Athletes - Tunch Ilkin

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	Athletes - Tunch Ilkin

Tunch Ilkin (born 1957) is a former American football player and current sports broadcaster. He currently serves as a television and radio analyst for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Ilkin was born in Turkey in 1957. His parents Mehmet and Ayten Ilkin emigrated to the United States when he was two years old and settled in the Chicago area. He attended Highland Park High School in Highland Park, Illinois where he won All Conference and All County honors as a football player. In 1975, he was granted an athletic scholarship to Indiana State University. He was chosen by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sixth round of the 1980 NFL Draft.

He played offensive tackle for the Steelers from 1980 to 1992 earning two Pro Bowl appearance honors (1988 and 1989). He played for the Green Bay Packers in 1993 before retiring from football. he served as Vice-President of the NFL Player's Association from 1989 to 1994.

After retiring from football, Ilkin began appearing as a commentator and sports reporter on sports broadcasts in the Pittsburgh market. His popular segment, titled Lunch with Tunch, featured interviews with Steeler players and coaches.

In 1998 he joined the official Steelers broadcasting team of Myron Cope and Bill Hillgrove as an analyst. He also worked alongside sideline reporter Craig Wolfley, who like Ilkin joined the Steelers via the 1980 draft.

Ilkin also works as an analyst on the Pittsburgh affiliate of Fox Sports Net and is a columnist for NFLHS.com, a website for football fans. He is also the Senior Vice President of the Athletic Training Network, a company that provides athletic training and program material to coaches and players.

Tunch Ilkin can currently be heard in the Pittsburgh area on FOX Sports Radio 970 from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. alongside his former team mate Craig Wolfley during their show, "In The Locker Room with Tunch and Wolf."

Ilkin was raised in the Islamic faith but had become a self described agnostic by the time he was in college. He converted to Christianity at the age of 24 and now acts as a motivational speaker at faith based events.

He currently resides in Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania.

Trivia

In addition to Ilkin and Craig Wolfley, the 1980 Steelers draft also produced future sports broadcaster Mark Malone
.
Tunch's mother was Miss Turkey in 1950.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Tunch Ilkin ]

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