Don’t you dare call these NFL players cupcakes. However, they certainly do love them.

In March of 2018, current Tennessee Titans linebacker Brian Orakpo and former Tennessee Titans safety Michael Griffin opened a Gigi’s Cupcakes franchise just outside of Austin, Texas, the first location in the area.

Orakpo and Griffin first met while playing together at the University of Texas in Austin. There, they met good friend Bryan Hynson, who also owns and operates the Gigi’s Cupcakes location.

Orakpo and Griffin both ended up playing for the Tennessee Titans after college, which is where they first became familiar with Nashville-based Gigi’s Cupcakes, the largest cupcake franchise in the country.

“When I moved to Nashville in 2015, one of the first things I was introduced to was a dozen of Gigi’s Cupcakes. Once my teammates gave me some, I fell in love,” says Brian Orakpo. “Football players and cupcakes don’t exactly go hand and hand, but that’s what makes this so much fun. We’re family men and we know that everybody loves a good cupcake.”

On a recent edition of ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown, Orakpo demonstrated his cupcake prowess for the cameras (which you can watch in the video above).

Orakpo says that training to open the cupcake shop was almost as demanding as training for the NFL.

“Training was pretty tough, I’m not going to lie to you. We literally had to learn everything, from baking each and every flavor, to baking each and every frosting, from working the front, dealing with customers, handling the cash register, everything.”

Michael Griffin says that they were excited to bring a piece of Nashville to Austin.

“The city is growing rapidly with students, young professionals, and families, which makes it an ideal spot for a dynamic cupcake chain.”