Former NFL player’s house burglarized

CLOVIS — The Clovis home of former NFL fullback Lorenzo Neal was burglarized Tuesday afternoon, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

Lorenzo Neal was burglarized!

Neal, who was a star running back during his time at California State University, Fresno, had left the home to take a weeklong vacation with his family. Upon returning, Neal discovered that many valuable items had been stolen from his house in the neighborhood near Friant Road and Willow Avenue. The Fresno County Sheriff’s Department responded to the call around 2 p.m. on Tuesday.

“(The burglary) occurred sometime in the seven days prior to the day it was reported,” said sheriff’s spokesman Chris Curtice.

The former NFL fullback, renowned for his ability to lead the block from his position, listed some of his stolen items on his Twitter page, including personal gear from his 1993 rookie season with the New Orleans Saints, framed jerseys, an autographed jersey from Jerry Rice and a pair of boxing gloves from a Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier fight.

The loss is estimated at several hundred thousand dollars, according to the sheriff’s department.

The 39-year-old Neal is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who helps recover his items. He asked that people keep an eye on Craigslist, eBay, and local sports shops for the items stolen from his home.

The 17-year veteran retired last season after a brief stint with the Oakland Raiders, his eighth team. Neal spent his first four seasons with the Saints and five playing for the San Diego Chargers. Some of the teammates Neal blocked for during his career include former 1,000-yard rushers Curtis Martin, Eddie George and LaDanian Tomlinson. He last played for the Oakland Raiders in 2009 and was released with an injury settlement in August of that year.

Curtice said that there has been one other reported burglary in the area of Neal’s home in the last couple of months.

“At this time, we don’t believe it was related,” he said.

Anyone with information regarding the burglary is also asked to call the sheriff’s office at (559) 488-3111 or (559) 498-STOP.

Beth Warmerdam contributed to this report.