William James Ferrario (born September 22, 1978 in

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...

) 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 wi ...

offensive lineman in 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 ...

primarily with the Green Bay Packers.

Early years

Ferrario graduated from

West Scranton High School West Scranton High School, is a community-based school in the "West Side" neighborhood of Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States. It is one of the oldest schools in the area, having opened to the public in 1935, first as a junior high facility and ...

. He is an

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle S ...

College career

Ferrario was a second-team All-

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

, where he paved the way for Heisman Trophy winner

Ron Dayne Ronald Dayne (born March 14, 1978) is a former professional American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. Dayne played college football for the University of Wisconsin and won the 1999 Heisma ...

and Michael Bennett. He started all 50 games in his career (only the 3rd player in Big Ten history to accomplish this). He helped Wisconsin win back to back Rose Bowl Championships-

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

and

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

(only Big Ten school to do so).

Professional career

Ferrario was a 4th round selection (201st overall pick) in the 2001 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. He was with the Packers through the 2002 season where he saw action in all 16 games. Waived by Green Bay in 2003, Ferrario signed with the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

on February 4, 2004 only to be released on September 5, 2004. He signed with the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

on November 11, 2004 but did not play in any games that season. Farrario was released by the Panthers on August 28, 2005.

Life after football

Ferrario now works as a sales representative. He also works with local athletes to improve their skills and fundamentals, and at summer football camps. On January 2, 2023, Ferrario was reported to police for concerning behavior at his

Wausau, Wisconsin Wausau ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States. The Wisconsin River divides the city into east and west. The city's suburbs include Schofield, Weston, Mosinee, Maine, Rib Mountain, Kronenwetter, an ...

home. That same evening, he was taken to a hotel room. Around 8 p.m. the following night, Ferrario was arrested for disorderly conduct and booked within the Marathon County Jail. He also faces charges for a second OWI offense stemming from an October 12, 2022 incident where Ferrario had lost control of his vehicle and crashed. He was nearly three times the legal limit for motor vehicle operation in this incident.

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrario, Bill 1978 births Living people Sportspeople from Scranton, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania American football offensive guards Wisconsin Badgers football players Green Bay Packers players Carolina Panthers players