Joe Andruzzi

Joseph Dominic Andruzzi (born August 23, 1975 in Staten Island, New York) is a former American football offensive guard. In May 2007 he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.^[1]

Early years

Andruzzi attended Tottenville High School in Staten Island, New York and was a student and a letterman in football. In football, he was an All-City selection and a starter in both the offense and defense lines.

College career

He attended Southern Connecticut State University, where he played every position on the offensive line, and was a starter for the Fighting Owls all four years. He was a Division II All-American his junior and senior years. During his senior season, he was an offensive team captain, as the team set several offensive records.

Pro career

Andruzzi was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Green Bay Packers in 1997 and spent that entire year on the Packers' roster, although he did not play in any games, including the Packers' run to Super Bowl XXXII. Prior to the 1998 NFL season, Andruzzi was allocated to NFL Europe by the Packers and played for the Scottish Claymores, earning All-NFL Europe honors in the process. He later returned to Green Bay and backed up Marco Rivera at guard. He platooned at guard with Mike Wahle the following season, but was forced to sit out several games due to a MCL sprain. He was waived by the Packers before the 2000 NFL season and quickly signed with the New England Patriots. He was a full-time starter for the squad, and won three Super Bowl rings with the team before signing with the Browns as an unrestricted free agent in March 2005. Andruzzi's coach, Romeo Crennel, was the defensive coordinator for the Patriots when Andruzzi was with the squad. He was released on May 2, 2007, in an unexpected move, as he was signed with the Browns through 2008.

Personal

On May 31, 2007 it was revealed that Andruzzi had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to a release issued by his agent, Joe Linta. "While this condition is very serious, both Joe and his doctors feel he will quickly be on his way to a full recovery," the release said. In January, 2008 a Sports Illustrated article revealed that Andruzzi was diagnosed with Burkitt's Lymphoma, a rare, but aggressive cancer where a mass can double in size in just 24 hours^[2]. Andruzzi and his wife Jennifer have established the Joe Andruzzi Foundation [1] to raise funds to support cancer research.

References

External links

• Joe Andruzzi at ESPN.com