Vince Wilfork
proCanes

Less of him to love: Wife’s support helps Wilfork slim down, live healthier

Aug/03/07 09:08 AM
FOXBORO - Vince Wilfork [stats] recognized the path he was inexorably beating. It led to the cemetery.

He saw firsthand the dire consequences of ignoring the warning signs of diabetes and high blood pressure. The former killed his father, David, in 2002, while the latter helped claim his mother, Barbara, months later.

His parents worked their whole lives to provide for Vince and his brother, but they did so at the expense of their own well-being. Wilfork watched his father shrivel from a powerful man of 280 pounds to one who needed to be carried to the bathroom. When he lost his mother, he was devastated.

Vince Wilfork Update

Jun/05/07 10:24 AM
Nose tackle Vince Wilfork seems to be relishing his role with top draft picks Brandon Meriweather and Kareem Brown, both of whom he played with at the University of Miami. "I'm basically like the big brother and the dad to them," said Wilfork. "I definitely have to look out for them. There is going to be a time I have to turn them loose, but for now they're under my wing."

(boston.com)

Vet raising ’Canes: Wilfork ready to mentor rookies

May/14/07 11:55 AM
FOXBORO - Big brother already has given the boys a lecture. He’s already offered up a quick course in Patriots [team stats] 101. And you better believe when Vince Wilfork [stats] talked, Brandon Meriweather and Kareem Brown listened.

Given the three share a bond in coming from the University of Miami, it was natural for Meriweather and Brown to seek advice from a fellow Hurricane. And, given Wilfork’s nature, he wasn’t shy about delivering nothing but the facts. He wasn’t going to tip-toe around the basics, or the truth.

“Both the guys I gave the same speech. So, they understand what we expect out of them. They understand what I expect out of them,” Wilfork said Saturday night before participating in Kevin Faulk [stats]’s charity softball game. “They know what I’m talking about. Get ready to win ball games.

Ex-Hurricanes tackle/end gets in line behind the best

May/14/07 11:41 AM
FOXBORO— The Patriots have one of the league’s best starting defensive lines, and fourth-round draft pick Kareem Brown is here to learn from the Richard Seymour-Vince Wilfork-Ty Warren trio while also solidifying a spot for himself on the New England roster.

“The Patriots wouldn’t have drafted me if they didn’t see something in me,” Brown said yesterday on the first day of rookie minicamp at Gillette Stadium. “I’m here to do a job. I’m going to learn from Seymour and Warren and Vince, and I’m going to take everything I can from them.”

Brown, the University of Miami’s 2006 Defensive Player of the Year, already has spent a lot of time talking to fellow former Hurricane Wilfork.

Wilfork out to sack diabetes: Memory of dad motivates

Apr/28/07 11:42 AM
Plenty of athletes do charity work, but few support a cause that hits as close to home as diabetes does for Vince Wilfork [stats].

Wilfork lost his father David to the disease in 2002 after watching it ravage his body for 15 years. The Patriots [team stats] nose tackle has since devoted his charitable efforts to finding a cure, and tomorrow will host his biggest fund-raiser of the year, a draft party at Pinz bowling alley in Milford, with proceeds benefiting the Diabetes Research Institute.

“My father suffered the last 15 years of his life with diabetes,” Wilfork said. “Growing up, having to see my father give himself insulin, on dialysis, catheters everywhere - the one thing I can do is give back.”

Wilfork’s worthy cause

Apr/11/07 07:37 PM
A reminder that Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork is hosting his fourth annual draft party for diabetes research on Saturday, April 28 from noon to 6 at Pinz in Milford. Wilfork will be on hand all day — along with Greg Dickerson and Gary Tanguay of FoxSports — to sign autographs, analyze the draft, and mingle with guests. There will be free food, a cash bar, a Madden Playstation tournament, and a bowling tournament. Tickets are $40 for adult and $20 for children 12 and under. Tickets can be ordered by calling (617) 268-0001, e-mailing draftdaytix@sportsidentity.com, or by visiting Wilfork’s web site, vincewilfork75.com.

For those who can’t attend, Wilfork is still accepting donations for the Diabetes Research Institute. The cause means a lot to him, because he lost his father David to the disease in 2002 at age 48.

“Every donation helps,” Wilfork said. “There are so many people in the world suffering from diabetes. If there is a chance I can prevent someone from going through what I saw my father go through, I want to help.”

(bostonherald.com)

Wilfork Q&A

Apr/09/07 01:19 PM
MILFORD -- Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork stopped by Pinz in Milford, Mass., earlier this week, promoting his fourth-annual NFL Draft party with his wife Bianca. The party is scheduled for Saturday, April 28 at Pinz, with proceeds to benefit diabetes research. More information can be found at Wilfork’s website.

Five questions with Wilfork:

What do you have in store for this year’s draft party?“This is our fourth annual draft-day party and every year it’s getting better and better. We’re excited to have it here, which we think is a great spot so a lot of people don’t have to drive to Boston or Rhode Island. I’m not sure who it will be, because it is an off period for us, but some other players will be here. I know growing up as a kid, I always wished I could meet NFL players, so I think that’s a good part of it, because we’ll be here having a good time. In the end, I'm just the football player. [Bianca] is the brains behind this.”

Vince Wilfork Update

Jan/15/07 02:34 PM
Nose tackle Vince Wilfork was awarded the wrestling championship belt by his fellow linemen for his performance against the Jets. Wilfork actually had two belts hanging in his locker yesterday, as the linemen continue to honor the player who plays the best each game.

(boston.com)

Vince Wilfork needs to catch his breath, then catch LaDainian Tomlinson

Jan/08/07 07:06 PM
FOXBORO, Mass. (AP) - If Vince Wilfork is going to be the star of the New England Patriots' next playoff game, it will be by stopping the run, not making it.

The Patriots nose tackle lumbered 31 yards on a fumble return that helped New England put the New York Jets away in the first round of the playoffs. In Round 2, though, Wilfork will be back to work clogging up the middle of the field as the Patriots try to stop the San Diego Chargers and NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson.

"He's the MVP. I don't know how you could be any more complete than that," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said Monday. "He's looked pretty good to me, unfortunately, every time we've seen him. We're usually looking at the back of his jersey. We haven't done very well against him. He's killed a lot of people besides us, and he's killed us."

For Patriots' Wilfork, TD `a long way away'

Jan/08/07 07:08 AM
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When former University of Miami defensive lineman Vince Wilfork picked up that loose ball at the 46-yard line he looked up toward the horizon.

'I saw the end zone and said, `Man that's a long way away,' '' the 325-pounder said Sunday.

Wilfork managed to rumble for 31 yards before being caught from behind by New York receiver Jerricho Cotchery.

''Man, I thought I was really moving,'' said Wilfork, who initially hesitated before taking off down the field. ``If I had started running right away I might have got there. I'm going to get a lot of heat from [teammates] for getting caught from behind. But it was one of their fast little guys that caught me.''
Wilfork vows he will use this as a learning experience.

''I'll study the tape and look to see what I did wrong,'' Wilfork said. ``I'll study myself and try to improve my running style.''

(herald.com)

Vince’s sprint looms big: Pats nose tackle stays on his toes on return

Jan/08/07 07:04 AM
FOXBORO - The ball was just sitting there, like the last baked potato at a crowded dinner table, and Vince Wilfork [stats] did what any 325-pound man would have done. He wrapped his hands around the prize.

And he ran like hell.

So it was yesterday at Gillette Stadium, where the net result was this: The nose tackle for the Patriots [team stats] finished with roughly half as many yards on the ground as all of the New York Jets [team stats]. The totals were 31 for Wilfork, 70 for New York, and that was a very big reason the final score in the season’s last game at The Razor told a very happy tale:

PATRIOTS NOTEBOOK: Wilfork anxious to play, but quiet on subject

Jan/07/07 01:47 PM
FOXBORO — Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork, who missed the final three games of the regular season because of an injured right ankle, spoke yesterday for the first time since getting hurt on Dec. 10 against the Miami Dolphins.

"You guys will be surprised just like I'll be surprised," Wilfork said in coy fashion in response to a question about his playing status for tomorrow.

"I can't tell you. It ain't me. It's all on the head man. You have to talk to him about it for a player, now. I have no idea. I can only do what I can do. I'm doing the little things but not as much as I need to do to be playing."