Bryan Jurewicz (/ˈrəwɪz/) is a former professional National Football League player who was briefly a member of both the Carolina Panthers and Indianapolis Colts.

Bryan Jurewicz
No. 79
Position:DL
Personal information
Born:Deerfield, Illinois
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:285 lb (129 kg)
Career information
College:University of Wisconsin
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards

Jurewicz was a star lineman at Deerfield High School in Illinois, a starter on the varsity team in 1990 and 1991. He was named as an all-conference player in 1990, and again in 1991,[1] also being named all-area, all-state,[1] and the Gatorade Player of the Year for Illinois football.[2]

He was a starting defensive lineman for the University of Wisconsin Badgers, going directly from red shirt to a starting player in 1993 when his predecessor was injured.[3] He started playing at 6'5" and 240 pounds.[4] In 1994, the sophomore started the season as a rushing linebacker, but was once again moved to defensive line, bulking up by 20 pounds in the process,[5] and playing with the team in the Rose Bowl that year. He deflected 9 passes as a Badgers defensive lineman in 1996, a school record,[6] and he was an Honorable Mention All-Big Ten Conference selection the same year.[7] He made 9 tackles for a loss in his last five games with the Badgers, with UW assistant coach John Palermo calling him "...as good of a defensive lineman as there is in the league".[8]

After graduating from University of Wisconsin, he signed as a free agent with the Panthers in 1997.[7] After being released in August of the same year,[9] he was picked up in February 1998 by the Indianapolis Colts and spent some time on their practice squad; the latter team placed him on waivers after a few months.[10] Most newspapers in 1998 incorrectly listed his position as offensive lineman.[10]

Jurewicz was the President and CEO of GradeBeam, LLC, an online bidding and communication company in the construction industry.[11][12] GradeBeam was one of Chicago's largest privately held companies[13] before a sale to Textura Corporation and subsequent initial public offering.

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Warrior Football Honors: All-Conference Honors 1962-1998". Illinois School District 113. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  2. ^ "Gatorade Players of the Year: Winners Archive". Gatorade.com. Retrieved 20 July 2010.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ Chaptman, Dennis (November 24, 1993). "Badgers have managed to avoid dreaded injury bag". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  4. ^ Christl, Cliff (January 2, 1994). "Waiting in the wings is a wealth of talent". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  5. ^ Chaptman, Dennis (October 13, 1994). "Jurewicz adjusts to a new position". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  6. ^ Associated Press (December 27, 1996). "Dan Fouts' Nephew makes most of his chance to QB Utah". The Blade. Toledo, Ohio. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  7. ^ a b staff (May 1, 1997). "Jurewicz free to excel with Panthers". Deerfield Review.
  8. ^ "Jurewicz Excels Anonymously". The Capital Times. December 26, 1996.
  9. ^ staff (August 18, 1997). "Patriots 31, Broncos 21". The Orlando Sentinel.
  10. ^ a b staff (September 3, 1998). "Transactions". New York Times. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  11. ^ "GradeBeam: Technology Made Easy". Constructech Magazine. Archived from the original on 19 January 2013. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  12. ^ "On Bryan's Mind". GradeBeam.com. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  13. ^ "Chicago's Largest Privately Held Companies". Crain's Chicago Business. December 25, 2006.