John Sullivan Conference CallSunday Press Conference
Overview A bad season for the Irish soon became worse for Sullivan, who was forced to sit out the team's final two games with a right knee sprain that he originally injured in preseason drills. Sullivan attended Greenwich High School, where he was a Parade and Super Prep All-American first-team selection, adding USA Today and ESPN.com second-team honors as a senior. The Gatorade Player of the Year in Connecticut was rated 61st on the ESPN list of the nation's top 100 prep players and rated 14th among offensive linemen nationally by CBSSportsLine.com. He also played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio. A starter at center the final three seasons, Sullivan also played nose guard on defense. He was named offensive MVP by the Connecticut Post, as he helped lead his team to a 12-1-1 mark in 2002, including a league title and a spot in the Connecticut Class LL title game. That year, he recorded 20 tackles for loss and 12 sacks. Sullivan also lettered in wrestling, achieving a 138-6 record in the heavyweight division. He went on to win the state championship as a sophomore, junior and senior. He finished seventh and earned All-American honors at the 2003 national wrestling meet. He was also a standout water polo player who lettered on the school's rugby team. Sullivan enrolled at Notre Dame in 2003 and spent that season competing on the scout team. He stepped into the starting lineup at center the following year and did a stellar job of making the line calls. The Irish averaged 477.3 yards per game in total offense in 2005, as their center was named Connecticut College Player of the Year by the Walter Camp Football Foundation. He started eight games that season, paving the way for the offense to average 477.3 yards per game, as part of an offensive line that allowed only 21 quarterback sacks. In 2006, Sullivan started all 13 games, part of a Notre Dame offense that eclipsed 30 points in eight games and surpassed 400 total yards six times. He cleared the way for tailback Darius Walker, who became the fourth player in school history to have back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons. Sullivan started the first 10 games of the 2007 campaign before his right knee injury sidelined him for the final two contests. After the offense generated 5,728 yards during his sophomore year, it fell off to a total of 2,907 yards during his senior season. Poor quarterbacking was a big culprit to Notre Dame's troubles, but the offensive line allowed 58 sacks, seven more than they gave up in the previous two seasons combined. Career Notes Sullivan started 43 games on the Irish offensive line, seeing a string of 31 consecutive starts snapped, when he missed the 2007 Duke contest with a right knee sprain. High School Attended Greenwich (Ct.) High School, playing football for head coach Rich Albonizio...Parade and Super Prep All-American first-team selection, adding USA Today and ESPN second-team honors as a senior...The Gatorade Player of the Year in Connecticut was rated 61st on the ESPN list of the nation's top 100 prep players and rated 14th among offensive linemen nationally by CBSSportsLine.com...Played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio...A starter at center the final three seasons, Sullivan also played nose guard on defense...Named offensive MVP by the Connecticut Post, as he helped lead his team to a 12-1-1 mark in 2002, including a league title and a spot in the Connecticut Class LL title game...That year, he recorded 20 tackles for loss and 12 sacks...Also lettered in wrestling, achieving a 138-6 record in the heavyweight division... Went on to win the state championship as a sophomore, junior and senior...Finished seventh and earned All-American honors at the 2003 national wrestling meet...Standout water polo player who lettered on the school's rugby team...From the same high school that produced former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young Copyright NFLDraftScout.com, distributed by The Sports Xchange.