Rob Gronkowski life and biography

Rob Gronkowski is an American football tight end for the New England Patriots of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Patriots in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Arizona.

Rob Gronkowski was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft.

2010 (9/6)
* Became the first Patriots rookie to catch three touchdown passes in a game, raising his season TD total to six and setting a season record for touchdowns by a Patriots rookie tight end. He finished with 72 yards on five catches, scoring on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady in the first quarter, a 9-yard pass in the third quarter and a career-long 25-yarder in the fourth quarter against the Steelers (11/14).
* Caught four passes for 47 yards in a start against the Browns (11/7). After a six yard pass from Tom Brady late in the second quarter, Gronkowski fumbled the ball on the Cleveland three-yard line and it was recovered by the Browns.
* Made one catch for five yards against the Vikings (10/31).
* Caught two passes for 10 yards, including a one-yard TD pass from Tom Brady against San Diego (10/24).
* Had one reception for 24 yards in a start against the Ravens (10/17).
* Caught one pass for four yards against Miami (10/4).
* Scored a touchdown on a five-yard pass from Tom Brady and finished with three catches for 43 yards and against the Bills (9/26).
* Tallied 14 yards on one reception against the New York Jets (9/19).
* Played in and started his first NFL game in the season opener against the Bengals (9/12).
* Scored his first career touchdown on his first career catch, a one-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady in the fourth quarter (9/12).

College

Gronkowski became the Wildcats’ most dangerous weapon during his short time at Arizona…In just 22 games at Arizona, he shattered all of the school’s receiving records for tight ends, including career, season and game marks…In two seasons at Arizona, Gronkowski registered more receptions, receiving yards, and touchdown catches than any other tight end in school history…His 75 receptions and 1,197 yards surpassed previous career records held by Mark Keel…2009 (Junior): Named to the Watch Lists for the Maxwell Award (nation’s most outstanding player), John Mackey Award (nation’s most outstanding tight end), and the Rotary Lombardi Award (the college football lineman -- offense or defense -- who, in addition to outstanding performance and ability, best exemplifies the discipline of Vince Lombardi)…Gronkowski missed the entire season after undergoing surgery to his back…2008 (Sophomore): First-team All-Pac-10 Conference choice by the league’s coaches and media, adding third-team All-American honors from the Associated Press…Named to the Watch List for the John Mackey Award, given annually to the nation’s most outstanding tight end…Missed the first three games of the season while suffering from mononucleosis and strep throat…Played in the final 10 games, starting nine contests…Hauled in 47 passes for 672 yards and 10 touchdowns (caught 65.28% of the 72 passes targeted to him, as the opposition deflected eleven throws), averaging 14.3 yards per reception…Set new season-records for Arizona tight ends in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns…33 of those catches were good for first downs (70.21%), converting 16-of-25 third-down plays (64.0%), and 1-of-2 fourth-down plays (50.0%)…24 of his grabs gained at least ten yards (51.06%), including twelve that gained 20 yards or more (25.53%)…Came up with critical receptions that led to fourteen Arizona touchdown drives, and three field goal drives…Recorded six of his receptions in the red zone (12.77%)…Caught 12 passes for 143 yards and one touchdown vs. Oregon (11/15/08), setting game-records for Arizona tight ends in receptions and receiving yards, as his 12 catches also ties four other players for second most in school history for a single-game among all pass catchers…His 10 touchdowns catches ties Keith Hartwig for third among all pass catchers on Arizona’s single-season record list, trailing only Mike Thomas (11, 2007) and Theopolis Bell (11, 1974)…Selected John Mackey Tight End of the Week twice (vs. Washington, at Oregon)…2007 (Freshman): Freshman All-American selection by The Sporting News and Rivals.com in 2007... Also earned TSN freshman All-Pac-10 Conference and honorable mention All-Pac-10 from the league’s coaches...Played in 12 games, starting nine contests, including the final eight, as he caught 28 passes for a team-best 18.8 yards per reception, for a then school tight-end record 525 yards and six touchdowns...His 28 receptions rank third among Arizona tight ends in a season, topped by his old Wildcat position record of 47 in 2008 and 32 by Mark Keel in 1980.

Personal

Pre-Business major…Earned University of Arizona Student-Athlete of the Month honors for April, 2008…Son of Diane and Gordon Gronkowski…His father Gordon owns a string of national fitness retail outlets and lettered as an offensive guard at Syracuse (1977-81)… Has four brothers, Gordie, Dan, Chris, and Glenn…Athleticism runs in the family, as Gordie was selected in the 49th-round of the 2006 Major League Baseball draft by the Los Angeles Angels…Dan currently plays tight end for the Detroit Lions after a four-year career at Maryland (2005-08)…Chris, was a teammate of Dan’s at Maryland before transferring to Arizona, where he is presently Rob’s teammate, playing H-Back for the Wildcats (2008-09)…His great-grandfather, Ignatius Gronkowski, was a member of the 1924 U.S. Olympic cycling team in Paris…Born 5/14/89…Resides in Amherst, New York…Attended Williamsville North High School (Williamsville, N.Y.) for three years before moving to Pennsylvania and enrolling at Woodland Hills High School (Pittsburgh, PA), where he played tight end and defensive end.

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