James Sanders (American Football)
James Sanders (born November 11, 1983) is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Fresno State. Sanders also played for the Atlanta Falcons and Arizona Cardinals. College career After graduating from Monache High School, Sanders attended Fresno State University, where he played for head coach Pat Hill, a former assistant under Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, then coach of the Cleveland Browns. As a freshman in 2002, Sanders was a first-team freshman All-American selection by the Football Writers Association of America and an All- WAC honorable mention. He started every game at strong safety for the second straight year in his 2003 sophomore season, earning first-team All-WAC honors. In his junior season in 2004, Sanders again earned All-WAC honors in what would prove to be his final season at Fresno State. Professional career New England Patriots Sanders was drafted ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Safety (American Football Position)
Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their duties depend on the defensive scheme. The defensive responsibilities of the safety and cornerback usually involve pass coverage towards the middle and sidelines of the field. While American (11-player) formations generally use two safeties, Canadian (12-player) formations generally have one safety and two defensive halfbacks, a position not used in the American game. As professional and college football have become more focused on the passing game, safeties have become more involved in covering the eligible pass receivers. Safeties are the last line of defense; they are expected to be reliable tacklers, and many safeties rank among the hardest hitters in football. Safety positions can also be converted cornerbacks, either by design ( Byro ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pat Hill
Lawrence Patrick Hill (born December 17, 1951) is an American football coach, former player, and broadcaster. He served as the head football coach at Fresno State from 1997 until his dismissal following the 2011 season. In 15 seasons as head coach as Fresno State, he led the Bulldogs to a record of 112–80, 11 bowl game appearances, and a share of the 1999 Western Athletic Conference title. Early positions Hill attended Rim of the World High School in Lake Arrowhead, California, graduating in 1970. A 1973 graduate of, and an offensive lineman for the University of California, Riverside, Hill was the offensive line coach at Los Angeles Valley College from 1974 to 1976. In 1977, he became the offensive line coach at the University of Utah, where he would stay through 1980. This was followed by short stints at UNLV in 1981 and 1982, and a one-year stay in the Canadian Football League with the Calgary Stampeders in 1983. After an assistant coaching job at Fresno State, Hill went o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Brandon McGowan
Brandon McGowan (born September 16, 1983) is a former American football safety. He was signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played college football at Maine. Early years McGowan attended Lincoln High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, where he played football as a safety and running back. He was a defensive first-team All-County selection as a senior. College career McGowan was a four-year letterwinner with the Maine Black Bears finishing his college career with 700 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 25 interceptions, 15 forced fumbles, and 15 fumble recoveries. He started 33 of the 34 games he played at Maine and was the team's Defensive Player of the Year and an All-Atlantic 10 Conference selection as a junior in 2003. He was also awarded the "Hammer Award" for being the Black Bears' best special teams player as a freshman in 2001. Professional career Chicago Bears McGowan went undrafted in the 2005 NFL Draft and signed a three-year deal with the Chicago Bears ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2008 New England Patriots Season
The 2008 season was the New England Patriots' 39th in the National Football League (NFL) and their 49th overall. The Patriots were defending AFC champions. Despite finishing the regular season with an 11–5 record, the Patriots did not qualify for the playoffs—becoming the first 11-win team since the expansion to a 12-team playoff in 1990 to miss the playoffs, as well as only the second team (after the 1985 Denver Broncos) since the NFL expanded to a 16-game regular season in 1978. They also were the first team to go undefeated in the previous regular season and miss the playoffs the next season. In the season opener, quarterback Tom Brady, the NFL's MVP in 2007, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament during their season-opening victory against the Chiefs and missed the remainder of the season. Backup quarterback Matt Cassel replaced Brady. Cassel led the team to a win in Week 2 against the New York Jets, his first start since high school. A loss the following week agai ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Super Bowl XLII
Super Bowl XLII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2007 season. The Giants defeated the Patriots by the score of 17–14. The game was played on February 3, 2008, at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The game is regarded as one of the biggest upsets in the history of professional sports, as well as one of the greatest Super Bowl games ever. The Patriots entered the game as 12-point favorites after becoming the first team to complete a perfect regular season since the 1972 Miami Dolphins, and the only one since the league expanded to a 16-game regular season schedule in 1978. The Giants, who finished the regular season with a 10–6 record, were seeking to become the first NFC wild card team to win a Super Bowl, and were also looking for their third Super Bo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Eugene Wilson (American Football)
Eugene W. Wilson, II (born August 17, 1980) is a former American football safety. He played college football at Illinois and was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft. Wilson has also been a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Houston Texans. He earned two Super Bowl rings during his tenure with the Patriots. Early years Wilson attended Merrillville High School in Merrillville, Indiana and lettered in football and basketball. In football, he was a two-time All-State selection and, as a senior, he was named the Conference's Defensive Player of the Year. In basketball, he was a four-year varsity letterman and starter and was a two-time All-Conference selection. College career Wilson attended the University of Illinois where he majored in speech communications. He finished his career with 176 Tackles (139 Solo, 37 Assist), 11 INT, and 60 PD. He also had 93 punt returns for 896 yards and 2 TD. Professional career New England Patri ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2007 New England Patriots Season
The 2007 season was the New England Patriots' 38th in the National Football League (NFL), their 48th overall and their eighth under head coach Bill Belichick. The Patriots improved on their 12–4 record from 2006 and won the AFC East for the sixth time in seven years by winning all 16 of their games. Starting quarterback Tom Brady won the NFL's Most Valuable Player award. They became only the eighth team in NFL history to finish a regular season undefeated, and first to do so since the 1972 Miami Dolphins, as well as only the fourth to finish undefeated and untied. The Patriots were also the first team with a perfect regular season since the NFL expanded its schedule to sixteen games in 1978. Thus, they broke the record for victories in a single regular season that had been shared by the 1984 San Francisco 49ers, the 1985 Chicago Bears, the 1998 Minnesota Vikings, and the 2004 Pittsburgh Steelers, and later tied by the 2011 Green Bay Packers and 2015 Carolina Panthers, who e ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rodney Harrison
Rodney Scott Harrison (born December 15, 1972) is an American former football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons with the San Diego Chargers and New England Patriots. He was selected in the fifth round of the 1994 NFL Draft by the Chargers, where he spent nine seasons. After being released by San Diego, Harrison was a member of the Patriots in his following six seasons. Since leaving the NFL in 2009, he has served as a commentator for NBC's ''Football Night in America''. During his career, Harrison was selected to two Pro Bowls and received first-team All-Pro honors three times. He holds the defensive back record for sacks and was the first NFL player to obtain 30 sacks and 30 interceptions. Harrison participated in four Super Bowls, winning two with the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVIII and Super Bowl XXXIX. In recognition of his accomplishments in San Diego and New England, he was named to the 50th Anniversary Teams of both the Chargers and Pa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2006 New England Patriots Season
The 2006 season was the New England Patriots' 37th in the National Football League (NFL), their 47th overall and their seventh under head coach Bill Belichick. They finished with a 12–4 record and a division title before losing to the Indianapolis Colts in the playoffs. The Patriots entered the season without their two starting wide receivers from 2005; David Givens left in free agency while Deion Branch held out for a new contract before being traded in early September. They were eventually replaced with Reche Caldwell and Jabar Gaffney, who was signed as a street free agent in October. Back-to-back losses in November ended the team's streak of 57 games without consecutive losses, three games shy of the NFL record. The field surface of Gillette Stadium was changed from natural grass to Field Turf in time for the November 26 game against Chicago. With a 12–4 record and their fourth straight division title, the Patriots entered the playoffs as the fourth seed. They defeated ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team plays its home games at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York. Founded in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL), they joined the NFL in 1970 following the AFL–NFL merger. The Bills' name is derived from an All-America Football Conference (AAFC) franchise from Buffalo that was in turn named after western frontiersman Buffalo Bill. Drawing much of its fanbase from Western New York, the Bills are the only NFL team that plays home games in that state. The franchise is owned by Terry and Kim Pegula, who purchased the Bills after the death of original owner Ralph Wilson in 2014. The Bills won consecutive AFL Championships in 1964 and 1965, the only major professional sports championships from a t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2005 New England Patriots Season
The 2005 season was the New England Patriots' 36th in the National Football League (NFL), their 46th overall and their sixth under head coach Bill Belichick. With a Week 6 loss to the Denver Broncos, the Patriots failed to either improve or match their 14–2 record from last season, finishing with a 10–6 record and the division title before losing in the playoffs to the Broncos, ending their hopes of becoming the first NFL team to three peat in the Super Bowl. Ten days after earning a victory in Super Bowl XXXIX, linebacker Tedy Bruschi suffered a stroke and initially planned on missing the entire season; Bruschi returned to the field against the Buffalo Bills on October 30. Cornerback Ty Law was released in the offseason, and injuries at cornerback, as well as a season-ending injury to safety Rodney Harrison in Week 3, forced the Patriots to start a number of players in the secondary early in the season. Overall, injuries caused the Patriots to start 45 different players ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Football Writers Association Of America
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media outlets. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include game day operations, and strives for better working conditions for sports writers in college football press boxes, and deals with access issues to college athletes and coaches. The FWAA also sponsors scholarships for aspiring writers and an annual writing contest. The FWAA is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA. The organization also selects the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year, the Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner, the Outland Trophy winner, a freshman All-America team, and weekly defensive player of the we ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |