Chris Hovan

Chris Hovan

Hovan with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2006
No. 99, 95
Position:	Defensive tackle
Personal information
Born:	(1978-05-12) May 12, 1978 (age 47) Rocky River, Ohio, U.S. [1]
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	296 lb (134 kg)
Career information
High school:	St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio)
College:	Boston College
NFL draft:	2000: 1st round, 25th pick
Career history
As a player:
Minnesota Vikings (2000–2004) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2005–2009) St. Louis Rams (2010)
As a coach:
South Florida (S&C) (2011–2012) Tampa Bay Storm (DL) (2013–2015)
Career highlights and awards Second-team All-Pro (2002) PFWA All-Rookie Team (2000) First-team All-American (1999) 3× All-Big East (1997, 1998, 1999) Career NFL statistics Total tackles: 408 Sacks: 22.0 Forced fumbles: 2 Fumble recoveries: 8 Stats at Pro Football Reference Christopher James Hovan (born May 12, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Boston College. He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 2000 NFL draft and played for that team from 2000 to 2004. Hovan then played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2005 to 2009. He was also a member of the St. Louis Rams in 2010 but spent the entire season on injured reserve. Early life Hovan grew up in Rocky River, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He is the youngest of three children. He played high school football at St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland. During his career, he earned many honors and awards, including an honorable mention All-American by USA Today and All-City and All-State by The Plain Dealer . He finished his high school career with a school record 28 career sacks. He also played lacrosse, earning All-State recognition. College career Hovan played college football at Boston College. As a senior, he was an All-American and a semi-finalist for the Lombardi Award. He also became the first player in Boston College history to be named All-Big East three times. He finished his career starting 43 of 45 games, recording 20.5 sacks. Professional career Minnesota Vikings Hovan was selected by the Minnesota Vikings with the 25th overall pick in the 2000 NFL draft. [2] He would go on to play five years for the Vikings, playing in 77 games, recording 192 tackles and 17 sacks. Tampa Bay Buccaneers On April 1, 2005, Hovan signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He had a good first season with the Bucs, helping them win the NFC South and finish as the number one ranked defense. Hovan was released on April 26, 2010. [3] St. Louis Rams On June 9, 2010, Hovan signed with the St. Louis Rams. [4] On August 6, 2010, Hovan was placed on injured reserve due to a back injury, ending his 2010 season. [5] NFL statistics Year Team GP Tackles Fumbles Interceptions Comb Solo Ast Sack FF FR Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD 2000 MIN 16 46 41 5 2.0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2001 MIN 16 43 29 14 6.0 2 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2002 MIN 16 52 38 14 5.5 0 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 4 2003 MIN 16 27 19 8 2.0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 4 2004 MIN 13 20 11 9 1.5 0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2005 TB 16 45 35 10 0.0 0 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2006 TB 16 51 40 11 2.0 0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2007 TB 16 48 31 17 1.5 0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2008 TB 15 43 36 7 1.0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2009 TB 16 33 26 7 0.5 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 Career [6] 156 408 306 102 22.0 2 8 0 0 0.0 0 0 15 Coaching career Hovan was named assistant strength & conditioning coach for the South Florida Bulls in 2011. [7] Hovan was signed by the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League as their defensive line coach on January 9, 2013. He was the defensive line coach for the Tampa Bay Storm of the AFL for the 2013 season. Hovan coached in the AFL with the Tampa Bay Storm for three seasons. From 2017 to 2018, Hovan was the co-defensive coordinator for the Warriors football team at Steinbrenner High School in Lutz, Florida. Personal life Hovan has contributed to the Hemophilia Foundation of Greater Florida and the Pediatric Cancer Foundation. [8] In April 2015, Hovan was charged with leaving the scene of a crash without providing information. [9] A month later he was charged with a DUI with property damage or injury. [9] In December 2018, Hovan was court ordered to stay away from his wife and children due to domestic violence allegations. [9] On November 30, 2020, Hovan was arrested and booked for another DUI this time with his child in the passenger seat. [10] He reportedly had a BAC of .31 which is over three times higher than Florida's .08 limit. [10] References "Chris Hovan, DT", NFL.com "2000 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 19, 2023. "Tampa Bay releases DT Hovan". ESPN. April 26, 2010. Retrieved September 16, 2011. "Rams sign veteran DT Hovan". ESPN.com. Associated Press. June 10, 2010. Retrieved September 16, 2011. "Rams place Chris Hovan on injured reserve". NBC Sports. August 6, 2010. Retrieved September 16, 2011. "Chris Hovan Stats". ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved May 26, 2014. "Chris Hovan Bio". Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved February 11, 2013. Sipperley, Keli (February 14, 2013). "God, Family, Football: A Love Story". Patch.com. Retrieved June 25, 2025. Joyce, Dennis (December 28, 2018). "Former Buc Chris Hovan ordered to stay away from home, family in domestic violence case". Tampa Bay Times . Retrieved June 25, 2025. Ellenbogen, Romy (December 1, 2020). "Former Bucs player Chris Hovan faces DUI, child neglect charges". Tampa Bay Times . Retrieved June 24, 2025. External links NFL.com stats St. Louis Rams' bio ESPN stats Pro-Football-Reference stats This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.