Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/424772
WHERE HAVE YOU GONE? with the Buffalo Bills and one with the Miami Dolphins before entering sales in 1989 with Stryker, one of the world's leading medical technology companies. BEYOND FOOTBALL It wasn't until after his Notre Dame days, and with a marketing degree in hand, that the impact of his football career hit Furjanic. "I would meet people and I didn't tell them who I was, but they would know my name," he said. "I'd say, 'How do you know me?' It was al- ways, 'You played at Notre Dame.' Even 10, 15, 20 years later, people re- membered me. "There is nothing like Notre Dame, not just about playing, but 10, 20, 30 years afterwards." Medical sales fed his competitive, high-energy spirit, as it has with so many other former teammates of his who are in a similar profession. "They hire student-athletes," Fur- janic emphasized. "They didn't hire athletes. You have to be able to talk intelligently to a doctor, explain to him that you know what you're talking about. Notre Dame guys are a perfect fit. "A lot of medical companies try to hire athletes, but you have to have the student aspect of it too. You don't want to be a meathead. I never really tell anyone that I played any type of sports. If it comes up in conversation I'll talk about it, but am very modest with it. "People don't care when you're in surgery that you played at Notre Dame or in the pros. I tell that to younger guys who call me and say they played sports. "Yeah, that's great, but I say, 'Tell me what you're doing now.' How are you getting better? What books are you reading to try to get better in sales or in your field?' No one cares that you played sports. It will get you in the door, but then when you get in the door you better know what you're talking about." Recently, Furjanic's wife of 11 years, Lynn, began a distributorship in spinal implants leading to their own start-up companies. Their current company, Benvenue Medical, is based in Santa Clara, Calif. Now relocated to New Buffalo, Mich., Furjanic handles the northern Indiana territories and has three chil- dren and stepchildren currently at- tending college at Kentucky, Missouri State and St. Joe (Ind.). These days, the 50-year-old Furjanic admits he has a bit of the cranky cur- mudgeon old-school in him. "Why do they sing after the game when they lose?" Furjanic asked. "I've never understood that. … If you lose, get off the field." He still works out regularly and jokes that other than some pain in his neck, wrist, shoulders, knees, ankles and back on occasion, he feels fine. "After taking an X-ray of my neck, a doctor said to me, 'Were you in a car accident?'" Furjanic said. "I said, 'I've been in hundreds of car accidents [on a football field].' "It was worth it. I'd do everything over again in a heartbeat." ✦