Alex Bernstein
No. 75, 67, 76, 66
Position:Offensive Lineman
Personal information
Born: (1975-08-11) August 11, 1975
Royal Oak, Michigan
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:325 lb (147 kg)
Career information
High school:Blake
(Hopkins, Minnesota)
College:Colby, Amherst
Career history
Career highlights and awards
  • NCAA Division III All-American (1996)
  • NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year (1996)

Alexander Douglas Bernstein (born August 11, 1975) is a former American football offensive lineman who played for the Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, and Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL).[1][2][3][4] He is also an entrepreneur who co-founded both North Venture Partners and North Social.[1][5] Inc. Magazine named Bernstein one of the most successful NFL players turned entrepreneur.[6]

High school and collegiate football

Bernstein is Jewish.[7] He played high school football at The Blake School in Hopkins, Minnesota. where he competed in the Tri-Metro Conference.[2] After graduating, he played NCAA Division III college football at Colby College in Waterville, Maine in 1993.[2] In 1994, Bernstein transferred to Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts, where he played three seasons of football.[8] As a senior, he was named USA Division III Senior All-Star, New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Defensive Player of the Year, All ECAC First Team, New England Football Writers All-New England, Gridiron Club Division II/III Defensive Player of the Year, and AFCA Division III Coaches First Team All-American.[2][9] In his senior season in 1996, the Amherst College defense led the nation with the fewest points allowed per game (8.4).[10]

Professional career

Bernstein became only the fifth NFL player from Amherst when he signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent following the 1997 NFL Draft.[2] In 1997, he changed positions from defensive tackle to offensive guard.[8] During his four-year NFL career he was a reserve offensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, and Atlanta Falcons.[3][4][11] In 2000, he suffered a career ending injury and was placed on injured reserve by the Atlanta Falcons.[1]

Business career

Bernstein began working in software and technology in 2001. In 2003, he co-founded and was executive vice president of Echo Networks, Inc., a digital media company funded by large retailers including Best Buy and Virgin.[12] In 2004, Bernstein served as senior vice president for Virgin Digital, a US based subsidiary of Richard Branson's Virgin Group, Ltd. In 2006, Bernstein co-founded North Venture Partners, an Oakland, California-based business incubator.[13][14] In 2009, Bernstein partnered with Jim Kovach, Huntington Willard, and Pete Koch to found Athleticode, a genetic testing company based in Oakland, California.[15][16] That same year, Bernstein completed the executive education program on entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School. In 2010, he served as interim president for Athleticode, a genetic testing company based in Oakland, California. That same year, Bernstein co-founded North Social, a marketing software company which was acquired by Vocus, Inc. in February 2011.[17] In 2012, Bernstein received the Technology Award from the Oakland Digital Arts and Literacy Center. In 2012, Bernstein was listed as one of the most successful professional athlete entrepreneurs by Inc. Magazine, CNBC, and The Huffington Post.[1]

Personal life

Alex Bernstein married Patricia Haupt in June 2000. Bernstein resides in the San Francisco Bay Area. Bernstein has served as a vice president for the NFL Retired Players Association of Northern California.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Amora McDaniel. "Once an athlete, now an entrepreneur". Upstart Business Journal. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Danielle Rumore. "Different line of work Ravens: Rookie free agent Alex Bernstein is trying to make the NFL out of Division III Amherst while switching from the defensive to offensive line". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  3. 1 2 "All-Time Roster A-B". ClevelandBrowns.com. Archived from the original on 2013-10-26. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  4. 1 2 "All Time Roster". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on 2014-03-31. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  5. ↑ "NFL's Business Management and Entrepreneurial Program". Next Generation Fan. Archived from the original on 2014-03-31. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  6. ↑ "The NFL's 10 Richest Entrepreneurs: Alex Bernstein". Inc. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  7. ↑ "Different line of work Ravens: Rookie free agent Alex Bernstein is trying to make the NFL out of Division III Amherst while switching from the defensive to offensive line".
  8. 1 2 "Bernstein, Alex". Jews in Sports. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  9. ↑ "Bernstein Named All-American". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  10. ↑ "Bernstein Signs with Baltimore Ravens". Archived from the original on 2012-10-02. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  11. ↑ "Alex Bernstein". NFL.com. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  12. ↑ John Borland. "Big music stores squelch download plan". CNET. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  13. ↑ Rafat Ali (19 June 2006). "Virgin Digital Execs Leave To Form Venture Firm Focusing on Digital Media". Gigaom. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  14. ↑ Bobby White (2 September 2010). "Tech Rebound Hits Oakland". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  15. ↑ Eric Young; Ron Leuty. "Athletes Decoded". Upstart Business Journal. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  16. ↑ Eric Young; Ron Leuty. "Skating toward the 'sports gene'". San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  17. ↑ Robin Wauters. "Vocus Buys Facebook Apps Maker North Social For $7M In Cash + $18M Earnout". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
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