Matt Ulrich, an offensive lineman who played on the Indianapolis Colts’ 2007 Super Bowl-winning team after captaining Northwestern, has died at age 41.
“I am heartbroken to hear of the passing of Matt Ulrich. Matt was with us only two seasons, but left his mark on many,” Colts owner Jim Irsay wrote on X on Wednesday. “Great guy, I hear he was a great dad ―- and he was a Super Bowl champ. My prayers to his family.”
Ulrich had four sons with his wife, Alison, who penned a heartbreaking farewell on Facebook: “Our beloved, one of a kind Matt has passed away and is in a better place. Matt, we love you so so much. You are profoundly missed. We all want you back for just one more day. One more hug. One more kiss. One more laugh. One more joke. One more wrestle with the boys. It seems impossible to do this life without you.”
“Please pray for peace and comfort for the boys,” she continued. “They have lost their greatest fan, coach and friend.”
Signed as a free agent, Ulrich played 10 games at offensive guard for the Peyton Manning-led Colts over the 2005 and 2006 seasons, the latter capped by the team’s victory over the Chicago Bears in the Super Bowl on Feb. 4, 2007.
“Seeing the confetti come down Colts colors and being able to hold the Lombardi Trophy, everyone being on the field, I had to remind myself to take one moment for myself,” Ulrich said to MontanaSports.com.
Ulrich previously captained Northwestern University’s football team and set team weightlifting records, including bench press (475 pounds) and squat (715 pounds), the Indianapolis Star reported. He also made the Big Ten All-Academic Team.
He apparently was still achieving feats of strength beyond his football days, saying in his job bio that he “bench pressed 505 pounds at the age of 40.”
“The goal setting doesn’t stop,” he said.
Ulrich and his family settled in Bozeman, Montana, where he worked as partner and chief growth officer of Profitable Ideas Exchange.
No cause of death has been revealed.