Marco Iannuzzi

Marco Iannuzzi (born May 21, 1987 in Calgary, Alberta) is a wide receiver for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League and an Investment Advisor with RBC Dominion Securities the largest full service investment brokerage in Canada. He attended college at Harvard and MIT where he played college football with the Harvard Crimson football team from 2007-2010. Marco was drafted in the first round by the Lions in the 2011 CFL Draft and was signed by the team on May 30, 2011.

Minor Football
1997-2001: Calgary Cowboys football club winning 3 Provincial Championships.

High School Football
2002-2004: Iannuzzi lead the St. Francis Browns (Calgary, Alberta) to its first back to back Provincial title in school history. He was undefeated through all three years of high school 29-0. The 2004 team was ranked the #1 high school football team in all of Canada.

Junior Football
2005: Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) National Champion with the Edmonton Huskies and All-Canadian. 6-time Nike player of week; League's outstanding return specialist of the year. Conference All-Star. Huskies Rookie of the year. League record with a 120-yard kickoff return for a TD.

Harvard Football
2007: Earned rare playing time for a freshman wide receiver, appearing in five games while also returning kickoffs. Caught passes against Penn and Yale. Averaged 20 yards on five kickoff returns and had 34 yards on eight punt returns. Major H recipient.

2008: Lead the NCAA in receiving yards with 11 receptions for 174 yards, including a 68-yard fourth quarter touchdown pass in a 25-24 win over Holy Cross in the season opener. Three catches into game two against Brown he shattered his collarbone which required surgery to repair. Following his 6 game absence recovering from surgery he caught a 39-yard pass at The Game versus Yale.

2009: Returned 15 kickoffs for 344 yards with a long of 57 against Penn. Totalled 695 all-purpose yards. Had 72 all-purpose yards including a 30-yard reception in a win over Brown. Had 175 all-purpose yards against Lafayette. Had 163 all-purpose yards against Penn with 51 receiving yards (3 catches) and 83 kickoff return yards on two attempts.

2010: Iannuzzi averaged 34.5 yards per kickoff return in 2010, making him Harvard’s all-time leader in that category. For his career, Iannuzzi averaged 26.5 yards per return, which also places him atop Harvard’s all-time list. He is the first player to have two kickoff returns for a touchdown in a single season. Had four catches for 52 yards and a touchdown in the season opener against Holy Cross. Had 194 all-purpose yards at Brown with a 21-yard touchdown catch and a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Returned two kickoffs for a total of 92 yards with a 50 and a 42-yarder at Lafayette but broke his clavicle which required surgery. Playing for the first time in 49 days against Yale, Iannuzzi took his first kickoff return 84 yards for a touchdown to start the second half. The run sparked a Harvard team that had trailed throughout the game and paved the way for a 28-21 win. Following the game he was awarded the game ball, with which he immediately sent to Ashley Stearns who had recently been diagnosed with cancer. Ashley's father Geoff Stearns had attended 33 consecutive Harvard vs Yale bowl games prior to 2010 when he remained bedside with Ashley during her recovery. Also caught a 46-yard pass against the Bulldogs. Named national kickoff returner of the week by College Football Performance Awards and the Ivy League Special Teams Player of the Week.

Harvard & MIT Academia
Marco spent his first two years as an economics concentrator while pursuing Pre-medical requirements. He spent the following two years of his degree exploring the realms of engineering, architecture and Environmental science. Combining these faculties he became one of only 10 to successfully petition the creation of their own multi-focused degree. The innovative nature of his program design called for cross-registration at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Professional Football
2011: Marco was the Lions’ first selection in the 2011 CFL Draft. He made his CFL debut in Week 1 and appeared in 15 regular season games where he caught eight passes for 65 yards and added 135 yards on 16 punt returns for a 8.4 yard average. Marco made four starts in the second half of the year and was awarded the special teams game ball when he intercepted Noel Prefontaine's attempted fake punt play on Sep 10/11 vs Toronto. In the Western Final and Grey Cup victories he caught 3 passes for 31 yards.

2012: Iannuzzi had his first two touchdown performance against the Saskatchewan Roughriders on October 5 when stepping in for injured CFL All-time leading receiver, Geroy Simon. Marco had his best statistical professional start to date versus the Edmonton Eskimos on July 20 where he caught 7 passes for 99 yards and had 2 rushes for 10 yards.

In the Community
Climb For The Cup: On March 22, 2012, "Marco Iannuzzi's Climb For The Cup [Grey Cup]" took place in support of the Branch Out Neurological Foundation The event gathered public and corporate support while participants accompanied Marco, and the Grey Cup, in an 802 step scramble to the summit of the Calgary Tower. The event was inspired by Marco's mother, Cathy, who has multiple sclerosis, which lead him to seek out the Branch Out Neurological Foundation.

Energy Champions: Marco teamed up with FortisBC for an environmental educational tour called Energy Champions. The program was designed specifically for children in kindergarten through grade seven, emphasizing the importance of environmental responsibility and being an 'Energy Champion'. In 2011, the BC Lions FortisBC Energy Champions program visited 75 elementary schools throughout the lower mainland, Vancouver Island, the Interior and northern BC.

Children’s Hospital Marco's support for the BC Children’s Hospital culminates each year with a holiday visit that he shares with a half dozen of his BC Lions teammates. 2011 visit, 2012 visit.

Canuck Place Children's Hospice Marco and Travis Lulay teamed up to raise awareness and funding for North America's first Children's hospice which is located in Vancouver British Columbia.