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Great Lives from History: Latinos

Tedy Bruschi

by Jonathan E. Dinneen

American football player

Bruschi played thirteen seasons for the New England Patriots, becoming a face of the franchise for his all-out playing style, unassuming demeanor, emotional intensity, and knack for making the big play. While he was beloved by the fans for his play, the stroke he suffered, and from which he recovered, is a more endearing memory of a revered athlete and man.

Areas of achievement: Football

Early Life

Tedy Lacap Bruschi (BREW-skee) was born in San Francisco, California, on June 9, 1973 to Juanita and Anthony Bruschi, Sr. His parents divorced when he was three, and Tedy and his brothers moved to Roseville, California, with their mother, who remarried two years later. Tedy saw his father on weekends. His family had little money, and Tedy grew up interested in music, specifically alto saxophone. He started playing football during his freshman year at Roseville High School, playing on the defensive line, even though some considered him too short for this position. Bruschi was a two-year team captain, lettering twice and earning all-conference, all-Northern California, and all-metro honors. He also lettered in wrestling and track and field while maintaining good grades. The Sacramento Bee ranked Bruschi number one in their list of the top area high school football players ever.

Tedy Bruschi.

324_Bruschi_Tedy.jpg

(AP Photo)

Life’s Work

Bruschi earned an athletic scholarship to the University of Arizona, and although he was undersized and little known, he emerged as the leader of the “Desert Swarm” defense. He tied the National College Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I-A record with fifty-two career quarterback sacks, was a two-time consensus All-American, won the Morris Trophy as the best conference defensive lineman, and received team Most Valuable Player awards. He also earned his bachelor’s degree in communications and met his future wife Heidi while at the university.

The New England Patriots selected Bruschi in the third round of the 1996 National Football League (NFL) draft with the eighty-sixth overall pick. The Patriots assigned the undersized defensive end the more natural position of linebacker. Bruschi played every game during his rookie season, helping the Patriots reach the Super Bowl. He improved every year and developed a knack for making key plays at the most critical times, including intercepting four passes and returning them for touchdowns and forcing two fumbles that were returned for touchdowns.

Bruschi and his Patriot teammates helped change professional football, as the team began to value intelligence, heart, and versatility over mere athleticism. The Patriots’ priorities enabled the team to win the Super Bowl in 2002, 2004, and 2005.

When the Patriots played in Super Bowl XXXIX on February 6, 2005, Bruschi’s wife, Heidi, had just given birth to their third son, and Tedy was selected to play in his first NFL Pro Bowl, the league’s all-star game. Just ten days later, Bruschi, now thirty-one, awoke in pain with blurry vision, but he dismissed these problems because he was a tough football player who constantly dealt with injuries. However, a computerized axial tomography (CAT) scan later revealed that Bruschi had suffered a stroke when a blood clot passed through a small hole in the upper chamber of his heart and lodged in his brain. The entire country took notice, and Bruschi’s health received media coverage far beyond the sports world.

After the stroke, Bruschi established Tedy’s Team, a foundation and platform to increase awareness of and education about strokes, and he became a spokesman for the American Heart Association. His book detailing his recovery and return to football, Never Give Up: My Stroke, My Recovery, and My Return to the NFL, serves as an inspiration to stroke survivors, and he has worked tirelessly to raise stroke awareness.

During the summer of 2005, Bruschi announced he would sit out the season, but he kept training. He had the hole in his heart repaired and worked to win the support of doctors, the Patriots, and his wife Heidi in order to return to the game. He was medically cleared to resume playing on October 16, and he rejoined the Patriots two weeks later in a game against the Buffalo Bills. At the end of the season he was named the 2005 Comeback Player of the Year.

Bruschi played three additional seasons but was slowed, not from the stroke but from age and the wear and tear of the game. After a preseason game in 2009, Bruschi realized it was time to retire. Legendary Patriots coach Bill Belichick, a man of few compliments, called Brushi the “perfect player.” In his retirement Bruschi contributed to numerous charities, remained connected to the Patriots, and worked as an on-air NFL analyst for ESPN.

Significance

Tedy Bruschi spent his entire thirteen-year professional career with the New England Patriots, winning three Super Bowls and playing on five of the six Patriots’ teams to reach the Super Bowl. While his achievements as a football player were cheered by millions, his recovery from a stroke and subsequent return to the game, as well as his tireless dedication to stroke research, funding, and awareness, are the more remarkable achievements.

Bruschi came from a poor, broken home; he was an undersized athlete and remained an overlooked and unassuming player during his time in the NFL. However, he had intelligence, determination, and heart, which helped him excel as a football player and battle back from his debilitating stroke. While a good number of stroke victims can regain functional independence or even achieve a full recovery, only No. 54 of the New England Patriots returned to play for nearly four more seasons as a professional football player.

Citation Types

Type

Format

MLA 9th

Dinneen, Jonathan E. "Tedy Bruschi." Great Lives from History: Latinos, edited by Carmen Tafolla & Martha P. Cotera, Salem Press, 2012. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=GLL_10013240010101001.

APA 7th

Dinneen, J. E. (2012). Tedy Bruschi. In C. Tafolla & M. P. Cotera (Eds.), Great Lives from History: Latinos. Salem Press. online.salempress.com.

CMOS 17th

Dinneen, Jonathan E. "Tedy Bruschi." Edited by Carmen Tafolla & Martha P. Cotera. Great Lives from History: Latinos. Hackensack: Salem Press, 2012. Accessed October 22, 2025. online.salempress.com.

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