving Super Bowl ever.” What did that look like?

Keith Bruce: At the end of the day, the Host Committee raised over $13 million for the 50 Fund, contributing all of that money to community initiatives and high-performing nonprofits, ultimately reaching over 550,000 youth in the Bay Area.

I really believe we set a new standard for how a global sporting event can focus on its local communities and really make a significant contribution to people in the region who aren’t as fortunate and need it the most.

I am also very proud of our support for local small businesses here in the Bay Area. Through the NFL Business Connect program, we brought in $6.6 million in direct local contracts with small, diverse businesses — minority, women, LGBT and veteran-owned businesses — helping these companies obtain a piece of the massive Super Bowl 50 economy.

So overall, we delivered over $20 million directly to the Bay Area community through the 50 Fund charitable grants and contracts.

JB: Super Bowl 50 set several records for a Super Bowl and major sporting events in general. Which are you most proud of?

KB: I am proud of all of them quite frankly. We set so many records — total viewers, transportation, fan engagement, social media, among others. A couple of records I am particularly happy with are our record attendance at Super Bowl City and our social media metrics.

We had 1.1 million people flow through Super Bowl City, our free fan festival on the waterfront in San Francisco, during the nine days it was open. An even more impressive stat was that 1.9 million Bay Area residents — a third of our population — attended some kind of Super Bowl 50 event. That still just amazes me. We have not had a Super Bowl in over 30 years, so the Bay Area was ready and showed up big time with their support.

Another big goal was to be the most technologically advanced and most shared Super Bowl ever. We saw a record 4.3 billion views of Super Bowl 50 content on Twitter and over 155 million fan interactions on Instagram, making us the most socially shared Super Bowl ever. Levi’s Stadium set records for data usage and unique Wi-Fi users during Super Bowl 50.

Bottom line, I think Silicon Valley and our partners really stepped up to make sure that our technology not only worked well, but that it over-delivered on expectations and efficiency. We could not have been the most shared Super Bowl ever if our technology wasn’t ready for the challenge.

JB: Any favorite memories or people you met on Super Bowl Sunday?

KB: Several people stand out. I met a fan at one of the pre-game parties that had been to every Super Bowl since 1985, when the Bay Area last hosted a Super Bowl at Stanford. The look on his face was priceless, he was so happy to be there. Another is meeting the Blue Angels pilots on the field after the game … they were like kids soaking it all up like the other fans.

I enjoyed chatting with Jim Nantz (CBS), Steve Mariucci (NFL Network) and Steve Young (ESPN) on the field before the game … they were so impressed with Levi’s Stadium, the week of celebrations, and most importantly the weather I had ordered up for Super Bowl 50!

To be honest, every person I met was important to me on Super Bowl Sunday … a very special day that I will always remember.

JB: You just ended a three-year term as CEO. What’s next? Is there a chance you’ll take on another Super Bowl?

KB: It has been an amazing three years, easily the most professionally rewarding and personally gratifying years of my long career in the sports business. I am now a free agent so to speak, looking for the next new leadership opportunity in the sports world.

It’s an exciting time for me and for the industry, so I am very optimistic about what’s next. Sports, technology and media are all coming together at such a rapid pace, and there are so many new and exciting companies out there.

The next five Super Bowls and their host markets are now set, so I don’t see myself taking on another Super Bowl CEO role in the near future. If San Francisco decides to bid on another one in a few years, I would consider supporting or leading the bid committee as a bid chair or something similar. But I have some ambitious goals and big ideas about what’s next for me, and I am very excited about the opportunities out there.

JB: And just for fun, any prediction for a Super Bowl 51 matchup?

KB: Hard to say this early as so many teams could get there. In the AFC, I would keep my eye on the Patriots, Steelers and the Broncos again. In the NFC, I like the Cowboys, Eagles and Seahawks. Those are legitimate playoff teams. A good sleeper team to watch is the Raiders — I think they are going to be good this year.