He may be the finest quarterback in college football that you’ve never heard of.
His name is Mark Gronowski. It’s not Gronkowski; the correct spelling is Gronowski without the “k.”
He led South Dakota State as a true freshman to the championship game for the FCS, which took place on May 16th. Because of the damage to his leg, he was forced to leave the game early, and his Jackrabbits lost to Sam Houston State by a score of 23-21.
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Mark Gronowski: Parents
Mark Gronowski was conceived by his parents, Ray and Deborah Gronowski, and brought into the world.
Father
His father was a student at Mount Carmel High School and is originally from South Holland. Ray attended Drake University, where he received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in management and finance, respectively.
Since 2010, Elder Gronowski has been serving Realtors Property Resource in the capacity of vice president of the Broker & Specialty Services division.
Prior to that, he worked at Listingbook, where he held the position of senior vice president of real estate sales and business development. In addition to that, he has worked in the real estate industry with Prudential Real Estate, Coldwell Banker Residential Affiliates, Inc., and West Des Moines State Bank.
Mother
In a similar vein, his mother is from Lombard, Illinois, and she received her high school education at Glenbard East. According to her bio on Facebook, she attended Elmhurst College following her graduation from high school.
On the 5th of October 2018, Deb, who is also active on Twitter, sent birthday greetings to Mark, wishing him a happy 17th year of life.
Ray, Mark’s father, played football in the past. Throughout his son’s time in elementary school and middle school, he served as his son’s coach.
In the middle of the 1980s, Ray was a quarterback for the Drake Bulldogs football team, where he played college football.
Prior to enrolling at Drake, he captained the Mount Carmel team that won the state championship for the first time in 1980.
When he was six years old, the NCAA athlete who currently holds the position of quarterback for the South Dakota State Jackrabbits began practicing with his father.
Although they had their differences as he matured and into his teenage years, the two of them maintained a professional demeanor in the workplace, and their relationship continued to strengthen as they traveled together.
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Mark Gronowski: Career Details
- Because of COVID-19, the beginning of Gronowski’s first year at South Dakota State (SDSU) will now take place in the spring of 2021 rather than the autumn.
- Going into his first year with the Jackrabbits, the coaching staff decided to give him the starting quarterback position.
- Gronowski not only rushed for 577 yards and seven touchdowns, but he also threw for 1,584 yards and scored 15 touchdowns through the air.
- At the conclusion of the season, he received recognition as the Offensive Player of the Year from the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), as well as the Freshman and Newcomer of the Year awards from the conference.
- Gronowski suffered a major knee injury on the first offensive drive of the game, which contributed to the team’s loss to Sam Houston State by a score of 23-21. Despite this, South Dakota State was able to advance to the 2021 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game.
- In order to recuperate from his injuries and play in the fall season of 2021, he was granted a medical redshirt.
- At the beginning of the 2022 season, Gronowski resumed his role as the starting quarterback for San Diego State University. As a result of the Jackrabbits’ return to the FCS National Championship Game, he was honored with a spot on the second team of All-MVFC.
- Gronowski was chosen the Most Valuable Player of the game as a result of his performance in which he completed 14 of 21 pass attempts for 223 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 57 yards and one touchdown in a victory over North Dakota State by a score of 45-21.
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Mark Gronowski: Dating Life
Katherine Jones is the woman that Mark Gronowski is seeing as a girlfriend. The couple does their best to keep their romance out of the public eye.
Additionally, on the 28th of May 2022, the couple went to a baseball game together, and Mark related how he couldn’t believe Jones caught a ball in her very first game. They complement one other well and are quite cute.
Additionally, she is active on Instagram and can be seen posting under the handle @katherine.jjones. Her account is kept secret.
According to her bio on Instagram, she plays soccer for South Dakota State University and is a midfielder for the South Dakota State University women’s soccer team.
The athlete attended Visitation High School throughout her high school years and participated in club soccer with Salvo Soccer Club as well as Eclipse MN Soccer Club. She has a height of 5 feet and 8 inches and has been a member of the Jacks team since the 2020/21 season.
Mark Gronowski: Injury Updates
In the first series of the peculiar FCS championship game that took place two springs ago, South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski was under the impression that he had just injured his ankle.
It turned out to be a much more serious problem than that.
Gronowski has returned to North Texas for another attempt at the championship over 20 months after damaging the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee while attempting a 3-yard run and then missing the 2021 fall season that immediately followed.
On Sunday, the Jackrabbits will compete against their rivals in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, the North Dakota State Bison, who are also the defending champions of the Football Championship Subdivision.
Since starting the season with a loss to Big Ten opponent Iowa by a score of 7-3, the Jackrabbits have gone on a tear, winning 13 straight games to improve to 13-1 overall.
This streak includes a comeback victory at defending champion North Dakota State in October, which ended with a score of 23-21 — the same score as South Dakota State’s loss to Sam Houston State in the championship game.
South Dakota State blew a 10-point lead before Sam Houston State scored the game-winning touchdown with 16 seconds left.
Is Mark Gronowski Related To Rob Gronkowski?
Rob Gronowski is not connected to Mark Gronowski in any way. Despite the fact that they have the same surname, they are not related in any way.
Both brothers Gronowski are athletes who have a deep affection for and commitment to the sport of American football. Rob was a tight end for football teams in the National Football League for a total of 11 seasons during his professional career.
The former athlete played for the New England Patriots for nine seasons before moving on to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the remaining seasons.
He attended the University of Arizona for all four years of his academic career and went on to win the Super Bowl four times during the course of his professional career.
They do not follow each other on any social media platforms, and Gronk’s dad is not actually one of Gronk’s brothers either. They are known online by the handles @gronk and @mgronowski11 respectively. Gordie, Dan, Chris, and Glenn, Rob’s brothers and sisters, all competed in collegiate sports and went on to pursue athletic careers.
Mark Gronowski: Awards And Achievements
- Phil Steele FCS Freshman of the Year (2020-21)
- Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award Finalist/Runner-up (2020-21)
- HERO Sports FCS Freshman All-America Team (2020-21)
- Missouri Valley Football Conference Offensive Player of the Year (2020-21)
- MVFC Newcomer of the Year (2020-21)
- MVFC Freshman of the Year (2020-21)
- All-MVFC First Team (2020-21)
- Stats Perform FCS National Freshman Player of the Week (Feb. 19, 2021)
- MVFC Offensive Player of the Week (March 6, 2021)
- MVFC Newcomer of the Week (Feb. 19, 2021; April 17, 2021)
- MVFC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award (2021)
- MVFC Honor Roll (2020-21, 2021)
- Team Captain (2022)
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