O'Donnell: Fremd's Tolzien shared public shock over the decision of close pal Andrew Luck
SHORTLY BEFORE 8 P.M. last Saturday, in an Italian restaurant not far from the west bank of the Hudson River, ESPN's Adam Schefter sent his desk a tweet that would rock the world of pro football:
Andrew Luck was retiring.
Immediately.
The Bears-Colts game was in progress.
Luck was on the sideline.
It was gasp on.
In Madison, Wis., Scott Tolzien — the Fremd High QB whose seven-year NFL career included two as Luck's backup in Indianapolis (2016-17) — was as stunned as anyone.
“I found out through the breaking news alert on my phone,” the Rolling Meadows native said.
“I was shocked like everybody else.”
With very good reason.
The two had long been friends, from Luck's days at Stanford when Tolzien was trying to make his NFL bones with Jim Harbaugh's Forty-Niners to this past spring, when Tolzien was one of the few pro associates invited to Luck's wedding to former Stanford gymnast Nicole Pechanec in Prague.
Now a special scouting adjunct on the staff of Paul Chryst at alma mater Wisconsin, Tolzien allowed words to flow when talking about his treasured chum:
“All I know is that Andrew is one of the toughest teammates, mentally and physically, that I ever played with. Never once did I hear him complain about his injuries or our team's struggles.
“He always took the blame. And he also took some monster hits.”
The two met at a Zac Brown concert during their Bay Area days.
“Because of the NFL CBA rules, I was not allowed to throw at the team facility during the off-season, so I would go up to Stanford to throw with Andrew and the guys there.
“I was always impressed with how welcoming and down to earth Andrew was as well as the other guys.”
Five years later, with the Colts, Tolzien would see the extreme demands Luck placed on himself:
“He is easily the hardest worker I ever played with. He has to do everything 100 percent. Even at 99 percent focus and effort, he let it be known he felt he was cheating himself and his teammates.”
Away from the limelight, Tolzien says Luck was simply an exemplary fellow.
“He genuinely could care less about status. Nobody knows half of what he does for the community or the less-privileged, and he wouldn't want it any other way.”
As first Tolzien and now Luck segue to the next phase of their lives, they share one other link — a growing household:
Scott and Megan Tolzien welcomed their firstborn — 6-pounds, 8-ounce Brooke Elizabeth — July 24 in Madison.
Andrew and Nicole Luck are due in November.
“This may all sound a little inflated,” Tolzien concluded.
“But Andrew is one of those handful of truly special people you meet in a lifetime.”
SIGNING WILL BE such swift bounce back for Jeff Bzdelik next week when the New Orleans Pelicans finally announce that the Prospect High grad (Class of '71) will be Alvin Gentry's lead defensive assistant for the upcoming NBA campaign.
The deal means Bzdelik will be the primary defensive mentor for Zion Williamson, only the league's most lauded rookie since LeBron James.
Bzdelik's latest high-profile posting is also a major jam-it-Boze' to bumbling Houston owner Tilman Fertitta and Rockets GM Daryl Morey.
The Lone Star tumbleweeds announced in May that Bzdelik “wouldn't be renewed” as Mike D'Antoni's associate head coach.
The only problem was that Bzdelik had little inclination to return and had to be begged out of a brief retirement by Fertitta last September.
The UIC grad and wife Nina had reason for a double celebration in Vegas last week — their 41st wedding anniversary and the Pelicans agreement. They attended concerts on consecutive nights starring Diana Ross and then George Strait.
STREET-BEATIN': Versatile Kyle Brandt will handle play-by-play for the Bears preseason finale vs. Tennessee Thursday (Fox, 7 p.m.) In previous career turns, the Stevenson High heartthrob (Class of '97) appeared on MTV's “The Real World: Chicago” and did three years as peril-prone Philip Kiriakis on “Days of Our Lives.” (Peril-prone Bears place-kicker could be next.) … Toe-jamming Vegas Stats and Info (vsin.com) has apparently come up with a baseball tout who can actually pick winners: Josh Appelbaum impressively played contrarian by calling the Cubs's telling “Legion Week” meltdown against visiting Washington. … DeKalb moondog Mike Korcek reports that unheralded Bill Baker will begin his 40th season as voice of the Huskie Sports Radio Network when NIU and new head coach Thomas Hammock host Illinois State Saturday (AM-560, 6 p.m.; also ESPN+). Sidekick for season No. 36 remains Naperville North's enduring Mark Lindo. … One decade down, Dave Eanet opens his 30th season calling Northwestern football on WGN-AM (720) when the Wildcats travel to Stanford Saturday (3 p.m.; also Fox-TV). Among the new ‘Cats Eanet has high hopes for is wide receiver Raymond Niro III, a freshman redshirt from Barrington. … Knight traveler Casey Rush notes that Doc Severinsen — age 92 — appeared in the winner's circle at Saratoga in the midst of a three-night stand at the nearby Caffe Lena. (And anyone who can come up with Severinsen's real first name without Wikipedia-ing must also own Johnny Carson's 1965 best-seller “Happiness is a Dry Martini.”) … And Al Michaels, who apparently still believes in miracles, on the current state of gambling and the NFL: “To me, football is great because of the competition and the drama and the excitement. If you get overwhelmed about all this craziness about betting on a run or pass on third down, you're just losing the essence of why you're playing the game in the first place.”
• Jim O'Donnell's Sports & Media column appears Thursday and Sunday. Reach him at jimodonnelldh@yahoo.com.