April 29, 2008

DeKalb, Ill. - Ryan Diem, a four-year letterwinner for the Northern Illinois Huskies from 1997-2000 who has gone on to a Super Bowl winning career as a starting tackle in the National Football League, has been honored with Northern Illinois University's Outstanding Young Alumni Award for 2008.

Diem, a native of Carol Stream, Ill., accepted the award at the Northern Illinois Alumni Association Awards Dinner on April 24 at the Barsema Alumni Center in DeKalb.

"I was absolutely surprised and very honored to receive this award," Diem said. "I was excited to be in the presence of all of the award winners at the dinner on Thursday. I really appreciated the chance to play football and the education that I received at NIU."

Diem played for recently retired Huskie head coach Joe Novak from 1997-2000 and was elected a team captain in each of his final two seasons while garnering a spot on the academic honor roll every semester of his NIU career. Diem started 35 consecutive games for NIU and did not allow a sack in either his junior or senior season. He earned his bachelor's degree in engineering and engineering technology from Northern Illinois, and was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft.

He has spent the last seven seasons as a starting offensive lineman for Indianapolis and was a member of the Colts squad that won Super Bowl XLI.

Diem's contributions off the field keyed his selection as the Outstanding Young Alumnus. The award is given annually to an individual who has exhibited outstanding accomplishments within 10 years of earning an undergraduate degree from NIU.

In Indianapolis, Diem is an active participant in the Colts' Community Tuesdays program which sends players out into the community each Tuesday during the season. He also sponsors an annual reading contest at Calhoun Grade School in Chicago and is involved with etiquette programs which help children learn appropriate behaviors.

Along with his wife, Julie, Diem is actively involved with the Children's Neuroblastoma Cancer Foundation (CNCF); for the last three years, they have hosted "Ryan Diem's Allie and Friends Golf Classic," raising over $300,000 for cancer research.

Last year, the Diems showed their appreciation to NIU and to the contributions that Novak, the university and the football program made to his success with a generous gift to name the Offensive Staff Meeting Room in the new Jeffrey and Kimberly Yordon Center.

"I feel very fortunate to be able to give back," Diem said. "I look at it as a gift and it is something that is important to me and to my family."

A dedicated and connected alumnus who learned of the Outstanding Alumnus Honor while on campus to attend the memorial service in honor of the victims of the Feb. 14 tragedy, Diem was also on hand to help honor Novak, his former coach, at a dinner in Novak's honor last Saturday night (April 26).

- NIU -