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2002: Guenther, USC's tallest player at 6-8, will serve as a backup tight end as a sophomore in 2002. He also has played on the USC men's basketball team.
2001: Guenther was sidelined for most of his 2001 redshirt freshman season while recovering from a 2000 back injury. He returned late in the 2001 season, but did not see any action as a reserve tight end.
2000: Guenther appeared as a reserve tight end in the Penn State opener (he did not catch a pass) but then suffered a herniated disk in his back and had surgery, which sidelined him for the rest of his 2000 freshman season. Because of the early injury, he was allowed to redshirt in 2000, his first year at USC.
BASKETBALL: After the 2001 football season, he joined the 2002 USC men's basketball team and served as a reserve center on a Trojan squad that got into the NCAA tourney. He appeared in 9 games (starting 3 times, twice against Stanford and once against California). He scored 1 point, grabbed 9 rebounds and had a block and an assist in 34 minutes of action (3.8 minutes an outing).
HIGH SCHOOL: He was a 1999 Super Prep All-Farwest, Prep Star All-Western, Tom Lemming All-West, Orange County Register Fab 15 third team and Las Vegas Sun Super 11 honorable mention selection as a senior at Taft High in Woodland Hills (Calif.) while playing offensive line, tight end and defensive end. Despite missing 4 games in 1999 with a dislocated shoulder, he had 6 catches for 56 yards (9.3 avg) with a TD on offense and 40 tackles, 7 sacks and 1 interception (for a TD) on defense. Current Trojans Greig Carlson and Brandon Hance also prepped at Taft.
He also played basketball (earning All-L.A. City and All-League MVP honors) and baseball at Taft.
He spent 1998 at Crespi High in Encino (Calif.).
PERSONAL: His sports hero is NFL star tight end Tony Gonzalez.
