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Sports

Cheshire SportsBeat: Hockey's Leetch

What is the second career for great athletes?

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BRIAN LEETCH (Cheshire) The former Cheshire Ram who helped lead the New York Rangers to the 1994 Stanley Cup title, is living outside of Boston with his wife and three children.  and was recently enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Leetch does television work during the hockey season for both NESN and MSG.

MO VAUGHN (Norwalk) Known as "The Hit Dog" during his 12-year career in the Major Leagues, Vaughn lives in Solon, Ohio, where he owns and operates "Mo Vaughn Transport," which is a trucking company. The former first-round pick of the Boston Red Sox and the also owns and operates OMNI New York LLC, which bought and rehabilitated more than 1,100 units of distressed housing in the New York metropolitan area. The company manages these properties to provide low-cost housing using government tax credits.

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RICH DIANA (Hamden) A graduate of Diana was an All-American football and baseball player at Yale University. He accomplished all that while majoring in molecular biophysics and biochemistry. , a running back, was drafted in the fifth round by the Miami Dolphins in 1982 and played in Super Bowl XVII against the Washington Redskins. He retired after playing just one season and went back to Yale for medical school. Diana is currently an orthopedic surgeon specializing in arthroscopic knee and shoulder surgery. He lives in Hamden with his wife and two children.

CHARLES NAGY (Fairfield) Nagy attended before heading to UConn where he earned Big East Pitcher of the Year honors. Nagy was drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Indians in 1988 and enjoyed a solid 14-year career. Nagy was named the pitching coach of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2010 and in his first season running the staff, the D-backs posted a 3.80 ERA. Currently, in his second year with Arizona, Nagy resides near San Diego in the off-season with his wife and two children.

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SCOTT BURRELL (Hamden) Burrell remains the only athlete to be drafted in the first-round of two sports. The former Hamden High School star went to UConn and was drafted in the first-round by the Chicago Bulls. Burrell was also a standout pitcher who was selected in the first-round by the Toronto Blue Jays. After an 8-year career in the NBA where he was part of a championship team with the Bulls, Burrell got into coaching. He's been assistant coach with the Quinnipiac University men's basketball team for the last five years.

NICK GIAQUINTO (Stratford) The graduate of played football at UConn and rushed for 277 yards against Holy Cross in 1976 -- that still stands as the the single-game rushing record for the Huskies. Giaquinto went on to play four seasons in the NFL with the Washington Redskins and Miami Dolphins. He retired after playing in the 1984 Super Bowl. Giaquinto has been the head baseball coach at Sacred Heart University baseball for the last 24 years.

DAN SILEO (Stamford) The former All-State defensive lineman who attended Stamford Catholic High School () went on to play for Maryland and Miami in college. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and played one season in the NFL. After playing in the World League of American Football and the Arena League, Sileo became a sports talk radio host, albeit a controversial one. He worked in Tampa from 1998 to 2012 before getting fired in March for making inappropriate comments. Sileo landed on his feet less than a month later, securing a job in Miami at WQAM as the host of the afternoon show.

KRISTINE LILLY (Wilton) One of the most decorated players in the history of women's soccer, Lilly now lives in Needham, Mass., with her husband. The second-leading scorer (130 goals) in U.S. Women's soccer history behind Mia Hamm, Lilly runs soccer camps in the Boston area and makes public appearances and gives motivational speeches. The former and UNC star recently ran the Boston Marathon, raising money for children's hospitals throughout the city.

MATT MERULLO (Ridgefield) Merullo attended where he was a two-sport star (baseball and football). The left-handed hitting catcher played at UNC and was drafted in the 7th round by the Chicago White Sox in 1986. Merullo made his Major League debut in 1989 and played six years in the big leagues with the White Sox, Twins, and Indians. After retiring, Merullo was a regional scout with the Arizona Diamondbacks for 12 years. Currently, he resides in Madison with his wife and three children and operates a baseball academy in the area.

TOM DUFFY (Bethel) Recently inducted into the Hall of Fame, Duffy was an All-State football and baseball players for the Tigers in 1981-82. He was going to play both sports at Columbia University, but signed a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers instead. Duffy pitched in the organization for three years before retiring. He's currently a professor at Norwalk Community College and the Chair of the Computer Science Department and the Program Coordinator for the Computer Science degree. Duffy is also the owner of Bright Moments Software, a company specializing in Web Technologies.

CECI HOPP (Greenwich) A brilliant performer in cross country and track and field at Hopp won the 1982 NCAA championship in the 3,000 meter run while attending Stanford University. Hopp, whose married name is St. Geme, was recently inducted into the Fairfield Country Sports Hall of Fame. She resides in Newport Beach, Calif., with her husband and six children. For the last 10 years, Hopp-St Geme has been an assistant coach at a local high school for the cross country and track and field teams.

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