Born in Iron Mountain, Michigan, January 30, 1955, Izzo attended Iron Mountain High, where he befriended future NFL head coach, Steve Mariucci.  The two were teammates on the football, basketball and track teams, then roomed together at Northern Michigan University.  Mariucci was a three-time All-American quarterback who led the Wildcats to the 1975 Division II national championship.  Izzo walked-on to the basketball team, and as a senior set a school record for minutes-played while becoming a DII All-America guard.