Buzzards Bay, Mass. --  Don Ruggeri, who guided Massachusetts Maritime to 144 victories and a pair of New England Football Conference championships during a Hall of Fame career that spanned 28 seasons, has been named as the recipient of the 2011 Ron Burton Distinguished American Award from the Jack Grinold Eastern Massachusetts Chapter of the National Football Foundation.  Ruggeri will be honored by the organization at its annual Scholar-Athlete Banquet next Monday evening at Lombardo’s Restaurant in Randolph, Mass.

The Ron Burton Distinguished American Award is presented annually by the Jack Grinold Eastern Massachusetts Chapter of the National Football Foundation in honor of the late former Boston Patriots standout for his longstanding contributions to both the sport of football and to the community.  Past recipients of the Burton Award include Harvard University Head Coach Tim Murphy, former Massachusetts Institute of Technology Head Coach Dwight Smith as well as last year’s recipient, former Tufts University Head Coach Bill Samko.

Ruggeri guided the Buccaneers on the gridiron from the inception of NCAA varsity football in 1973 until his retirement in 2000, as he posted an overall mark of 144-109-1 (.566) and ranked as the second winningest mentor in New England Division III history at the time of his retirement.  Ruggeri led Massachusetts Maritime to New England Football Conference crowns in 1977 and again in 1983 when the Buccaneers posted 8-1 marks in each of those campaigns, and his teams won six or more games a total of 10 times in his 28-year tenure.

A former schoolboy standout at Belmont High School, Ruggeri continued his playing career at Springfield College, where he graduated from in 1962.  He led Falmouth High School to a state crown on the gridiron before heading up the road to Buzzards Bay in 1973, and he was inducted into the Massachusetts Maritime Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004.  Ruggeri is also a member of both the Belmont High and Falmouth High Athletic Halls of Fame.

“It is a great honor for us to present Coach Ruggeri with the Burton Award,” Grinold Chapter Executive Director Roger Crosley said.  “The impact that Coach Ruggeri had on countless young men at Massachusetts Maritime is one that speaks volumes to his dedication and his character, and it is those qualities that Ron Burton would also be proud of.”

For more information on the National Football Foundation, log-on to www.footballfoundation.org.