Walhalla temple, Germany

Along the Hollywood Walk of Fame, U.S.

A hall of fame, wall of fame, walk of fame, walk of stars or avenue of stars is a type of attraction established for any field of endeavor to honor individuals of noteworthy achievement in that field. The meaning of "Fame" has changed over the years, originally meaning "renown" as opposed to today's more common meaning of "celebrity".^[1]

In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or museums which enshrine the honorees with sculptures, plaques, and displays of memorabilia. Sometimes, the honorees' plaques may instead be posted on a wall (a '"wall of fame") or inscribed on a sidewalk (a "walk of fame" or an "avenue of fame"). In others, the hall of fame is more figurative, and just simply consists of a list of names of noteworthy individuals maintained by an organization or community.

The English-language term was first used for the Hall of Fame for Great Americans at Bronx Community College, in New York City, although its inspiration, the Ruhmeshalle in Munich, Germany, also means "Hall of Fame". The Walhalla Temple in Bavaria, Germany, is an even earlier hall of fame, conceived in 1807 and built between 1830 and 1842.

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Halls of fame

Look up hall of fame in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• R. Rubin (1997). "The Mall of Fame". The Atlantic Monthly 280 (1): 14–18. 

This organization-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

The Script
The Script, Nobel Peace Prize Concert 2008
Background information
Origin	Dublin, Ireland
Genres	Soft rock, alternative rock, blue-eyed soul, worldbeat
Years active	2001–present[1]
Labels	Sony Music Entertainment
Associated acts	mytown (1996-2001)
Website	thescriptmusic.com
Members
Danny O'Donoghue Mark Sheehan Glen Power

The Script are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Based in London after signing to Sony Label Group imprint Phonogenic, the band released their eponymous debut album in August 2008, featuring the hit songs "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" and "Breakeven". The album debuted at number one in Ireland and the UK.^[2] Their second album, Science & Faith, was released in September 2010, and contains the hit songs "For the First Time" and "Nothing". The album debuted at number one in Ireland and the UK, and number three on the US Billboard 200.^[2][3]

Their music has been featured in many video games and many popular television programs including 90210, Ghost Whisperer, The Hills, Waterloo Road, EastEnders, Made in Chelsea and The Vampire Diaries. Frontman Danny O'Donoghue is also a coach on The Voice UK.

Biography[link]

Danny O'Donoghue and Mark Sheehan met in a club in The Liberties area of Dublin, Ireland near the Guinness brewery, gravitating to each other through a shared liking of music, and in particular a love of R & B music (Rhythm and Blues). "At that time, MTV only came on in Dublin after midnight, it was the fuzzy channel, and for my generation urban culture was just a wave through us all," explains Sheehan. "It wasn't about gangs and guns; it was fashion and fun, singing and dancing." ^[4]

Mark and Danny were formerly part of a band that had formed in 1996 called mytown. Striking up a songwriting and production partnership, O'Donoghue and Sheehan's talent was recognized early, and, to their astonishment, they found themselves invited to Canada to collaborate with some of their production heroes, including such legends of modern R&B as Dallas Austin, Montell Jordan and Teddy Riley. They were based in the US for many years, but moved back to Dublin where they recruited Glen Power for their new band. He had been playing sessions from the age of fifteen, using the money to work on a solo project in his home. But that went on hold when his collaboration with Mark and Danny produced three songs in one week. The band signed to Phonogenic in 2005, and released an EP on Last.FM. The band's influences include a diverse group of artists that include U2, Coldplay, The Police, The Neptunes, Timbaland, and Van Morrison.^[5] O'Donoghue also made a reference to Amy Winehouse and Stevie Wonder while discussing his personal voice while singing. They have worked on a few collaborations with Amy Winehouse and Denzel Washington, varying styles and genres. He stated that the instrument he attempts to imitate is a violin, based on the string arrangements of Stevie Wonder, while Amy Winehouse is similar to a saxophone.^[6]

Danny and Mark started making demos for other artists, but when they met drummer Glen Power, the objective changed. The pair had never heard Power play, but they made a connection that motivated Sheehan to invite Glen on a working holiday to Los Angeles. In one week, the trio produced three songs. "It was like I found my home playing with these guys," says Glen. "I had never had a chance with any other band to express myself with such freedom." "Individually, we all had our own talents, but together it just went to another level," according to Danny.^{[cite this quote]}

In the beginning years of the band, Mark Sheehan's mother fell terminally ill, causing a lot of stress on the band and members, but it also had a positive effect on Sheehan's writing. With such strong emotional tension, the songwriter found new lyrics every day. Sheehan said that "That was the time when it finally came home to me how important music was to me, 'cause in my darkest moments that's what got me through." After Sheehan's mother's death, ten months after her diagnosis, Danny's father died four months later of a heart attack. Even with such trying moments in their early years, the band was able to rise out of it, albeit with somewhat bleak lyrics in several songs, as commented by Danny when referencing "We Cry": "There is not a lot of hope in the song, cause not everybody's life is full of hope. There's not always roses at the end."^[6]

[edit] The Script (2008–2010)

The Script performed "We Cry" for the first time on BalconyTV in Dublin on 13 September 2007.^[7] The band claimed that BalconyTV was the "first TV they ever did" and credited Michael Hunter as the "push we needed to propel us" when they won Best Band at the DanishTV Music Video Awards 2009 in the Pepper Club Dublin on 20 June 2008. At the awards the band said the award was their "first ever".^[8] The Script released their debut single "We Cry" on 14 April 2008. "We Cry" received "Single of the Day" on RTÉ 2FM, Today FM and by Jo Whiley on BBC Radio 1, where many radio presenters heavily supported the band.^[9] The single peaked at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart,^[10] giving the band their first top 20 single. The track also performed well on the Irish Singles Chart, peaking at number 9 and giving the band their first top ten single in their home country.^[10] The Script also performed 'We Cry' on one of the CW's TV series, 90210.

Their second single, "The Man Who Can't Be Moved", was released on 15 September 2008.^[11] The single reached number 2 in Ireland, Denmark, and the UK.^[12] The band released their debut album, The Script, on 11 August 2008. Following the success of "The Man Who Can't Be Moved", the album entered the UK Albums Chart at number one with sales of 20,240 copies where it stayed for eleven weeks. The album spent three weeks in the top ten and was the eighteenth best selling album in the UK of 2008. The album also entered the Irish Albums Chart at number one, holding the top spot for five weeks.^[13] It had, as of January 2009, spent 2 wks. in the top 10. The Irish office of Sony BMG music presented the group with their first multi-platinum disc for over 600,000 sales of their debut album, The Script.^[14]

The band's third single, "Breakeven", was released in Ireland on 21 November 2008 and in the UK on 29 December 2008. The single was an instant success on the Irish Singles Chart. After entering the chart at number forty, it spent one week before entering the top ten at number ten giving the Script their third top ten single in Russia. The single has, to date, spent 4 weeks on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 21. The band's fourth single "Talk You Down" was released in March 2009.^[15]

On 9 November The Script received an award at the World Music Awards for 'Best Selling Irish Act' of 2008 and on 19 February 2010, they won 'Best Live Performance' at the Meteor Ireland Music Awards. The band has confirmed that they plan to write a track for Leona Lewis's second album.^[16] In December 2008, the band were confirmed to be supporting Take That at their concert at Croke Park on 13 June 2009. The band played at the Cheerio's Childline concert on the opening night of Dublin's 02. They played among big stars Enrique Iglesias, Anastacia and many more.

On 7 April 2009 the band was confirmed to be supporting U2 on their third concert at Croke Park, which took place on 27 July 2009.^[17] On 29 April 2009, the band announced that their next single would be Before The Worst, to be released on 15 June 2009.^[18] On 17, 18 and 21 July 2009, The Script opened for Paul McCartney at the historic first concerts at New York's Citi Field^[19] and for U2 at Dublin's Croke Park.

The band's bonus track and B-side "Live Like We're Dying" was re-recorded by American Idol 2009 winner Kris Allen as the first single off his self-titled album. Allen's version of "Live Like We're Dying" was digitally released for download on 21 September 2009.^[20]

On 2 December 2009 the band's single "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" was featured as a remix on the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show during the Enchanted Forest segment.

On 16 April 2010, their first U.S. single "Breakeven" was certified Platinum by the RIAA (the Recording Industry Association of America), selling over one million copies in the U.S. and has since peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 2010. The band performed a headline tour in the United States that kicked off in San Diego on 11 October 2010 at the House of Blues and ended on 7 November 2010 at the House of Blues in Boston, Massachusetts.^[19] On 21 May 2010, they appeared live on NBC's Today Show as part of the show's outdoor Toyota Concert Series.

[edit] Science & Faith (2010-2011)

The Script announced a new album and single on their website on Monday, 19 July 2010. The first single from album Science & Faith, "For the First Time", was released in the UK on 20 August 2010 and the album followed on 13 September 2010. In the United States, "For the First Time" was released on iTunes on 8 November 2010, with "Science & Faith" was released on 18 January 2011.^[21] The song was first released in the United States on AOL Music on 29 September 2010.^[22] "For the First Time" has entered the UK charts at #5 and moved up to #4 the following week and entered the Irish charts at #1. The music video features Bono's daughter Eve Hewson. Science & Faith entered the Irish Album Chart and the UK album chart at #1.

The Script recorded their album in London, and vocalist Danny O'Donoghue says that the economic crisis in Ireland is "a microcosm for the rest of the world." He talks about people being stripped of everything that they own and how it inspired the band to write the songs for the new album. Danny says, "We're dealing with complex emotions in the simplest of ways, that's what we battle with in these songs." The subject matter might sound bleak at first, but Science & Faith is about optimism. "With Irish people, no matter how bad things get, you always pick yourself up and carry on."^{[cite this quote]}

On Friday, 24 September at 9:00am tickets for The Script's three nights at The O2 Dublin, two nights at The Odyssey, Belfast & two at The INEC, Killarney went on sale and sold out in less than 40 minutes, with over 60,000 tickets sold. On 1 October at 9:00am tickets for The Script arena tour in March 2011 went on sale. The tickets for all 12 arenas around the UK sold out in 5 days. They also announced that they would play a "Homecoming" concert at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. This is part of the Science & Faith Tour and will be their biggest headline show to date.

The Script also took part in Children in Need 2010. The Script will be participating in the VH1 Best Cruise Ever and sailing to Cozumel 28 April-2 May 2011. The Script took part in BRMB's live 2010 with acts such as The Saturdays, Mark Ronson and Mcfly. The Script were nominated for Best International Act at the 2011 Brit Awards. The Script announced that they will perform at: Pinkpop festival, V festival, Oxegen, Isle of Wight Festival, T in the park, Thetford Forest Show, iTunes Festival, Skanderborg Festival, Sudoeste Festival, Tennents ViTal.

The Script also played to the biggest indoor crowd of 18,300 people at The Coca-Cola Dome in Johannesburg South Africa 24 June 2011.

They later went on to play their official biggest crowd ever on 2 July 2011 in Dublin's Aviva Stadium, and performed to a sold-out crowd of 50,000 people. The Coronas and Tinie Tempah were support acts on the night.

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• The Script (2008)
• Science & Faith (2010)

Tours and shows[link]

• Science & Faith Tour
• iTunes Festival 2011
• Isle Of Wight Festival 2011
• Radio City Music Hall - October 9, 2012
• V FEST 2011
• World Tour October 2012

Awards and Nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• The Script at MySpace
• The Script at Billboard.com
• The Script on BalconyTV – Music With Nothing
• BBC Talking Shop: The Script by Neil Smith, 17 April 2008 at ITV
• BBC Music Club: The Script
• The Script CD review in MTVMexico.com
• Talk You Down Review at Daily Music Book
• The Script Interview in the Virgin Red Room
• Project This = Love, home to the only charity group for fans of The Script

William Paul McCartney (born August 22, 1940) is a former American football player and coach and the founder of the Promise Keepers men's ministry. He was the head coach at the University of Colorado from 1982 to 1994, where he compiled a record of 93–55–5 and won three consecutive Big Eight Conference titles between 1989 and 1991. McCartney's 1990 team was crowned as national champions by the Associated Press, sharing the title with a Georgia Tech team that topped the final Coaches' Poll rankings.

In September 2008, McCartney came out of five years' retirement from Promise Keepers to become the CEO and chairman of the board of the organization after founding the Road to Jerusalem ministry.^[1]

Biography[link]

Education and early career[link]

After receiving his BA in education from the University of Missouri in 1962, McCartney was named as an assistant football coach under his older brother, Tom, in the summer of 1965 at Holy Redeemer High School in Detroit, Michigan. The younger McCartney was also the head basketball coach at Redeemer from 1965 to 1969, taking the school to the Detroit City Championship during the 1968–1969 season. McCartney then served as the head football and basketball coach at Divine Child High School in Dearborn, Michigan before becoming the only high school coach ever hired by University of Michigan coaching legend Bo Schembechler.

Head coach at Colorado[link]

After eight years as an assistant at Michigan, McCartney was hired to replace Chuck Fairbanks as head coach at the University of Colorado on June 9, 1982.^[2] In his first season in 1982, the Colorado Buffaloes compiled a record of 2–8–1. After improving to 4–7 in 1983, Colorado sustained a 1–10 campaign in 1984, but McCartney was given a contract extension nonetheless. In his fourth season in 1985, McCartney guided the Buffaloes to a 7–5 record and a berth in the Freedom Bowl, where they lost to the Washington Huskies. In the following season, 1986, McCartney's team earned its first victory over Big Eight Conference powerhouse Nebraska since 1967. After modestly successful seasons in 1987 and 1988, McCartney steered his team toward national prominence.

After the 1988 season, the Buffaloes' star quarterback, Sal Aunese, was diagnosed with stomach cancer. He died in the middle of the 1989 season. Nonetheless, Colorado won all 11 of its regular season games including victories over ranked Washington, Illinois, Nebraska, and Oklahoma teams. The Buffaloes faced Notre Dame on January 1, 1990 in the Orange Bowl, where they lost, 21–6.

Colorado opened the 1990 season ranked fourth with a game against Tennessee in the inaugural Disney Pigskin Classic played in Anaheim, California. The contest ended in a 31–31 tie. A comeback win against Stanford and a one-point loss to Illinois leveled the Buffaloes' record at 1–1–1. Colorado then won the remainder of their regular season games. Their winning streak, highlighted by wins over ranked Washington, Oklahoma, and Nebraska opponents, was not without controversy. In a game against Missouri on October 6, referees mistakenly allowed an extra down on which Colorado scored the winning touchdown as time expired. The game, known as the Fifth Down Game, became one of the most notorious officiating gaffes in college football history. Contentions notwithstanding, Colorado rose to #1 in the rankings and once again faced Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. The Buffaloes won a closely played game, 10–9, aided by a controversial clipping call that negated a late punt return touchdown by Rocket Ismail of Notre Dame,^[3][4][5] and earned a share of the national title. Colorado was voted #1 by in AP Poll while Georgia Tech was voted the top ranking in the Coaches' Poll.

The following year, the Buffaloes tied Nebraska for the Big Eight title and lost to Alabama in the Blockbuster Bowl. In 1992, Colorado finished a 9–2–1 campaign with a loss to Syracuse in the Fiesta Bowl. In 1994, McCartney's final year, he coached the Buffaloes to a 27–26 win at Michigan, where McCartney had spent eight years as an assistant. Colorado won the game on a 64-yard Hail Mary pass from Kordell Stewart to Michael Westbrook as time expired. The Buffaloes posted an 11–1 record in 1994, capped by a win over Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. At the end of the 1994 season, McCartney retired from coaching.

McCartney holds records for the most games coached (153), most wins (93), and most conference wins (58) in the history of the Colorado Buffaloes football program.^[6]

Outside of coaching[link]

In 1990, while still head football coach at Colorado, McCartney founded a Christian men's group called Promise Keepers. He later resigned as the head of Promise Keepers and founded an organization called The Road to Jerusalem. In September 2008, McCartney rejoined Promise Keepers as CEO and chairman of the board. He serves on the board of directors of the Equip Foundation, Gospel to the Unreached Millions, and Concerts of Prayer International.

McCartney is the author of five books: From Ashes to Glory (1995), Sold Out (1997), Sold Out Two-Gether (1999), co-authored with his wife, Lyndi McCartney, Blind Spots: What You Don't See May Be Keeping Your Church From Greatness (2003), and Two Minute Warning: Why It's Time to Honor Jewish People Before the Clock Runs Out (2009) with Aaron Fruh.

Honors[link]

McCartney won a number of national coaching awards in 1989 including the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year award, the Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award and the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award. Three times, in 1985, 1989, and 1990, he was named the Big Eight Coach of the Year. McCartney was inducted into the Orange Bowl Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.

McCartney has been honored with a number of additional personal awards including: the Impact America Award from Point Loma College in 1995, the Spectrum Award from Sports Spectrum magazine in 1995, ABC News Person of the Week on February 16, 1996, Layperson of the Year from the National Association of Evangelicals in 1996, the Fire-Setters Award from Revival Fires Ministries in 1997, the Evangelist Philip Award from the National Association of United Methodist Evangelists in 1999, and the Humanitarian of the Year from the Syl Morgan Smith Colorado Gospel Music Academy in 1999.

Family[link]

McCartney lives with his wife, Lyndi, in the Denver area. They have four children and ten grandchildren, one of which was fathered by McCartney's former player, Sal Aunese, who died of cancer at the age of 21.^[7] The McCartneys attend Cornerstone Church in Boulder, Colorado.

Head coaching record[link]

Coaching tree[link]

McCartney played under:

• Dan Devine, Missouri

McCartney coached under

• Bo Schembechler, Michigan

Assistants to McCartney who became college head coaches:

• Gary Barnett, Northwestern, Colorado
• Jim Caldwell, Wake Forest, Indianapolis Colts (NFL)
• Karl Dorrell, UCLA
• Gerry DiNardo, LSU, Indiana
• Mike Hankwitz, Arizona
• Steve Logan, East Carolina
• Les Miles, Oklahoma State, LSU
• Rick Neuheisel, Colorado, Washington, UCLA
• Bob Simmons, Oklahoma State
• Lou Tepper, Illinois
• Ron Vanderlinden, Maryland
• Jon Embree, Colorado

References[link]

External links[link]

• Promise Keepers profile
• Bill McCartney at the College Football Data Warehouse

Tedy Bruschi

Bruschi in 2010.
No. 54
Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth: (1973-06-09) June 9, 1973 (age 39)
Place of birth: San Francisco, California
Height: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Weight: 247 lb (112 kg)
Career information
High school: Roseville High School Roseville, California
College: Arizona
NFL Draft: 1996 / Round: 3 / Pick: 86
Debuted in 1996 for the New England Patriots
Last played in 2008 for the New England Patriots
Career history
New England Patriots (1996–2008)
Career highlights and awards
2× Consensus All-American (1994, 1995) 3× First-team All-Pac-10 (1993, 1994, 1995) Morris Trophy (1995) Pro Bowl (2004) 2× All-Pro (2003, 2004) 3× Super Bowl champion (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX) 2× Ed Block Courage Award (2000, 2005) AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year (2005) New England Patriots All-2000s Team New England Patriots 50th Anniversary Team
Career NFL statistics as of 2008
Games played 189 Games started 139 Tackles 1,110 Quarterback sacks 30.5 Interceptions 12 Stats at NFL.com
Stats at pro-football-reference.com

Tedy Lacap Bruschi (pronounced /ˈbruːski/) (born June 9, 1973) is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons. He played college football for the University of Arizona, and was a two-time consensus All-American. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 1996 NFL Draft, and played his entire professional career with the Patriots. Bruschi won three Super Bowl rings and was a two-time All-Pro selection.

Early years[link]

Bruschi was born in San Francisco, California.^[1] He attended Roseville High School in Roseville, California,^[2] where he lettered in high school football, wrestling and track and field (shot put). He was an all-conference selection as a defensive tackle for the Roseville Tigers.

College career[link]

Bruschi attended the University of Arizona, where he played for the at Arizona Wildcats football team from 1991 to 1995. In his four-year college career, he compiled 185 total tackles (137 solos), with 74 tackles for losses, forced six fumbles and recovered five others, and tied the NCAA Division I-A sack record with 52 sacks. He was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 1994 and 1995, and won the 1995 Morris Trophy as the Pacific-10 Conference's best defensive lineman.

In 1991 he missed the first three games of the season due to a pinched nerve in his neck. He returned and started two games as a true freshman, but suffered a broken left thumb and was redshirted. In 1992 he played strongside outside linebacker prior to his transition to the defensive line in 1993 and started just one of 12 games and still managed to post 4.5 sacks for the season. In 1993 he earned second-team All-America honors after setting a school record with 19 sacks as a sophomore, received first-team All-Pac-10 honors, and was named the Wildcats' most valuable player. His 27.5 tackles for losses and 19 sacks in 1993 were each career highs. In 1994 he was one of four finalists for the Lombardi Award and again was a first-team All-Pac-10 selection. He totaled 39 tackles, including 10 sacks for 65 yards and 15 tackles for losses. In 1995, he totaled 60 tackles (48 solos), including 18.5 sacks and 22.5 tackles for losses.

Professional career[link]

1996-1998[link]

The New England Patriots selected Bruschi in the third round (86th overall) of the 1996 NFL Draft,^[3] and he played for the Patriots from 1996 to 2008.^[4] The Patriots coaches moved him from defensive lineman to linebacker.

In 1996 he played in every game as a rookie, a pass rush specialist and playing on many special teams units and finished the season with 11 tackles, including four sacks. He ranked third on the team with 17 special teams tackles. Bruschi recorded two sacks in Super Bowl XXXI against the Green Bay Packers, just one shy of the Super Bowl record (Reggie White, 3.0). In 1997 he saw action in every game for the second consecutive season and posted 30 defensive tackles, including four sacks, and added 13 special teams stops. His four sacks and 13 special teams tackles each ranked third on the team and he also forced two fumbles, and recovered one. In 1998 Bruschi played in every game for the third consecutive year and started the last eight games of the season, including the Patriots wild-card playoff game in Jacksonville (January 3, 1999). He finished fourth on the team with a career-high 81 tackles, including a pair of sacks. He had opened the season in his now familiar role as a pass rush specialist.

1999-2001[link]

In 1999 he started 14 games at outside linebacker and recorded a career-high 138 total tackles, including two sacks. Bruschi finished second on the team in tackles, despite missing two games due to a right knee sprain. He made his first career interception, one of six passes defensed on the year. 2000 saw Bruschi start all 16 games at weakside linebacker and finished with 105 tackles (68 solos). It was his second consecutive season with over 100 tackles. In 2001 he started nine of 15 regular season games at linebacker and finished third on the team with 73 tackles (54 solos). He was credited with two sacks, forced three fumbles and recovered one and registered a career-high two interceptions.

2002-2004[link]

In 2002 Bruschi was voted a defensive captain for the season by his teammates. He ranked seventh on the team with 65 tackles (45 solos) despite missing five games due to injury. He returned two interceptions for touchdowns (at Oakland, November 17, and at Detroit, November 28), the seventh time a Patriot interceptor has reached the end zone twice in a single season and the first time a linebacker has accomplished the feat. In 2003 he started all 16 games at inside linebacker as one of four defensive players to start all 16 games and he was voted a defensive captain for the season by his teammates. He ranked second on the team with 137 tackles (87 solo) and finished third on the team with 16 pass defenses. He was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week in Weeks Two and 14. In the 2004 regular season, Bruschi finished second on the team with 128 tackles (84 solo) and tied for second on the team with three interceptions. His solid play continued in the playoffs, where he finished second on the squad with 23 tackles (18 solo) and added a sack, an interception, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. Bruschi was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week three times in 2004: Weeks 4 and 17 and in the Divisional Playoffs, when he forced a fumble and recovered two fumbles as the Patriots defense held the highly-regarded Colts offense to just three points.

2005 illness[link]

On February 16, 2005, just days after playing in the 2005 Pro Bowl, Bruschi was taken to a hospital with symptoms including temporary numbness, blurred vision, and headaches; Bruschi was diagnosed with a mild stroke. He suffered from a patent foramen ovale, a congenital heart defect that leaves a small hole in the wall separating the left and right atria of the heart. Bruschi suffered from partial paralysis and was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital. After several months of rehabilitation working with Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston, Bruschi announced he would sit out the 2005 NFL season.^[5]

On October 16, 2005, the Patriots announced that Bruschi had been medically cleared to resume playing football; he rejoined the team on the practice field three days later. The Patriots officially activated him on October 29, and he played the following night against the Buffalo Bills; ESPN's broadcast of the game had several features and interviews on Bruschi's return. Following the game, Bruschi was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week. Bruschi played most of the remaining games that season, except for the final regular season game against Miami and the first playoff game against Jacksonville. Bruschi was named the 2005 NFL Comeback Player of the Year, an honor he shared with Carolina Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith.

2006-2008[link]

In 2006, Bruschi was voted a defensive captain by his teammates and started the final 14 games at linebacker after missing the first game of the season. He finished first on the team with 124 tackles. In the 2006 playoffs, Bruschi led the Patriots with 24 tackles (16 solo), marking the highest playoff tackle total of his career. He also led the team with 23 tackles (15 solo) in the 2007 playoffs. In 2007 he played in and started all 16 regular-season games for the fourth time in his career and was voted a defensive captain for the 2007. He tied a single-game career high with a two-sack performance against the Cleveland Browns on October 7, 2007, and ran his career total to 30.5 sacks, becoming the 13th player in Patriots' history to reach that milestone. Also he led the team in tackles (99) and solo tackles (69) in 2007. In 2008 he played in 13 games, starting 12, and was named a defensive captain by his teammates for the seventh season.

Touchdowns[link]

Bruschi is the only player in NFL history to return four consecutive interceptions for touchdowns and his career total of four interceptions returned for touchdowns ranks second in Patriots history. He is tied for fourth in NFL history among linebackers, and Bruschi is the only Patriots linebacker to return multiple interceptions for touchdowns in a single season (2002 and 2003). Additionally, since 2002 Bruschi's defensive play has created seven defensive touchdowns. He scored four of those touchdowns on interception returns (two in both 2002 and 2003), forced two fumbles that were picked up and returned for touchdowns (October 3 and November 28, 2004), and tipped a pass that was intercepted by James Sanders and returned for a touchdown (December 11, 2005). This is in addition to his first career touchdown at Baltimore (October 6, 1996) when Bruschi recovered a blocked punt by Larry Whigham and returned it four yards for a touchdown, making 8 total touchdowns to which Bruschi contributed.

Retirement[link]

On the August 30, 2009, broadcast of Sunday Night Football, Al Michaels reported that Bruschi would announce his retirement after 13 seasons in the NFL the next day. Bruschi confirmed his retirement on August 31, 2009 at a press conference alongside New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft. During this broadcast, Bruschi described how fulfilled he felt in completing his 13 years of playing football. He described how it felt to know that he had reached all of the goals he wanted to reach.

Bruschi retired from the Patriots in the 2009 preseason, rather than being cut/released by coach Bill Belichick before the 2009 season.^[6]

Bruschi joined ESPN as an analyst following his retirement.

Bruschi has indicated that he would prefer that his number not be retired. It is currently worn by six-time Pro Bowl guard Brian Waters. The New England Patriots held a special ceremony in Bruschi's honor during halftime on Monday Night Football on December 6, 2010.^[7]

Personal[link]

Bruschi is of Filipino and Italian descent. An accomplished saxophonist, Bruschi has played with the Boston Pops.^[8]

In 2007 Bruschi wrote Never Give Up: My Stroke, My Recovery, and My Return to the NFL, a book about his experience with his stroke and his recovery. In his memoir, Bruschi speaks with candor about how his family confronted the reality of his life-threatening affliction, of his initial plans to retire from the NFL, and of the moment he told his wife he was ready to return to football, earning him a share of the Comeback Player of the Year Award and the Patriots recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award.

Bruschi is a spokesman for the American Heart Association and founded Tedy's Team, a foundation to raise funds for stroke research, inspired by Bruschi's own experience.

In 2007 Bruschi was named to NFL.com's All-Interview Team for accessibility to the media. In 2006 he won both the Senator Paul E. Tsongas Award for Exemplary Public Service and was a Rhode Island Italian-American Hall of Fame Inductee. In 2005 he was the Associated Press NFL Co-Comeback Player of the Year and was voted the Ed Block Courage Award, the Maxwell Football Club's Spirit Award and the AFC Defensive Player of the Week (Week 8) and NFL.com's All-Interview Team as well as USA Today's All-Joe Team. In 2004 he made the AFC Pro Bowl and Second-Team Associated Press All-Pro and twice won the AFC Defensive Player of the Week: (Week 4) (Week 17) and (Divisional Playoffs), he also was on NFL.com's All-Interview Team.

In 2012, Bruschi ran in the Boston Marathon, wearing bib number 21677. He finished in a time of 5 hours, 26 minutes, 2 seconds.^[9]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Bruschi, Tedy; Holley, Michael (2007), Never Give Up: My Stroke, My Recovery, and My Return to the NFL, John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 0-470-10869-X 

External links[link]

• New England Patriots bio