Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Forest to Honor Chuck Argenzio
10/18/2019 9:38:00 AM | Football
Just prior to Saturday's (Oct. 19) football game between Wake Forest and Florida State at BB&T Field, a moment of silence will be held for a young man who shared a bond with both schools.
Chuck Argenzio was a 2017 Wake Forest graduate and one of the most popular players on the Demon Deacon football teams from 2013-2016. He died in the early morning of September 19 from congestive heart failure while preparing for his job at Florida State where he was working as an intern with the football program and studying to be a certified strength and conditioning specialist.
Argenzio was a member of the Wake Forest football team from 2013-16. He walked on in the spring of 2013 after playing his high school football at Richmond, Va., Douglas Freeman High and a spending a postgraduate year at Fork Union Military Academy.
At Freeman High, Argenzio was a two-time honorable mention all-Colonial District honoree as a center who also participated in track by throwing the shot put and the discus. He was smart, earning Colonial District All-Academic honors. And, as he noted on his information questionnaire when he enrolled at Wake Forest, he had perfect school attendance from kindergarten through the end of his senior year at Freeman High. He converted to a fullback and linebacker during his postgrad year at Fork Union.
As a Deacon, Chuck was a popular teammate. His playing time was limited early on, playing behind Jordan Garside at fullback and used primarily on special teams. He appeared in his first collegiate game in the 2013 opener against Elon and by 2014, he was a special teams regular, playing in eight games including seeing 12 snaps against Florida State.
In 2015, Chuck saw action at fullback in the season-opener against Elon and was on the field for 14 plays. He made his first career start at North Carolina and recorded a one-yard reception at Army. And, as luck would have it, he suffered a season-ending broken ankle against Louisville while carrying the ball from scrimmage for the first time in his career. He gained six yards on the carry. He finished the year having been on the field for 150 plays.
"When Chuck broke his ankle, I was a recruit and I was watching on TV with my family," said Maggio. "The way Coach Clawson came out to tend to him, the way the players reacted to him, those were things that my family and I said 'that's where you need to go to school.'
"When I got to Wake, I got to know why everyone loved Chuck. He took all of us in like family; always so selfless in spending his time on making sure others were taken care of. He's got one of the biggest hearts and that's why people reacted to him the way they did."
"Chuck taught me everything I needed to know when I arrived at Wake Forest," said tight end Brandon Chapman. "He taught me how to watch film, how to behave, how to work in the weight room. He was a great dude."
As a senior in 2016, he played in all 13 games and earned starts against Florida State and Louisville. He recorded a highlight moment against Syracuse. While playing in a driving rain storm brought on by the presence of Hurricane Matthew, the Deacons were lined up to punt from their own 45. Freshman punter Dom Maggio was awaiting the snap when the wet ball sailed over his head. The ball was booted around and wound up in the Deacon end zone. Argenzio was the first one there to fall on the ball for a safety instead of allowing Syracuse to recover for a touchdown. The Deacons went on to win 28-9.
Chuck graduated from Wake Forest in 2017. He was just 26 at the time of his passing.
Always positive, ready to work and willing to help, Chuck's sense of humor and zeal for athletics and fun will be missed. His greatest joy was helping young athletes find their inner strength and reach their goals, a talent for which his charisma and booming personality was well-suited.
Chuck was preceded in death by his mother, Ellen; grandparents, Charles and Campbell Argenzio; and cousin, Alan Ferramosca. He is survived by father, Bernard; and stepmother, Yumin; sisters, Alyssa and Meredith; aunts, Paddy, Kathleen and Anne Argenzio; cousins, Paul Sr., Lisa, Paul Jr., Matthew and Peter; and aunt, Gloria Ferramosca.
Chuck Argenzio was a 2017 Wake Forest graduate and one of the most popular players on the Demon Deacon football teams from 2013-2016. He died in the early morning of September 19 from congestive heart failure while preparing for his job at Florida State where he was working as an intern with the football program and studying to be a certified strength and conditioning specialist.
Argenzio was a member of the Wake Forest football team from 2013-16. He walked on in the spring of 2013 after playing his high school football at Richmond, Va., Douglas Freeman High and a spending a postgraduate year at Fork Union Military Academy.
At Freeman High, Argenzio was a two-time honorable mention all-Colonial District honoree as a center who also participated in track by throwing the shot put and the discus. He was smart, earning Colonial District All-Academic honors. And, as he noted on his information questionnaire when he enrolled at Wake Forest, he had perfect school attendance from kindergarten through the end of his senior year at Freeman High. He converted to a fullback and linebacker during his postgrad year at Fork Union.
As a Deacon, Chuck was a popular teammate. His playing time was limited early on, playing behind Jordan Garside at fullback and used primarily on special teams. He appeared in his first collegiate game in the 2013 opener against Elon and by 2014, he was a special teams regular, playing in eight games including seeing 12 snaps against Florida State.
In 2015, Chuck saw action at fullback in the season-opener against Elon and was on the field for 14 plays. He made his first career start at North Carolina and recorded a one-yard reception at Army. And, as luck would have it, he suffered a season-ending broken ankle against Louisville while carrying the ball from scrimmage for the first time in his career. He gained six yards on the carry. He finished the year having been on the field for 150 plays.
"When Chuck broke his ankle, I was a recruit and I was watching on TV with my family," said Maggio. "The way Coach Clawson came out to tend to him, the way the players reacted to him, those were things that my family and I said 'that's where you need to go to school.'
"When I got to Wake, I got to know why everyone loved Chuck. He took all of us in like family; always so selfless in spending his time on making sure others were taken care of. He's got one of the biggest hearts and that's why people reacted to him the way they did."
"Chuck taught me everything I needed to know when I arrived at Wake Forest," said tight end Brandon Chapman. "He taught me how to watch film, how to behave, how to work in the weight room. He was a great dude."
As a senior in 2016, he played in all 13 games and earned starts against Florida State and Louisville. He recorded a highlight moment against Syracuse. While playing in a driving rain storm brought on by the presence of Hurricane Matthew, the Deacons were lined up to punt from their own 45. Freshman punter Dom Maggio was awaiting the snap when the wet ball sailed over his head. The ball was booted around and wound up in the Deacon end zone. Argenzio was the first one there to fall on the ball for a safety instead of allowing Syracuse to recover for a touchdown. The Deacons went on to win 28-9.
Chuck graduated from Wake Forest in 2017. He was just 26 at the time of his passing.
Always positive, ready to work and willing to help, Chuck's sense of humor and zeal for athletics and fun will be missed. His greatest joy was helping young athletes find their inner strength and reach their goals, a talent for which his charisma and booming personality was well-suited.
Chuck was preceded in death by his mother, Ellen; grandparents, Charles and Campbell Argenzio; and cousin, Alan Ferramosca. He is survived by father, Bernard; and stepmother, Yumin; sisters, Alyssa and Meredith; aunts, Paddy, Kathleen and Anne Argenzio; cousins, Paul Sr., Lisa, Paul Jr., Matthew and Peter; and aunt, Gloria Ferramosca.
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