MIAMI, Fla. — Getting an autograph from a professional athlete is a special experience for sports fans, but it doesn’t compare to getting a phone call from one of your favorite NFL players.

For the fourth consecutive year, football fans in town for the Super Bowl were treated to a memorable mobile phone experience with NFL superstars thanks to Sprint Phone-A-Friend @ NFL PLAYERS Live!, a three-day event promoted by NFL PLAYERS. More than 40 of the biggest names in the NFL participated in the event, which gave fans the opportunity to have NFL players call their friends and family directly from Sprint mobile phones.

“It was my second time participating in this event so it’s a lot of fun for me to come out here and connect with the fans,” Atlanta Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez said. “It’s really funny to call the fans and say this is Tony Gonzalez from the Falcons, because they always say, “No it’s not. Are you really serious?’ So they don’t always believe you at first, but when they finally do I get bunch of questions from them and it’s just a great experience for everyone involved.”

The unique event was held at the Super Bowl Fan Zone on Ocean Drive between 7th and 8th streets on South Beach with different time slots available Thursday through Saturday. Each day, three NFL players lined up on stage each hour to speak with fans over the phone or deliver voicemail messages to them. Sprint offered Sprint Speed Lines exclusively for Sprint customers, allowing them to move through the lines more quickly. The event culminated on Super Bowl Sunday, when six players (two each hour) delivered messages to fans at Sun Life Stadium from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The three-day lineup included Jason Campbell (Washington), Brandon Jacobs (New York Giants), Brian Mitchell (Retired), Joey Porter (Miami), Ray Rice (Baltimore), Fred Taylor (New England), DeAngelo Williams (Carolina), Jason Witten (Dallas) and many other well-known players.

During the phone calls, players were asked a variety of questions including which athlete they grew up idolizing and who they think will win Super Bowl XLIV. Most people receiving the calls were shocked that an NFL star would be calling them, even despite some warnings from their friends and family attending the event.

“You never know what to expect when the person on the other end answers the phone,” Taylor said. “As a New England Patriot and Florida Gator, you hope it’s not a trap with a Jet fan or Seminole, but it went smoothly for me. The fans really enjoyed it and so did I.”

While the fans on the other end of the line were left with a memorable experience, the fans on-site for the event got an opportunity to pose for photographs with players and often got in a few questions of their own.

“It was amazing to be able to meet Jason Campbell,” said Jordan Fabrow, a 15-year-old Redskins fan that connected his buddy in Maryland with the veteran quarterback. “I was shaking the whole time I was up there because I was so excited.”

Saturday’s Sprint Phone-A-Friend @ NFL PLAYERS Live! event was extra special for one particular NFL fan that lives in the Miami area. Caroline Masia, 11, is a fifth-grade student at Virginia Boone Highland Oaks Elementary School and was the grand prize winner of NFL PLAYERS’ “Stay Cool in School” essay contest. She was born deaf and wrote about getting her first implants in her ears for the contest’s theme: “My Winning Moment.” As the grand prize winner, Masia was given backstage access to the Sprint Phone-A-Friend event to get autographs and take photos with players, as well as interview several players for a story that will appear on NFLPLAYERS.COM.

“I got to meet so many cool players and they were really fun to be around,” Masia said. “I was so happy I got to meet and interview Leon Washington. He plays for one of my favorite teams, the Jets, and he went to Florida State where my older sister might be going to school. I also got a bunch of autographs with the players so it was a lot of fun.”

Washington, who spent a while speaking with Masia and her family, was impressed with her reporting skills.

“Caroline was very nice and sweet, and asked some really good questions,” Washington said. “It’s great that she got an opportunity to meet NFL players and to see that she can relate to them. I was thrilled to know that I have her support and it was my pleasure to have the chance to meet her.”

Arguably one of the best fan events leading up to Super Bowl XLIV, Sprint Phone-A-Friend continued to serve as a great opportunity for NFL players to connect with fans on a personal level. Using Sprint’s wireless networks and devices made the event one-of-a-kind because fans didn’t have to be in South Florida to interact with the NFL stars.

In addition to the live event on South Beach, fans were able to go online to www.sprint.com/superbowl to register for an opportunity to get a call from one of three NFL stars including Maurice Jones-Drew (Jacksonville), Mark Sanchez (Jets) or Michael Strahan (Retired) and be part of a live webcast.

NFL PLAYERS, the licensing and marketing subsidiary of the NFL Players Association, created the consumer-focused event four years ago in an effort to highlight players as real players with real passion and real personalities. The company arranges all player appearances and marketing opportunities for all NFL sponsors throughout the year.

Because it is difficult for players to sign every autograph and shake hands with all of their loyal fans during the regular season, this annual event has become a favorite of the players that participate each year.

“Sometimes the signing of autographs gets a little old for fans and players, so something new and vibrant like the Sprint Phone-A-Friend event makes for a really neat experience,” Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb said. “I spoke with people all over the country with different backgrounds and accents. The best part of this event is just getting to hear the excitement in their voices.”