Matt Grootegoed

Matt Grootegoed

No. 48
Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth: May 6, 1982 (1982-05-06)
Place of birth: Huntington Beach, California
Height: 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	Weight: 212 lb (96 kg)
Career information
College: Southern California
Undrafted in 2005
Debuted in 2005 for the Detroit Lions
Career history
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2005)* Detroit Lions (2005) Calgary Stampeders (2006–2009) *Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Consensus All-American (2004)
Career NFL statistics as of 2005
Tackles	4
Sacks	0.0
Interceptions	0
Stats at NFL.com
Career CFL statistics as of 2009
Tackles	41
Forced fumbles	2
Interceptions	0
Stats at CFL.ca

Matthew Arthur Grootegoed (born May 6, 1982) is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for the University of Southern California, and was recognized as an All-American. He was signed by the NFL's Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2005, and also played for the CFL's Calgary Stampeders in 2009.

Early years

Grootegoed was born in Huntington Beach, California. He attended Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California, with Matt Leinart. He was named to the USA Today All-USA first team in 1999. His team won three California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) championships while attending Mater Dei.

HIGH SCHOOL: He was named to the 1999 USA Today All-USA first team, Parade All-American, Super Prep All-American, Prep Star All-American, Reebok ESPN All-American, The Sporting News Top 101, Prep Star Top 100 Dream Team, Tom Lemming Top 100, Prep Star Western Super 30, Super Prep All-Farwest, Tom Lemming All-West, Long Beach Press-Telegram Best in the West first team, Orange County Register Fab 15 first team, Tacoma News Tribune Western 100, Las Vegas Sun Super 11 first team, Cal-Hi Sports All-State first team, All-CIF Southern Section first team, All-CIF Division I Co-Defensive MVP, Los Angeles Times Glenn Davis Award (as the top Southern California prep football player), Los Angeles Times All-Orange County first team, Orange County Register All-Orange County Defensive MVP and All-Serra League MVP as a senior at Mater Dei High in Santa Ana (Calif.). He made 138 tackles, 6 interceptions (2 were returned for TDs), 7 tackles for losses and 2 forced fumbles as a free safety and ran for 945 yards on 116 carries (8.1 avg) with 14 TDs as a running back (he also played some quarterback early in the season, completing 21-of-41 passes, 51.2%, for 300-plus yards) in 1999. Mater Dei was the CIF Division I co-champion.

As a junior in 1998, he made Student Sports Junior All-American, Cal-Hi All-State first team, All-CIF Southern Section first team, All-CIF Division I Defensive MVP, Los Angeles Times All-Orange County Back of the Year and Orange County Register All-Orange County Defensive MVP. He rushed for more than 1,600 yards with 21 TDs on offense and made 130 tackles, 6 forced fumbles and 3 interceptions on defense in 1998. In the 1998 CIF Division I championship game, which Mater Dei won, he earned Offensive and Defensive Player of the Game honors (he ran for 244 yards, with a 7.4 average, and 2 TDs).

College career

Grootegoed attended the University of Southern California, and played for the USC Trojans football team from 2001 to 2004. He was a finalist for the Butkus Award, and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 2004. He also was a four-year starter. Grootegoed played on two consecutive national championship teams for the Trojans in 2003 and 2004.

Professional career

National Football League

On April 26, 2005, Grootegoed was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, eventually released to their practice squad, and was later picked up by the Detroit Lions. Grootegoed played for the National Football League Detroit Lions in the last three games of their 2005 season.

Canadian Football League

He helped the Calgary Stampeders win the 2008 Grey Cup.

The Stampeders released Grootegoed on September 9, 2009.

USC head coach Pete Carroll: "Things just happen when he's on the field. He knocks the ball down, knocks the ball loose, forces plays in the backfield and makes plays getting off blocks. You can't hold him down."

Former USC 2-time All-American safety Troy Polamalu: "Playing with him is like having a twin on the other side of the field...He's better than I am, he just hasn't had the platform yet. As soon as he gets it, everybody is going to see because he has everything it takes...If they put him in my position (strong safety), he'd win the Thorpe Award or he might even be the defensive player of the year."

External links

• TSN Profile
• USC Legends Profile