SUBWAY, the official training restaurant of athletes everywhere including Michael Phelps, Apolo Ohno, Justin Tuck, Blake Griffin, and Robert Griffin III, is powering another inspirational athlete. Eric LeGrand, the former Rutgers defensive tackle who was most recently signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, is the newest SUBWAY Famous Fan.

Like all of SUBWAY’s Famous Fans, LeGrand is a big fan of the brand. LeGrand has been eating SUBWAY's sandwiches for many years, including his favorite, the Black Forest Ham on Italian bread.

LeGrand, whose playing career ended during a game against Army on Oct. 16, 2010, when he suffered fractures of two vertebrae and a spinal cord injury, has been training harder than ever as he works to regain his strength toward his ultimate goal of walking again. SUBWAY has been inspired by LeGrand's perseverance and motivation to continue to train and maintain a positive outlook on his future.

"Eric’s training is intense and his goal of walking again is clearly the most important goal of any of our Famous Fans. We believe his inspirational story resonates with our fans," says Tony Pace, SVP and global CMO of SUBWAY. “All of our athletes who know Eric are already rooting for him. Like us, they love his character, determination and positive outlook.”

SUBWAY regularly looks to incorporate inspiring sports personalities who are fans of SUBWAY into its marketing programs. Most recently the brand worked with boxer Mike Lee, whose story of underdog success connected with fans across the nation.

As part of the partnership with SUBWAY, the world’s largest restaurant chain, LeGrand will be paired with Justin Tuck in commercials starting later this summer.
"Justin was a fan of Eric’s long before Eric was working with us and he was excited to know we were planning to make Eric a Famous Fan," says Pace.

Tuck, who has been featured in numerous SUBWAY commercials says, “This is one of the reasons I enjoy working with SUBWAY. They team up with athletes who have faced a variety of challenges and are always looking to do things to inspire fans.”

"I believe in SUBWAY and SUBWAY believes in me," says Eric LeGrand. "I am grateful for the opportunities SUBWAY provides and to be included on a team of Famous Fans that includes Justin Tuck, Michael Phelps, Michael Strahan, Nastia Liukin, Ryan Howard and many other elite athletes. I gain additional inspiration and motivation from that as I train to achieve my next goal."