| No. 5 | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | May 18, 1946 Jacksonville, Florida | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | Jacksonville (FL) Lee | ||||||||||||
| College: | Florida | ||||||||||||
| Undrafted: | 1968 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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| Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||||||||||
Harmon Leon Wages (born May 18, 1946) is an American former college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons during the 1960s and 1970s. He played college football for the University of Florida and, thereafter, played professionally for the Atlanta Falcons of the NFL.
Wages was born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1946. He attended Robert E. Lee High School in Jacksonville, [1] where he was a standout quarterback for the Lee Generals high school football team. [2] In two years as the Generals' starting quarterback, Wages led his team to 8–2 and 7–3 records. [2] After rushing for nearly 900 yards as a senior, he was named to the all-city and all-state teams. [2]
Wages accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he was a quarterback for coach Ray Graves' Florida Gators football team from 1965 to 1967. [3] He was a backup behind Steve Spurrier in 1965 and 1966, and was the periodic starter as a senior in 1967. Wages graduated from University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1969.
Wages was an undrafted free agent in 1968 when the Atlanta Falcons signed him, and he played for the Falcons from 1968 to 1971 and again in 1973. [4] He was the Falcons' second-string halfback and third-string quarterback. With an injury to the Falcons' starting halfback, Wages began to see playing time. In a single game against the New Orleans Saints played on December 7, 1969, he ran for a 66-yard touchdown, caught an 88-yard reception for a second touchdown, and threw a 16-yard pass for a third touchdown, [2] and the Falcons defeated the Saints 45–17. The three-touchdown day by a single player—one rushing, one receiving and one passing—is one of only seven such "hat trick" performances in the history of the NFL. [5]
Wages finished his five-year NFL career with 332 carries for 1,321 yards and five touchdowns, eighty-five receptions for 765 yards and five touchdowns, and three pass completions in four attempts for fifty yards and a single touchdown. [6]
Wages became a sportscaster for WAGA-TV, then a CBS affiliate (now a Fox-owned station) in Atlanta, Georgia, and then WXIA-TV, Atlanta's NBC affiliate. Wages was convicted in Federal court in Atlanta for misdemeanor possession of cocaine in 1985, and spent three months in prison. [7] He returned to sports broadcasting at WTLV-TV, the NBC affiliate in Jacksonville, Florida, and current CBS affiliate WGNX-TV (now WANF) in Atlanta. [8]
Wages currently serves as an advisory member of the board of directors of the Police Athletic League of Jacksonville. [9]
Wages' 2022 autobiography, Harmon Wages:The Butcher's Boy, was written by Harmon Wages and Stan Awtrey, edited by Martha Kavanaugh Hunt. A portion of net proceeds goes to The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
John L. Williams is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. Williams played college football for the University of Florida. A first-round pick in the 1986 NFL Draft, he played professionally for the Seattle Seahawks and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL.
Derrick Tyrone Gaffney is an American former college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons during the 1970s and 1980s. Gaffney played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the New York Jets of the NFL.
Michael Shane Matthews is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for all or part of fourteen seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. He played college football for the Florida Gators, where he was both a second-team All-American and SEC player of the year in 1991 and 1992. Thereafter, he played professionally for the Chicago Bears, Washington Redskins, and four other NFL teams. Since retiring as a player, Matthews has lived near his college alma mater in North Central Florida, where he has hosted a sports talk radio program and coached high school football. In 2017, Matthews pled guilty to having unwittingly played a small part in a large health care fraud organized by former Florida teammate Monty Grow.
Nathaniel Moore is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons during the 1970s and 1980s. Moore played college football for the Florida Gators, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Miami Dolphins of the NFL. He is best known as a favorite passing target of Dolphins quarterbacks Bob Griese and Dan Marino. Nat Moore is also credited as football consultant in the 1977 movie Black Sunday.
Doug Johnson, Jr. is an American former college and professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons during the early 2000s. Johnson played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Atlanta Falcons, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Cleveland Browns, and the Tennessee Titans of the NFL. He has two children and a wife. He is in the Florida Georgia Hall of Fame, and played in minor league baseball for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization.
Reidel Clarence Anthony is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) from 1997 to 2001. He played college football for the Florida Gators, and received consensus All-American honors in 1996. Anthony was a first-round pick in the 1997 NFL Draft, and played professionally for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL.
Kerwin Douglas Bell is an American football coach and former player who has been the head coach of the Western Carolina Catamounts football team since 2021. Bell was born in the rural North Central Florida town of Live Oak and was a star high school football quarterback at Lafayette County High School. Though he led the Lafayette Hornets to their only state championship, he did not attract the attention of top college football programs while playing at the small high school. He enrolled at the University of Florida, made the football team as a walk-on, and was redshirted during his freshman season of 1983.
Thomas Johnson "John" Reaves was an American college and professional football player who was a quarterback for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and three seasons in the United States Football League (USFL) during the 1970s and 1980s. Reaves played college football for the University of Florida, and earned All-American honors.
Willie Bernard Jackson Jr. is a former American professional football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars, Cincinnati Bengals, New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons and Washington Redskins. He played college football at the University of Florida. As a football coach, he was the wide receivers coach for the Orlando Apollos of the Alliance of American Football (AAF).
Lorenzo Timothy Hampton is an American former college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons during the 1980s. Hampton played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Miami Dolphins of the NFL.
Tyrone Donnive Young was an American college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for two seasons during the 1980s. Young played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the NFL's New Orleans Saints.
Jarvis Eric Williams, Sr. was an American college and professional football player who was a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. Williams played college football for the University of Florida, and was recognized as an All-American. Thereafter, he played professionally for the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants of the NFL. Williams died unexpectedly at the age of 45.
Christopher Paul Doering is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) during the 1990s and 2000s. Doering played college football for the Florida Gators, earning second-team All-American honors in 1995. He played professionally for the Indianapolis Colts, the Denver Broncos, the Washington Redskins, and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL.
Joseph Frederick Weary is an American former college and professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. Weary played college football for the University of Florida, was a member of a national championship team, and earned consensus All-American honors. Thereafter, he played professionally for the New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons and St. Louis Rams of the NFL.
The 1966 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 1966 NCAA University Division football season. The Gators competed in the University Division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). In their seventh season under head coach Ray Graves, the Gators compiled a 9–2 overall win–loss record, finished 5–1 and placed third among the SEC's ten teams. Led by quarterback Steve Spurrier, the Gators outscored their opponents by a combined total of 265 to 147 and concluded their 1966 season with a 27–12 victory over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the 1967 Orange Bowl. The Gators were not ranked in the final AP Poll, but finished No. 11 in the final UPI Coaches Poll.
Terry Jerome LeCount is an American former college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons during the 1970s and 1980s. LeCount played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the San Francisco 49ers and Minnesota Vikings of the NFL.
Hagood Clarke, III is an American former college and professional football player who was a defensive back in the American Football League (AFL) for five seasons during the 1960s. Clarke played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Buffalo Bills of the AFL.
John Marlin Simpson was an American college and professional football player who was a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons during the late 1950s and early 1960s. Simpson played college football for the University of Florida, and then played professionally for the Baltimore Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL.
Vincent Kendrick was an American former college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for two seasons during the 1970s. Kendrick played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL.
Buford Eugene Long was an American college and professional football player who was a defensive back, halfback and end in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons during the 1950s. Long played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the New York Giants of the NFL.
