Mark Joseph Traynowicz (born November 20, 1962) 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 who played five seasons 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 ...

(NFL) with the Buffalo Bills and

Phoenix Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 1985 NFL Draft. Traynowicz played college football at

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a public land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the Morrill Act of 1862, the school was known as the Univers ...

and attended

Bellevue West High School Bellevue West High School is a public secondary school located in Bellevue, Nebraska, United States. It had a 2013 enrollment of 1,584 students. The principal is Kevin Rohlfs. The school's athletic teams are the Thunderbirds, and their school ...

in Bellevue, Nebraska. He was a

unanimous All-American The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

Early years

Traynowicz participated in football,

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

and

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

at Bellevue West High School, earning nine varsity letters. In 1979, he was a first-team All-State football selection and won the Nebraska Class A state heavyweight wrestling championship with a final record of 29 wins and one loss. He also qualified for the Nebraska State Track and Field Championships in discus in 1980 and shot put from 1978 to 1980.

College career

Traynowicz earned a football scholarship to play for the

Nebraska Cornhuskers The Nebraska Cornhuskers (often abbreviated to Huskers) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference, and the Cornhuskers compete in NCAA Divis ...

. He was named first-team All-Big Eight and first-team Academic All-Big Eight his junior year. He was a first-team unanimous All-American and an Academic All-American his senior year of 1984. Traynowicz was also named first-team All-Big Eight and first-team Academic All-Big Eight for the second time.

Professional career

Traynowiczwas drafted by the Buffalo Bills with the 29th pick in the 1985 NFL Draft. He signed with the Bills in July 1985. He played in 41 games with the Bills from to . He was traded to 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 play ...

for a conditional draft choice in

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...

on August 22, 1988. He was released on August 25, 1988. Traynowicz appeared in four games for the Buffalo Bills in . He played in seven games with the

from to .

References

External links

Just Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Traynowicz, Mark Living people 1962 births American football offensive linemen Nebraska Cornhuskers football players Buffalo Bills players Phoenix Cardinals players All-American college football players Players of American football from Omaha, Nebraska People from Bellevue, Nebraska People from Sarpy County, Nebraska