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Larry Izzo

By Allyson Turner

This 5-foot-10, 228-pound linebacker is in his third year with the Miami Dolphins. In Izzo's rookie season, he finished second in special teams tackles with 10 and was voted as the special teams alternate for the AFC Pro Bowl squad. He spent the 1997 season on injured reserve after he tore his left Achilles' tendon. Izzo finished fourth at Rice with 301 career tackles and set a school record with 46 tackles for losses. In his senior year at Rice, Izzo won the Jess Neely Defense award as the team's top linebacker.

 

Larry Izzo
Larry Izzo wishes he was a scratch golfer. (Allsport)
What are you intimidated by?
The male-pattern baldness that runs in my family.

You have to fly across country, who would you like to sit next to?
Monica Lewinsky.

What is your pet peeve?
Close talkers. Can't stand close talkers!

What is the best part about being a professional athlete? Worst?
Nothing beats game day, although pay day is darn close. The worst is training camp.

What is a perfect day?

  • My perfect day starts at 9 a.m., when I wake up to a home-cooked breakfast by my mom.
  • From 10 a.m. to noon, I am relaxing on the Fort Lauderdale beach.
  • At 12:30 p.m. I grab a hot dog as I leave the beach.
  • From 1 p.m. to around 4 p.m., I play the Blue Monster (at Doral) and shoot 1 under par.
  • At 6 p.m. I take the field for Super Bowl XXXII at Pro Player Stadium.
  • Around 9:30 p.m I accept the Super Bowl MVP trophy for outstanding play on special teams, where I register five tackles, recover an onside kick, block two punts and force two fumbles, one of which I recover and return for the go-ahead touchdown.
  • At 10:30 I sit down for an outstanding dinner at Joe's Stone Crabs with my family and friends to celebrate the Super Bowl victory. As we leave the restaurant, around midnight or so, I get mobbed by a group of South Beach models. My new friends and I go back to my place to get to know each other.
  • By 5 a.m. I decide, 'Hey, I need to get some sleep!' Now that is a perfect day.

    What is one word or phrase that best describes your personality?
    Costanza. You know, the guy from Seinfeld.

    It's your last meal, where and what do you eat?
    Eighteen-ounce steak dinner at the Taste of Texas on I-10 in Houston, Texas.

    When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
    A professional football player, so I guess it has worked out up to this point.

    What is your favorite place in the world?
    Having grown up a military brat, I have had the opportunity to live in many places and see many things. It would be hard to choose just one, but some of my favorite places are Paris, France, my parents backyard in Woodlands, Texas, a German beer tent in Munich around October and any given football field on a fall Sunday.

    If you could be a fly on the wall anywhere, where would it be?
    The Oval Office.

    What in your life are you most grateful for?
    My family and the opportunity to play in the NFL.

    If I were to push "play" on your CD player, what would be playing?
    Pearl Jam.

    Who had the most influence on your career?
    My family.

    What talent do you wish you had?
    I wish I was a scratch golfer.

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