Bradley R. Hoover (born November 11, 1976) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

fullback. He was signed by the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2000. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Western Carolina Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...

Early years

Hoover was a Shrine Bowl participant and an all-state selection at

Ledford Senior High School Ledford High School is a public high school in Thomasville, North Carolina. It is part of the Davidson County Schools system and serves parts of Thomasville, Wallburg, High Point, Winston-Salem, and Kernersville areas. Administration *Princip ...

Thomasville, North Carolina Thomasville is a city in Davidson County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 27,183 at the 2020 census. The city was once notable for its furniture industry, as were its neighbors High Point and Lexington. This Piedmont Triad comm ...

. He led the state with 2,662 yards rushing and scored 34

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s as a senior. He earned

Davidson County, North Carolina Davidson County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 168,930. Its county seat is Lexington, and its largest city is Thomasville. Davidson County is included in the Winston-Salem, ...

and Central Carolina Conference Player of the Year honors.

College career

Hoover made a big impact at

Western Carolina University Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...

being second all-time in school history in career yards. Hoover exploded his

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959 * ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009 * ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010 * ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019 Films * ''Junior'' (1994 ...

season by setting a school rushing record with 1,663 yards, scoring 13

s in the process. He earned first-team All-

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...

honors as a result. His senior year, he followed up with 1,025 yards and 12 touchdowns, good enough for second-team All-SoCon. He became only the second player in school history to post back-to-back 1,000 rushing yard seasons. His 3,616 career yards are good enough for second all-time in school history, and his 28 touchdowns place him fifth on the list. He is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity at Western and has contributed greatly to charitable causes in the Piedmont of North Carolina. In 2008, Hoover was inducted by Western Carolina University into the school's Athletics Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Carolina Panthers

Hoover went

undrafted In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in the

2000 NFL Draft The 2000 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur U.S. college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 15– 16, 2000, at the Thea ...

; he was later signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the

. After a foot injury sidelined starting running back Tshimanga Biakabutuka, Hoover got two starts at tailback, including a ''

Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, AB ...

'' game against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

where he became only the second rookie in team history to post a 100-yard game ( Fred Lane was the first). After switching to fullback for his second season, he became the full-time starter in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

. He caught two passes for touchdowns that season, the first touchdown receptions of his career. During the Panthers run to

Super Bowl XXXVIII Super Bowl XXXVIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Carolina Panthers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) c ...

, he was the primary blocker for Stephen Davis, allowing Davis to rush for a team record 1,444 yards.

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

saw Hoover miss the first game of his career due to injury, as he sat out several games with an injured hip. However, he still managed to contribute on offense, catching two touchdown passes and rushing for 246 yards. On March 8, 2010, Hoover was released by the Panthers.

After football

In March 2013 Hoover was hired as the head football coach of Union Academy, a charter school in Monroe, North Carolina. In January 2014, Hoover was named the head football coach at

Marvin Ridge High School Marvin Ridge High School (commonly Marvin, Marvin Ridge, or MRHS) is a public high school in Marvin, North Carolina, USA serving students in grades 9–12. The school is part of the Union County Public School system. The school occupies a two- ...

, also in Union County. He also served as the head football coach at

Cannon School Cannon School is an independent, nonsectarian, college preparatory institution serving students in junior kindergarten through grade 12. The school enrolled approximately 1040 students for the 2022–2023 school year. Cannon School is located in ...

, an independent school in Concord, North Carolina.

Career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

External links

Carolina Panthers bio

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoover, Brad 1976 births Living people People from Thomasville, North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina American football fullbacks Western Carolina Catamounts football players Carolina Panthers players Western Carolina University alumni