Isaiah Kacyvenski ’00, who led Harvard to an Ivy League title in 1997 and remains the Crimson’s all-time school record holder for tackles in a game, season, and career, was released by the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday.

The NFL veteran played in 90 games on special teams and defense and was one of the Seahawks’ most popular players in the seven seasons after the franchise made him a fourth-round pick in 2000. Kacyvenski missed Harvard Commencement in 2000 so he could make the team out of training camp; his father, Dave, accepted his diploma in a ceremony at Leverett House.

Kacyvenski remains the highest-drafted NFL pick in Harvard history.

The Seahawks dropped Kacyvenski to make room for backup running back Marquis Weeks. Regular Seattle running back Shaun Alexander sustained a foot injury on Sept. 24, triggering the move.

Kacyvenski is a vested veteran and a free agent, meaning he will now be free to sign with any team, including, if Alexander recovers, the Seahawks.

While at Harvard, Kacyvenski, a middle linebacker, concentrated in Environmental Science and Public Policy as a pre-med. He worked in a medical school lab during the summer before his senior season.

His rise from poverty in Endicott, N.Y., where his father was a janitor and his mother died when he was in high school, is well-documented.

“This is what I want to do,” Kacyvenski told The Crimson in 2000 about playing in the pros. “This is what I’ve wanted to do my whole life. Right now this is it.”

—THE CRIMSON STAFF