David Bleitner
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- Year:
- 2005
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- Hometown:
- St. Louis, Mo.
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- High School:
- St. John Vianney
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- Team:
- Football
David Bleitner grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and attended St. John Vianney High School. He was a captain of the football team and earned second team all-district honors as a senior.
Bleitner entered Lake Forest College in the fall of 2001 and became just the second player in program history to earn all-conference honors all four years. After being an Honorable Mention All-Midwest Conference selection his first two seasons, he was a First Team honoree and the league’s Defensive Player of the Year as a junior and senior. He also earned All-West Region and All-American honors from The Football Gazette each of his final two seasons. After tallying 49 tackles during his first two seasons combined, Bleitner broke out as a junior, finishing the season with 60 tackles and setting program records with 23.5 tackles for loss and 15.5 sacks. He added 52 stops, including 13.0 tackles for loss and 7.0 sacks, as a senior captain and finished his four years ranked first in program history in career tackles for loss (49.5) and second in sacks (29.0). Bleitner helped the 2002 Foresters set a team record with nine victories and make the first NCAA Division III Tournament appearance in program history. Lake Forest’s 28 wins during his career are more than in any four-year span prior to his arrival on campus.
Also successful in the classroom, Bleitner earned Academic All-MWC honors each year he was eligible for the award and was named First Team Academic All-District® and Second Team Academic All-American® by the College Sports Information Directors of America. In addition, he was named to the College’s All-Sportsmanship Team following his senior season. Bleitner also played rugby while at the College and captained the club his senior year. He earned the College’s Elizabeth W. Fischer Award for his accomplishments in academics and extra-curricular activities.
After graduating from Lake Forest with a degree in business and a short career trading options, Bleitner attended Chicago’s Siebel Institute of Technology, founded a brewery, and became an award-winning brewer.