Andrew Michael Studebaker (born September 16, 1985) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Wheaton College (IL), and was drafted by the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

in the sixth round (203rd overall) of the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...

. He is a descendant of the

Studebaker Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers M ...

brothers, creators of the now-defunct automobile by the same name.

Early years

Born September 16, 1985, Studebaker grew up in

Congerville, Illinois Congerville is a village in Woodford County, Illinois, United States. The population was 474 as of the 2010 census, up from 466 in 2000. Congerville is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The site of Congerville ...

. While in high school, he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

. He was the First-team All-Conference

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

and a unanimous pick at defensive end in 2003 and

Team Captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

of the football team his

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

year.

College career

Following his junior year at Wheaton College in 2006, Studebaker was named a First-team All-American and North Region Defensive Player of the year by D3Football.com. He was also named

College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) is a college athletic conference which competes in the Division III level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). CCIW schools have accounted for 50 national championships i ...

Defensive Player of the Year. He led the conference with 17½ sacks (the most in the NCAA in 2006) and 25½ tackles for loss. Studebaker graduated from Wheaton College in May 2008 with a degree in Applied Health Sciences.

Professional career

Studebaker was the first player from Wheaton College to be drafted into the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

Philadelphia Eagles

Studebaker was a sixth round selection with the 203rd overall pick by the

in the

. He was waived by the Eagles on the last day of roster cuts on August 30, 2008 and subsequently re-signed on the team's

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

Kansas City Chiefs

Studebaker was signed off the Eagles'

by the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

on November 19, 2008, and played in his first career game against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

on November 23, 2008. His first start was in Week 11 on November 22, 2009 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, in place of injured

Mike Vrabel Michael George Vrabel (; born August 14, 1975) is an American football coach and former linebacker who is the head coach of the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State, where he earned con ...

. In his first start, he intercepted

Ben Roethlisberger Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr. (; born March 2, 1982), nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college footba ...

twice, as the Chiefs won the game. On October 31, 2011 against the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

, Studebaker recovered an unlikely fumbled snap by

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Philip Rivers Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Chargers franchise. He played college football at NC State and was sele ...

from amongst the scrum, likely aiding the

in their improbable win that day by preventing the Chargers from scoring with just over a minute left in regulation. Studebaker had 16 tackles, one fumble recovery, and one forced fumble at the end of the season. While with the Chiefs, he was popularly known among fans as "The Student Baker." On April 1, 2013, the Chiefs released Studebaker.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Studebaker was signed by the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

on August 13, 2013. He was released by the team on September 1, 2013.

Indianapolis Colts

On October 9, 2013, Studebaker signed with the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

. He played in 11 games in 2013. In 2014, Studebaker played in 13 games, making one start. He became a free agent at the end of the season.

Tennessee Titans

On August 17, 2015, Studebaker signed with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

. He was released by the team on September 4.

Indianapolis Colts (second stint)

On December 15, 2015, Studebaker was signed with the

. He was released by the team on February 22, 2016.

References

External links

Indianapolis Colts bioKansas City Chiefs bioWheaton Thunder bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Studebaker, Andy 1985 births Living people People from Woodford County, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois American football defensive ends American football linebackers Wheaton Thunder football players Philadelphia Eagles players Kansas City Chiefs players Jacksonville Jaguars players Indianapolis Colts players Tennessee Titans players