The CU Scoop On Bachelor Ryan

BOULDER - Congratulations to former Buff Ryan Sutter, who was Trista Rehn's pick for her man on ABC's reality show, "The Bachelorette" Wednesday night (Feb. 19). We've been inundated with calls on Ryan's career here at the University of Colorado, so here's the scoop:

In 1993, Bill McCartney invited Ryan to join the team as a walk-on after a successful prep career at Fort Collins High School. Sutter, who wore No. 36, was placed on scholarship prior to the '96 season by then-head coach Rick Neuheisel, and he responded with a big junior year on special teams with 53 points, a school record.

He then earned a starting position at free safety as a senior in 1997, and wound up leading the team in tackles with 170 (the second most ever in a year by a Buff). That total included 98 solo stops, also a team-high, and he added three interceptions, returning one for a touchdown in a 47-30 win at Texas. He had 28 tackles in a 27-3 loss at Michigan that year, the second most tackles in a single game in school history, and the most ever by a Buff defensive back.

He was a member of a fairly talented defensive backfield that included Damen Wheeler, Marcus Washington, Ryan Black, Elton Toray Davis, Rashidi Barnes and Ben Kelly.

Sutter is also CU's all-time career special teams point leader with 123, including an amazing 64 tackles.

He was a fifth round draft choice by the Baltimore Ravens in the 1998 NFL draft, the first of six Buffaloes to be selected that year. Cut by the Ravens before the season, he was soon picked up by the Carolina Panthers but had the misfortune of suffering a serious shoulder injury in the first game of the year, when on injured reserve for the season and never played again.

Ryan is now a member of the Vail Fire Department; he graduated with a degree in architecture from CU in 1998 after earning Academic All-Big Eight and Big 12 honors his sophomore through senior seasons.

Some of Ryan's more entertaining answers from our "Ask The Players" series over the years included:

What movie role would you like to play or have played? "Butch Cassidy or Johnny Dangerously."
What song would you sing at your audition for a recording contract? "Miles From Nowhere by Cat Stevens."
If you could have lunch with anyone in history, who would you pick and why? "Marilyn Monroe, for obvious reasons."
If you could win a world championship in any sport, what would you pick? "An Olympic Gold Medal in archery."
And from his redshirt freshman year in 1994: What would be your ESPN SportsCenter highlight? "Anything at all, just as long as they say my name. But it would be nice if it was something positive."

Now that last one's come true!