Alan Faneca
Alan Faneca (center) with the Steelers in 2007 |
| New York Jets — No. 66 |
| Guard |
| Date of birth: December 7, 1976 (1976-12-07) (age 32) |
| Place of birth: New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Height: 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
Weight: 307 lb (139 kg) |
| Professional debut |
| 1998 for the Pittsburgh Steelers |
| Career history |
| College: Louisiana State |
| NFL Draft: 1998 / Round: 1 / Pick: 26 |
Teams:
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| Roster status: Active |
| Career highlights and awards |
- 5× All-Pro selection (2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)
- 3× Second-team All-Pro (2002, 2003, 2008)
- 8× Pro Bowl selection (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
- Super Bowl XL champion
- 2001 Tuesday Morning Quarterback Non-QB Non-RB NFL MVP Award Winner
- 1998 “Joe Greene Great Performance Award”
|
Selected NFL statistics
(through Week 17 of the 2008 NFL season) |
| Games played |
174 |
| Games started |
169 |
| Fumbles Recovered |
9 |
| Stats at NFL.com |
Alan Joseph Faneca, Jr. (pronounced /FAN-ah-ka/) (born December 7, 1976) is an American football guard for the New York Jets of the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers 26th overall in the 1998 NFL Draft. He played college football for Louisiana State.
A five-time All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowl selection, Faneca won a Super Bowl ring with the Steelers in Super Bowl XL.
Early years
He attended John Curtis Christian Middle School and later Lamar Consolidated High School in Texas. He also lettered in track. He was an All-Greater Houston, Orlando Sentinel All-South, and Touchdown Club of Houston player of the year. At age 15, Faneca began having seizures, which were later diagnosed as epilepsy. [1] He started on medication to control it and was able to continue playing football.
College career
Faneca attended LSU and was redshirted in 1994. He was voted the Southeastern Conference freshman of the year by Knoxville News Sentinel in 1995. In 1996 he was selected as a second-team All-American. He was one of three finalists for 1997 Outland Trophy won by Nebraska’s Aaron Taylor He started his last 36 games at LSU and allowed only one sack in his last season. He had 210 pancake blocks in his collegiate career. He returned to school in 1999 and earned a degree in management entrepreneurship.
Pro career
Pittsburgh Steelers
He was picked by Pittsburgh in the first round (26th overall) in the 1998 NFL Draft. He saw limited playing time at first but injuries to fellow Steelers Will Wolford and Jim Sweeney allowed him to get his first start against the Cincinnati Bengals. He earned the Joe Greene Award as the team's top rookie.In 1999 against the Cleveland Browns he was having a bad season debut before leaving the game at halftime, after suffering a left ankle injury late in the second quarter of the game and played the rest of the first half after sustaining the injury but did not play during the second half. Against Baltimore Ravens he returned from his ankle injury but was replaced in the second half by Roger Duffy.One of his best games on the Season was against the Cincinnati Bengals helping to pave the way for Jerome Bettis first 100-yard game of that season.Against the Carolina Panthers helped pave the way for Bettis season-high 137 yards rushing and the Steelers second highest rushing performance of the season.
In 2000, Faneca helped the Steelers rank fourth in the league in rushing one of only 10 teams to compile more than 2,000 yards rushing in 2000.He had his best season to date when he was named a starter in the 2002 Pro Bowl his first selection to the squad, and also was named All-Pro by the Associated Press and also earned several other postseason honors, including All-Pro by The Sporting News, Sports Illustrated and Football Digest, and was named to Pro Football Weekly's-All-NFL team .He had an offseason surgery on his right wrist and missed some playing time during the teams preseason .In 2002 season was named to Pro Football Weekly's All-NFL and All-AFC team...also selected to the USA Today Sports Weekly's All-Pro team was voted to his second consecutive Pro Bowl In 2003, he switched positions from left guard to left tackle due to injuries, but helping Running back Amos Zereoue to get three 100-yard performances in the season. He has helped running backs Jerome Bettis, Duce Staley, and Willie Parker set individual and team rushing records. He helped the Steelers reach Super Bowl XL in Detroit, in which Pittsburgh defeated the Seattle Seahawks 21-10. He helped spring Parker to a 75-yard touchdown run that is currently the longest run in Super Bowl history.In 2007 Season he helped QB Ben Roethlisberger to perfect passer rating of 158.3 and Najeh Davenport to 123 rushing yards in Week 16 at St Louis Rams .He led way for Willie Parker 105-yard rushing performance in Week 10 against the Browns was the key to Steelers ground attack rolling for 205 yards in Week 3 vs. San Francisco 49ers and helped 206-yard rushing effort in season opener at Cleveland
In 2007, Alan Faneca was voted to the Steelers 75th Anniversary All Time Team by Steeler fans.
New York Jets
On March 1, 2008 the New York Jets signed Faneca to a five-year, $40 million contract, with $21 million in guarantees. The contract made Faneca the highest paid offensive lineman in NFL history (a distinction quickly overtaken by rookie Jake Long). [2] Faneca is expected to provide veteran leadership to a left side of a Jets offensive line that includes three former first round picks from 1999 and 2006, D'Brickashaw Ferguson , Nick Mangold and Damien Woody.
Personal
Faneca married Julie Kuchta of Virginia Beach. They met as freshmen at LSU. They have one daughter, named Anabelle. Off the field he hosted "Bid for Hope" charity auction with his wife in Pittsburgh, with all proceeds benefiting "A Glimmer of Hope," a Pittsburgh-based non-profit organization that supports breast cancer research. Does extensive work with Epilepsy Foundation of America and has participated in podcast called "Speaking Out for Epilepsy” after being diagnosed with epilepsy. Faneca lives in Thibodaux, LA.
References
External links
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Pittsburgh Steelers 75th Anniversary Team |
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