Blue Devil Spotlight: Giuseppe Aguanno

Oct. 1, 2004

by Will Shapiro

It's amazing what solid preparation and attention to detail, combined with family values and a bit of good old-fashioned hard work can do. Just ask Giuseppe Aguanno. After a standout prep career at Monsignor Farrell on Staten Island, the senior linebacker has made his mark on the Duke football program to the tune of 91 career tackles and 21 tackles for loss. With 7.5 more tackles for loss, he will break into Duke's all-time top 10 in that category. It would be nice to think that he put up those numbers on raw talent alone, but the senior captain admits that his physical skills are not the key to his success.

"Well, it's not my speed at all, as much as I'd like it to be," says Aguanno, grinning. "I think it's my work ethic. What I pride myself on is my preparation, knowing my assignments and just trying to be as exact as I can."

Aguanno's successes extend beyond the football field, as he was an ACC Academic Honor Roll choice in 2003. Again, he attributes his success to focus.

"We're challenged by academics here, but I just try as much as I can to separate academics and football. When class ends, I try and shut it off. I won't take a book with me on road trips because that's football time. And once class time comes, I try and shut out football as much as I can. I don't know if that's the best advice, but that's the way I've always handled it."

Aguanno makes it quite clear where he learned that focus and work ethic -- from his father. Frank Aguanno was born in Sicily and came to the United States at the age of 19. For what his father has accomplished, and still continues to do, Giuseppe calls his father his hero.

"My dad is the hardest-working man I know. Fifty-plus and still working construction every day. But that's only part of it," says the 6-1, 240-pound Aguanno. "He had already started a life in Italy, but he came here and it wasn't easy to do. He's just gone through so much and family is so important to him and he's done so much to make sure everything's better for us. If I could ever be half the man my dad has been, and ever do the things he's done to make his family's life better, that would be the greatest."

Given all that he learned about life from his father, it should come as no surprise that Aguanno, known as "Pep" to his friends and teammates, has sought out the right people from whom to learn the finer points of football. While he says he had no true role models in the game as he was growing up, it did not take long for him to find several upon his arrival at Duke. The first was fellow linebacker Ryan Fowler, whose approach to the game was consistent with the work ethic and attention to detail that Giuseppe's father had instilled in him.

"Playing with Ryan, he influenced me the most as a player. Being a freshman, you look for somebody to try and follow and it seemed like he did everything right and he was such a hard worker. I had three years with him and we worked out together, watched film together. I don't know if you want to call it motivation or inspiration, but I always tried to make sure I prepared the way he did."

Another positive influence on Aguanno when he arrived was, at that time, his defensive coordinator. Giuseppe credits Ted Roof with being the first truly motivating coach he had played for. Now, with Roof as his head coach, Aguanno feels equipped to lead as a team captain.

"Working under Coach Roof, he really stresses leadership. And his leadership sort of emanates throughout the entire team and, especially as a senior, you can almost feel it coming off him and you feel responsible and feel the need to be a leader. So to be recognized as a leader on this team is just a great feeling."

So what kind of a leader is Aguanno? His teammates voted him as one of their captains, but he is certainly not the boisterous or loud kind who spends a lot of time slapping helmets in the locker room. He leaves that to fellow senior Chris Dapolito.

"Dap is always in there motivating people. He's a born leader and a great captain," says Aguanno. "My role is definitely more of an on-the-field thing, almost knowing what everybody has to do. I like to think that anyone on the field could look to me to regroup. I pride myself on knowing assignments and almost being a coach on the field and trying to help everybody. I think that's where I got a lot of my votes, from people on the defense who look towards me for confidence."

Still, with all the preparation, hard work and focus on football, Aguanno is painfully aware that there are things for more important in life. Giuseppe's father taught him the value of hard work, but Frank Aguanno also wanted the best in life for his family and Giuseppe has taken the value of living life to heart in the wake of a recent tragedy.

"Something that I've come to realize, with the passing of Micah (Harris), is to try and live life to the fullest. Because Micah was a kid who lived life to the fullest. His story impacted the entire team, but especially our group of really close friends. We try and make sure we hang out as much we can and experience these years and live them to the fullest, because they are going to be the best years of your life."

Whether he is stopping opposing ball carriers behind the line of scrimmage, studying public policy or just playing pool in his apartment, Giuseppe Aguanno is working hard, preparing meticulously and, most importantly, living life to the fullest.

Blue Devil Spotlight: Giuseppe Aguanno

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