Nov. 2, 2006
#50 Dan Santucci Senior, 6-4, 300 Offensive Guard Harwood Heights, Ill./St. Patrick
Fifth-year senior Dan Santucci has made 32 consecutive starts for the Irish at guard. A three-year starter, he was rated the number 10 guard in college football for 2006 by The Sporting News. Santucci joined teammates Bob Morton and Ryan Harris as returning three-year monogram winners on the ’06 Irish offensive line. He has played in 42 career outings and moved from defensive tackle to offensive guard prior to the start of the 2004 campaign. A member of Notre Dame’s Academic Honors Program for Student-Athletes, he currently is enrolled in graduate studies. Santucci graduated from the Mendoza College of Business with a degree in Marketing in May of ’06. Gameday’s Greg Touney gives Irish fans a chance to get to know Dan Santucci.
Touney: What are you studying and why are you interested in it? Santucci: I’m studying marketing. Actually, I majored in marketing already since I’ve already graduated. I went into that because I pretty much wanted to be a business major and numbers and accounting and finance don’t come too easily. I figured marketing would better fit me with being able to talk to people.
Touney: What is your favorite class and why? Santucci: Intro to Jazz. It’s cool to listen to a different type of music. It’s not too time-consuming — you just kind of go there and listen to music and you hear about different jazz instruments, so it’s pretty cool.
Touney: What has been your most difficult class and why? Santucci: Probably Managerial Economics mainly because it’s all just a bunch of formulas and numbers which I’m not too good at.
Touney: Do you have any nicknames? What are they? Santucci: Basically “Tucc” (pronounced “tooch”) because of my last name. That’s pretty much what everyone has picked up on.
Touney: What has been the most embarrassing moment in your athletic career? Santucci: During the Pittsburgh game last year, me and Dan Stevenson ran into each other. We both pulled — he was right to pull and I was wrong — and we just collided in the backfield and both fell down. It was the first game of the year, so it was pretty embarrassing.
Touney: What other schools did you consider before coming to Notre Dame, and what made you choose Notre Dame? Santucci: I looked at Northwestern, Nebraska and Purdue. The reason why I chose Notre Dame is because they were the first ones to offer me during the summer of my junior year. Being from Chicago, knowing the great tradition and great academics here, and being Catholic all seemed to fit with Notre Dame.
Touney: To date, what has been the highlight of your Notre Dame career? Santucci: Probably beating Michigan at Michigan last year. They haven’t lost too many games there and they were ranked in the top five. We went in there and played pretty well and were able to get a victory. It was exciting to get a win in the `Big House.’
Touney: Who were your sports idols as a kid and why? Santucci: Definitely Michael Jordan for sure, even though he wasn’t a football player. He was a great athlete and awesome to watch. Being a Bears fan, Walter Payton and Dick Butkus too. They’re all from Chicago teams, so I’ve been able to watch them play hard and pick up their tough mentality.
Touney: Who has been your biggest non-sports role model and why? Santucci: Definitely my parents. They’re always there for me and they do all the little things that other people can’t do for me.
Touney: As a football player, is there any one player you modeled your game after or has helped you out the most? Santucci: Greg Pauly, even though he was a defensive player. I didn’t necessarily model my game after him, but I appreciated and loved his work ethic. He was really hard-working, never complained, and always did what he was supposed to do.
Touney: What is one thing in your life that you cannot live without? Santucci: Italian food. In particular, my mom’s lasagna or Bruno’s pasta and pizza.
Touney: What is the best advice that you have ever been given and who gave it to you? Santucci: My high school coach, Russ Lucas, who coached me from freshman year throughout high school, always said work hard and if you work hard and you’re dedicated and committed, you can achieve anything you want.
Touney: Where is the toughest stadium that you’ve played in as a college football player? Santucci: I think Georgia Tech’s this year. I had never been there before and hadn’t heard much about it but it was very loud.
Touney: Who is the best athlete that you have ever competed against? Santucci: Probably Derek Landri or Jesse Mahelona from Tennessee last year.
Touney: What CD in your collection or song on your iPod would surprise people the most? Santucci: It’s probably Boyz II Men `On Bended Knee.’
Touney: What is one thing about you that might surprise people? Santucci: I really love baseball. I played it pretty much my whole life up until college, and it’s definitely a sport that I miss to this day.
Touney: That being said, since you’re from Chicago, do you consider yourself a Cubs fan or a White Sox fan? Santucci: Cubs — I grew up on the northwest side of Chicago and my parents and grandparents are die-hard Cub fans.
Touney: What is your favorite place on campus? Santucci: I guess North Dining Hall since I lived on North Quad while on campus.
Touney: If you could vacation anywhere, where would you go and why? Santucci: Italy. I would love to go there because my Dad was born there. I’d like to go see his hometown, along with Rome, and go eat their great Italian food.
Touney: How do you balance your academic and football workloads? Santucci: Through good time-management skills. Starting with freshman year, you go to study hall and learn the basics there, and now it just becomes routine — you go to football, you go home and do your homework and when you’re done with that, you relax.
Touney: What was your favorite TV show growing up as a kid? And nowadays? Santucci: I’d have to say “Saved by the Bell.” And now, “Seinfeld.”
Touney: If you were a contestant on “Jeopardy,” what potential category would you dominate? Santucci: Anything sports, either football or baseball.
Touney: If you were stranded on an island and could only eat one meal, only listen to one song, and spend you time with only one person; what would you eat, what would you listen to and who would you pick? Santucci: The one meal would be my mom’s stuffed peppers, the song would probably be “Glory Days” by Bruce Springsteen, and the one person would be my girlfriend.
Touney: When your football career is over, what do you see yourself doing? Santucci: When I’m done with football, I see myself married, working at a regular job and watching my son’s high school football games.
Touney: Other than the actual game itself, what is the best part of home football weekends? Santucci: After the game, going out to eat with my family.
Touney: What is the best part and the worst part of being an offensive lineman? Santucci: The best part is that you get to hit someone on every play. The worst part is that you only get noticed when you screw up.
Touney: What is your favorite thing about playing for Notre Dame? Santucci: The tradition, the teammates, the coaches and playing big games every week.