Broncos' Koutouvides embraces Greek and middle linebacker position

By FRANK SCHWAB The Gazette • Published August 20, 2008

When Niko Koutouvides was growing up, the weekly schedule was always the same.

Koutouvides and his two brothers would go to regular school five days a week. Then when his friends played on the weekend, he had Greek school on Saturday and Sunday school at the Greek Orthodox church.

"We hated it, but now you look back on it I'm so grateful for it, for our parents sending us," Koutouvides said.

The Denver Broncos' middle linebacker embraces his Greek heritage. He speaks Greek, although he admits he is a little rusty after years away from home. He is a member of the Greek Orthodox church. He loves Greek food, although he was having a tough time finding a good restaurant in Denver. He listens to Greek music "all the time." This offseason he had a Greek wedding, complete with a Greek band and the custom of breaking plates on the ground.

His background is rare in the NFL. Koutouvides and Jacksonville offensive lineman Tony Pashos are among the very few Greek NFL players. Koutouvides said he is known in Greece, although he has never been there. When he was with the Seattle Seahawks he did a long interview in Greek with the Greek sports Web site www.contra.gr before Super Bowl XL. Greek newspapers have written about him. He will stop short of saying he is a big deal in Greece, however. "I don't think so," he said.

"I've had some people go to Greece from America, and my name has come up and people knew who I was," said Koutouvides, who added he wants to visit Greece after his playing career.

Koutouvides' fame and fortune (he signed a three-year, $7.5 million deal with the Broncos this offseason) is what Stelios Koutouvides had in mind for his family when he moved from Arusha, Tanzania, to the United States when he was 18 years old. Stelios Koutouvides' parents had relocated to the African country of Tanzania during the Greco-Turkish War.

After he came to the United States Stelios met his wife Niki, who was from Kefalonia, an island in Greece. Stelios said the family still has about 50 relatives in Greece. Greece is a soccer-loving country, so many of the relatives don't know much about American football. But Stelios said they all cheer for Niko and once in a while he'll get an overseas request for an autographed picture.

Stelios said he thinks his son's heritage played a part in him making the NFL. He said Greek people are hard workers, and he and his wife set an example for the three boys. For years Stelios has owned a restaurant, the Stonewell Restaurant in Farmington, Conn., and works about 70-80 hours a week. He is also an accomplished artist.

"Greek people are proud and want to accomplish things," Stelios Koutouvides said.

Stelios and Niki Koutouvides didn't just set an example for the three boys, they put them to work. Through most of high school, when Niko Koutouvides wasn't playing sports he was busing tables or working in the kitchen.

"The NFL took a great busboy from me," Niki Koutouvides said.

Niko Koutouvides said he is appreciative for his parents' lessons on his heritage, and the life lessons that helped him become a successful athlete.

"Just watching what they've done and how much work they've put in, and no matter what my brothers or I needed, no matter how much money my parents had at the time they'd take their shirts off their back for us," Niko Koutouvides said. "Seeing that growing up is a little motivation."

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