 Gurode with theDallas Cowboys in 2009 | |||||||||
| Colorado Buffaloes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Assistant offensive line coach | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1978-03-06)March 6, 1978 (age 47) Houston, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 320 lb (145 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | North Shore (Houston, Texas) | ||||||||
| College | Colorado (1998–2001) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 2002: 2nd round, 37th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
Playing | |||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Andre Bernard Gurode (/dʒəˈrɒd/; born March 6, 1978) is an Americanfootball coach and former player who is the assistant offensive line coach for theColorado Buffaloes of theBig XII (NCAA). He played as acenter andguard in theNational Football League (NFL). Gurode playedcollege football for theColorado Buffaloes, earning consensusAll-American honors. He was selected by theDallas Cowboys in the second round of the2002 NFL draft. During his eight seasons with Dallas, he was named to fivePro Bowls. In his final three seasons, Gurode spent one year each with theBaltimore Ravens,Chicago Bears, andOakland Raiders.
Gurode was born inHouston, Texas.[1][2] He playedhigh school football atNorth Shore High School in Houston.[3][4] As a senior,USA Today,PrepStar and SuperPrep selected him as an honorable mention high schoolAll-America. He was also named to theHouston Chronicle Top 100 List and made theAustin American-Statesman "Fab 55" team. He earned All-Area honors as a senior (second-team honors as a junior), and was All-District and All-Greater Houston as a junior and senior (when he also was his team's most outstanding offensive lineman).
Gurode lettered three times inbasketball and four times intrack with personal bests of 186' 0" in thediscus and 54' 1" in theshot put.[citation needed]
Gurode attended theUniversity of Colorado, where he played for theColorado Buffaloes football team from 1998 to 2001.[5] He was a four-year starter for the Buffaloes, playing bothcenter andguard on theoffensive line. He started his first two and a half seasons at center, before moving to guard in the middle of his junior year. As a junior in 2000, he started the first six games of the year at center and the final five games at guard. He received the John Mack Award, as selected by the coaches for being Colorado's most outstanding offensive player and was also selected honorable mentionAll-Big 12 Conference honors while helping the Buffaloes to a 7–5 record and a win over theBoston College Eagles in theInsight.com Bowl. As a senior, he started every game at right guard.
Gurode was a first-team All-Big 12 selection in 2000 and 2001, and was recognized as a consensus first-teamAll-American as a senior in 2001.[6] During his career he allowed just 7.5 sacks in 2,653 plays as a starter for the Buffaloes.
He earned a degree in ethnic studies from the University of Colorado, where he was a member of the school's "Academic Starters" team.
He was named to the CU Athletic Hall of Fame in the 2023 Class.[7]
Gurode initially projected as aguard and was ranked the best available in the2002 NFL draft, along withKendall Simmons.[8] He was regarded as an early second round pick,[9]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft4+3⁄8 in (1.94 m) | 316 lb (143 kg) | 35 in (0.89 m) | 11 in (0.28 m) | 5.34 s | 1.89 s | 3.14 s | 5.05 s | 8.15 s | 30.5 in (0.77 m) | 8 ft 4 in (2.54 m) | ||
| All values fromNFL Combine[10][11] | ||||||||||||
Gurode was selected by theDallas Cowboys in the second round, with the 37th overall pick, of the2002 NFL draft as acenter.[12] He started fast by becoming the first rookie in club history to start atcenter on opening day.[13][14]
It is believed2002 was the first time anNFL franchise had five African-American starters on theiroffensive line, when the Cowboys lined up Gurode atcenter,tacklesFlozell Adams andSolomon Page,guardsLarry Allen andKelvin Garmon.[15] Gurode also became part of history as the startingcenter on the Cowboysoffensive line that helpedEmmitt Smith eclipseWalter Payton as theNFL's all-time leading rusher, playing against theSeattle Seahawks on October 27. While he started the first six games of the2002 season atcenter, Gurode was moved to help compensate for the number of injuries along theoffensive line, compiling another eight starts atright guard.[16]
In2003,Bill Parcells was hired as the Cowboyshead coach and decided that Gurode's best position was atguard, starting 15 games at that position in2003 and 13 games in2004 with mixed results, before getting benched for the final two games.[17][18]
At the start of the2005 season, Parcells accepted he made a misjudgment by moving Gurode toguard and switched him back tocenter, with the Cowboys also signingMarco Rivera to take his place atguard. That season, he was a versatile backup, playing behindAl Johnson atcenter and Rivera atright guard. He appeared in all 16 games and started two.[19]
In2006, he rededicated himself to football and won the starting center job again, overAl Johnson. On October 1,2006, in the third quarter of a game against theTennessee Titans, Titansdefensive tackleAlbert Haynesworth stomped on Gurode's head. Haynesworth's cleats caused a laceration requiring thirty stitches.[20] Haynesworth was ejected, and subsequently suspended by the NFL for five games without pay.[21] Gurode started all 16 regular season games and one postseason game for the Cowboys in the 2006 season.[22]
Following the2006 season, Gurode was named to his firstPro Bowl as an injury replacement.[23] On February 20,2007, the Cowboys re-signed Gurode to a six-year contract worth US$30 million including a $10 million signing bonus.[24][25]
Gurode developed into one of the league's most respectedcenters since returning to being a full-time starter in2006. He started in 14 regular season games and one postseason game in the 2007 season.[26] He started in all 16 games in the 2008 season.[27] He started in all 16 games in the 2009 season.[28] In the 2010 season, he started in all 16 regular season games.[29] He was selected to theSporting NewsAll-Pro Team (2007,Pro Football Writers2009),[30][31] as well as to five straightPro Bowls (2006,2007,2008,2009,2010).[32] He was ranked 57th by his fellow players on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2011.[33]
He had offseason left knee surgery and missed the2011 season training camp and three out of four preseason games. With the emergence of second-year playerPhil Costa, he was released after the preseason following failed negotiations regarding a restructured contract.[34]
Gurode reportedly visited theNew England Patriots before signing a 1-year, $3 million contract with theBaltimore Ravens on September 4, 2011.[35][36] In the 2011 season, he appeared in 13 games and started five.[37]
On November 27, 2012, theChicago Bears signed Gurode after losing guardsLance Louis andChris Spencer to injuries sustained in a game against theMinnesota Vikings on November 25.[38] He was waived by the Bears on December 11, 2012.[39]
On July 26, 2013, Gurode signed with theOakland Raiders.[40] He played in ten games and started four for the Raiders in the 2013 season.[41] At the end of the 2013 NFL season, Gurode became a free agent.
Gurode was officially hired by theHouston Roughnecks on September 13, 2022[42] On January 1, 2024, it was announced the Roughnecks Staff would not be a part of the UFL Merger.[43] He was transferred over to theSan Antonio Brahmas along withWade Phillips.[44]