Gary Spann

Last updated

Gary Spann
No. 94
Position: Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1963-02-03) February 3, 1963 (age 60)
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:218 lb (99 kg)
Career information
College: TCU
NFL Draft: 1986  / Round: 10 / Pick: 263
Career history
Career NFL statistics
Games played:2
Player stats at NFL.com

Gary Lynn Spann (born February 3, 1963) is a former professional football player.

Contents

Education and football career

Spann grew up in Dallas and graduated from South Oak Cliff High School in 1981. He was recruited to play football for TCU, located in nearby Ft. Worth.

Spann was drafted as a linebacker by the NFL's Green Bay Packers in the tenth round of the 1986 NFL Draft. [1] He played with the Kansas City Chiefs during the 1987 NFL season. [2]

Controversy

In September 1985, his senior year, Spann was one of 7 TCU players who publicly revealed that they had received cash in exchange for signing to play football with TCU. [3] Spann and his teammates were suspended as soon as the payments were made public. Ineligible to play (as per NCAA rules), they were removed from the team, though their scholarships were guaranteed through 1987. [4]

Allen and two other players (who happened to also be former high school teammates) sued the University in 1985, indicating that they had thought that the payments were sanctioned by the University; their legal view was that one of the involved alumni, Richard Lowe, was a member of the TCU Board of Trustees and, therefore, seen by them as a representative of the school. Later, that trustee underlined how common such payments were by claiming that he knew of 29 blue-chip TCU players who had been paid during the tenure of one TCU coach, F.A. Dry. [5] [6] After the suspensions (and eventual dismissals) of those 7 players, TCU went winless throughout the 1986 conference season after having gone 8-4 the previous season.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce Smith</span> American football player (born 1963)

Bruce Bernard Smith is an American former football defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at Virginia Tech, where he was a twice All-American, and was selected first overall by the Bills in the 1985 NFL Draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Art Monk</span> American football player (born 1957)

James Arthur Monk is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins, New York Jets, and Philadelphia Eagles. He is considered by many NFL players, coaches, and analysts to be one of the greatest wide receivers of all time. Monk was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric Dickerson</span> American football player (born 1960)

Eric Demetric Dickerson is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Dickerson played college football for the Mustangs of Southern Methodist University and was recognized as an All-American. He was selected in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft and played professionally for the Los Angeles Rams, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Raiders, and Atlanta Falcons of the NFL. During his NFL career, he rushed for over 13,000 yards. He holds the NFL's single-season rushing record with 2,105 yards, set in 1984. Dickerson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999 and, in 2019, was named to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest running backs of all time. He wore prescription goggles throughout his career due to myopia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenny Easley</span> American football player (born 1959)

Kenneth Mason Easley Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons during the 1980s. He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was a three-time consensus All-American. A first-round pick in the 1981 NFL Draft, Easley played professionally for the NFL's Seattle Seahawks from 1981 to 1987. Nicknamed "the Enforcer", Easley has been considered to be among the best defensive backs during his era and one of the Seahawks' all-time greatest players.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Norton Jr.</span> American football player and coach (born 1966)

Kenneth Howard Norton Jr. is an American football coach and former player who is the linebackers coach for the UCLA Bruins. He played professionally as a linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Davey O'Brien</span> American football player (1917–1977)

Robert David O'Brien was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) with the Philadelphia Eagles for two seasons. He played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, where he won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award in 1938. He was the fourth overall pick of the 1939 NFL Draft. O'Brien was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1955.

Gary Wayne Zimmerman is an American former professional football offensive tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL). Zimmerman played for the Minnesota Vikings from 1986 to 1992 and for the Denver Broncos from 1993 to 1997. He won Super Bowl XXXII with the Broncos against the Green Bay Packers. He was selected to the Pro Bowl seven times and was an All-Pro selection eight times. He attended Walnut High School and the University of Oregon whereby he was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

Stanley Douglas Morgan is an American former football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts. A "deep threat" receiver, he holds the NFL record with 19.2 yards per catch, and also holds the Patriots team record for total receiving yards in a career.

Harold E. "Butch" Woolfolk is a former American football running back and kick returner who played in college for the University of Michigan (1978–1981) and in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Giants (1982–1984), Houston Oilers (1985–1986) and Detroit Lions (1987–1988). Woolfolk attended Westfield Senior High School in Westfield, New Jersey. Woolfolk led Michigan in rushing three straight years and set the school record with 3,850 rushing yards while playing for the Wolverines from 1978 to 1981. As a sophomore in 1979, he was the Big Ten Conference scoring champion, and he went on to become a three-time first-team All-Big Ten selection. He had his best season as a senior at Michigan, winning the 1981 Big Ten rushing title and falling just 10 yards short of Rob Lytle's single-season rushing yards record. He was also selected in 1981 as the Most Valuable Player of both the Rose Bowl played January 1, 1981, and the Bluebonnet Bowl played December 31, 1981, as well as the Wolverines' team MVP for the season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig James (running back)</span> American football player and broadcaster (born 1961)

Jesse Craig James is an American former professional football player and sports commentator. He was a running back for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) and for the Washington Federals of the United States Football League (USFL). He then became a commentator for the ABC and ESPN television networks. James ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate in Texas in 2012, but lost in the first round of the Republican primary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Bono</span> American football player (born 1962)

Steven Christopher Bono is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played in college at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the 6th round of the 1985 NFL Draft. He played for seven different teams in 15 different seasons, spending the most time with the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs.

William P. Fralic Jr. was an American professional football player who was a guard for the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) from 1985 to 1993. He played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers.

Kenneth Earl Davis is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs and was selected in the second round of the 1986 NFL Draft. He played in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers (1986–1988) and the Buffalo Bills (1989–1994).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jay Schroeder</span> American football player (born 1961)

Jay Brian Schroeder is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, after which he was selected in the third round of the 1984 NFL draft by the Washington Redskins, where he played for four seasons. He then played for the Los Angeles Raiders for five seasons and spent one season each with the Cincinnati Bengals and Arizona Cardinals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ki Aldrich</span> American football player (1916–1983)

Charles Collins "Ki" Aldrich was an American football player. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1960.

Ronald Kyle Clifton is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for 13 seasons with the for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, he was selected by the Jets in the third round of the 1984 NFL Draft with the 64th overall pick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerry Hughes</span> American football player (born 1988)

Jerry Ray Hughes Jr. is an American football defensive end for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at TCU, where he was twice recognized as a consensus All-American before being selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Hughes previously played for the Buffalo Bills, with whom he played the majority of his pro career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daryl Washington</span> American football player (born 1986)

Daryl Lewis Washington is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, and was selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft. In May 2014, he was suspended indefinitely by the league for violating its substance abuse policies and was not reinstated until April 2017, where he was released by the Cardinals shortly after.

John Blake Galvin, Jr. is a retired American Football Linebacker for New York Jets from 1988 to 1991. He was drafted in the 11th round of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Jets.

Egypt Tyrone Allen is a former American football strong safety who played one season for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL).

References

  1. ↑ "1986 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Gary Spann". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
  3. ↑ "BEAR NOT SHY ABOUT TAKING MONEY - Chicago Tribune".
  4. ↑ "T.C.U. SUSPENDS SIX PLAYERS". September 21, 1985 – via NYTimes.com.
  5. ↑ "Orlando Sentinel - We are currently unavailable in your region".
  6. ↑ "The Pizza Papers and TCU's 1985 football scandal". June 16, 2018.
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.