Ryan Izzo
Ryan Izzo (born December 21, 1995) is an American football tight end for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State.
No. 85 – New England Patriots | |||||||||
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Position: | Tight end | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Highland Lakes, New Jersey | December 21, 1995||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 255 lb (116 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Pope John XXIII Regional (Sparta Township, New Jersey) | ||||||||
College: | Florida State | ||||||||
NFL Draft: | 2018 / Round: 7 / Pick: 250 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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Career NFL statistics as of Week 16, 2019 | |||||||||
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Early years
Izzo grew up in Highland Lakes, New Jersey and attended Pope John XXIII Regional High School in Sparta, New Jersey. Izzo began his high school career at Vernon Township High School, where he anticipated playing tight end but played quarterback. He transferred to football powerhouse Pope John to play tight end.
Initially, he drew little attention from NCAA Division I football programs until Virginia Tech expressed interest and 20 other schools followed thereafter before he graduated in 2014.[1] As a senior, he tallied 766 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. Along with playing football, he also played basketball. Izzo committed to play college football for the Florida State Seminoles on September 23, 2013.[2]
College career
As a redshirt freshman in 2015, Izzo played in all 13 of Florida State's games, catching 14 passes for 210 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 146 yards and one touchdown on 12 attempts.[3]
In 2016, Izzo once again played in all 13 games, catching 19 passes for 227 yards, tallying one touchdown.[4]
Prior to the 2017 season, Izzo was named to the John Mackey Award watch list.[5] As a redshirt junior, he played and started in all 13 games for Florida State, having 19 receptions for 306 yards and three touchdowns.[6]
After the season, Izzo declared for the 2018 NFL Draft.[7]
Professional career
New England Patriots
Izzo was drafted by the New England Patriots in the seventh round (250th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.[8] On September 2, 2018, Izzo was placed on injured reserve with the option of returning in 2018.[9] Without Izzo, the Patriots reached Super Bowl LIII where they defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13-3.[10]
He made his NFL debut and had a three-yard reception in the Patriots' 2019 season-opening 33–3 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.[11] Izzo became the 73rd different player to catch a touchdown pass from Tom Brady after scoring a 10-yard receiving touchdown in the Patriots' Week 5 33–7 victory over the Washington Redskins.[12] Izzo missed multiple games due to injury in 2019 due to various injuries such as a concussion and illness.
References
- Stein, Peter. "Sussex Seminole: Vernon resident, Pope John grad Ryan Izzo starts at TE for Florida State", New Jersey Herald, September 9, 2015. Accessed January 4, 2018. "Vernon resident and 2014 Pope John graduate Ryan Izzo did start at tight end for Florida State and did catch a 13-yard touchdown pass from Golson in the Seminoles’ 59-16 victory over Texas State Saturday night at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Fla."
- "Football: Ryan Izzo of Pope John commits to Florida State". nj.com. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
- "Ryan Izzo 2015 Player Statistics". cfbstats.com. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
- "Ryan Izzo 2016 Player Statistics". cfbstats.com. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
- "FSU tight end Ryan Izzo named to John Mackey Award Watch List". Noles247. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
- "Ryan Izzo 2017 Player Statistics". cfbstats.com. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
- "FSU's Ryan Izzo declares early for NFL Draft, Florida State very thin at tight end". Tomahawk Nation. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
- "2018 NFL draft: Patriots select TE Ryan Izzo with the 250th overall pick". PatsPulpit.com. April 28, 2018. Retrieved June 28, 2018.
- "Patriots Sign Eight to the Practice Squad; Place TE Ryan Izzo on Injured Reserve". Patriots.com. September 2, 2018.
- Kyed, Doug (February 14, 2019). "Hidden Patriots: New England Has Complete Tight End Waiting In The Wings".
- "Pittsburgh Steelers at New England Patriots - September 8th, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
- "Brady Makes History, Patriots Ride Dominant Second Half To 33-7 Victory Over Redskins". CBS Boston. Retrieved October 7, 2019.