Charles Christopher Spielman (born October 11, 1965) 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 wi ...

player and is a special assistant to the owner and CEO for the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at For ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...

(NFL). He played

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pub ...

, where he was a two-time All-American, and for the

in the

(NFL), where he was a three-time All Pro. He also played for the

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 ...

and

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conferenc ...

, and coached for the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

Columbus Destroyers The Columbus Destroyers were an Arena Football League (AFL) team based in Columbus, Ohio, with home games in Nationwide Arena. The team was founded in as the Buffalo Destroyers, based in Buffalo, New York, and relocated to Columbus in . They fol ...

. He was a broadcaster for

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...

and

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

from 1999 to 2020.

Football career

Spielman graduated from Washington High School in

Massillon, Ohio Massillon is a city in Stark County, Ohio, Stark County in the U.S. state of Ohio, approximately west of Canton, Ohio, Canton, south of Akron, and south of Cleveland. The population was 32,146 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Mass ...

, where he was awarded the

Dial Award The Dial Award was presented annually by the Dial Corporation to the male and female American high-school athlete/scholar of the year. Awardees See also *Wendy's High School Heisman The Heisman High School Scholarship in the past kn ...

for the national high-school scholar-athlete of the year in 1983. He was the first high school athlete to have his picture on a box of

Wheaties Wheaties is an American brand of breakfast cereal that is made by General Mills. It is well known for featuring prominent athletes on its packages and has become a cultural icon in the United States. Originally introduced as Washburn's Gold Meda ...

. For college, Spielman initially wanted to attend the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, but his father, a lifelong fan of the

Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...

(Michigan's arch-rival), strongly opposed the idea. Spielman recounted the story in the HBO Documentary "Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry":

My dad said, "Okay, where are you going to go?" I said, "Dad, I want to go to
Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...
." And he said, "You ''traitor''. I'll tell you where you're going. You're going right down 71 South and you're going to play for the
Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...
... Better not go there ichigan Don't ever come home if you do."

Spielman was a two-time All-American at Ohio State, intercepted 11 passes, and won the

Lombardi Award The Rotary Lombardi Award is an award for college football in the United States. Awarded by the Rotary Club of Houston, Texas annually to the college football player "who best embodies the values and spirit of NFL's legendary coach Vince Lomba ...

as the best college football lineman or linebacker. He was the Ohio State football team MVP his senior year and won the Touchdown Club of Columbus's Chic Harley Award. He graduated from Ohio State with a degree in recreation education. In the

1988 NFL Draft The 1988 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 24–25, 1988, at the Marriot Ma ...

, Spielman was drafted in the second round with the 29th overall pick by the

. Spielman played eight seasons with the Lions (1988–95), where he was a defensive stalwart during the team's run to four playoff appearances, two NFC Central titles, and a berth in the 1991 NFC Championship Game. He captained the Lions' defense that was one of the best statistically in the NFL in the mid-1990s. Spielman is the franchise's all-time leader in career tackles with 1,020 (since the team began recording tackles statistically in 1973.) He also recorded 10 sacks, four interceptions, 30 pass defenses, 13 forced fumbles and 17 fumble recoveries during his Lions' career. He was the first Lion to lead the team in tackles seven consecutive seasons since 1973, including the team's highest single-season tally 195 tackles in 1994. Spielman represented the Lions in four Pro Bowls (1990–92, 1995) and was named the team's defensive MVP in 1993 and 1994. He played for the

in 1996 and 1997. His 1997 season was limited because of a neck injury that required spinal surgery. He chose to miss the 1998 season to assist his wife battling cancer. He returned to the NFL in the 1999 season, with the

. He retired before the regular season began, after suffering another neck injury. Spielman is also notable for being one of the players notable

NFL Draft The National Football League Draft, also called the NFL Draft or (officially) the Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. Each team is given a position in the drafting o ...

"guru" Mel Kiper, Jr. has "missed" on, Kiper admitting in a 2001 post that he had underrated the linebacker. In April 2009 Spielman was elected into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vo ...

. His induction came in July 2010. In 2012, he appeared in an episode of the

NFL Network NFL Network (occasionally abbreviated on-air as NFLN) is an American sports-oriented pay television network owned by the National Football League (NFL) and is part of NFL Media, which also includes NFL.com, NFL Films, NFL Mobile, NFL Now and NF ...

show ''

A Football Life ''A Football Life'' is an American documentary series of 116 episodes, developed by NFL Films and aired on NFL Network that documents the lives of select National Football League (NFL) players, coaches, owners, and teams. Friends, teammates, famil ...

''. The episode celebrated his prowess on the field as well as his dedication to his family. On October 21, 2021, the Detroit Lions announced they were inducting Spielman into their "Pride of the Lions" club, which honors the greatest players in their history.

Broadcasting career

Spielman's broadcasting career started in 1999, as an NFL studio-show analyst for

Fox Sports Net Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...

. After two years with FSN, Spielman joined

in 2001. He served primarily as a color analyst for college football broadcasts, as well as studio analyst for college football. Spielman is also a contributor to the

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

-based FM radio station 97.1 The Fan, an

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN ...

affiliate. He previously hosted the show ''Spielman on Sports''. Spielman used to appear every Tuesday afternoon on AM 1270 WXYT, a sports-talk radio station out of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

. Spielman has served as a color analyst for the

during the

NFL preseason The National Football League preseason is the period each year during which NFL teams play several not-for-the-record exhibition games before the actual "regular" season starts. Beginning with the featured Pro Football Hall of Fame game in earl ...

. In 2006, Spielman hosted a reality series on

ESPNU ESPNU is an American multinational digital cable and satellite sports television channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Disney Media Networks division of The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and the He ...

called ''

Summer House A summer house or summerhouse has traditionally referred to a building or shelter used for relaxation in warm weather. This would often take the form of a small, roofed building on the grounds of a larger one, but could also be built in a garden ...

''. In 2016,

announced that Spielman had joined

Fox NFL The ''NFL on Fox'' (also known as ''Fox NFL'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games produced by Fox Sports and televised on the Fox broadcast network. Game coverage is usually preceded by '' Fox NFL Kick ...

coverage as a game analyst alongside veteran play-by-play announcer

Dick Stockton Richard Edward Stokvis (born November 22, 1942), known professionally as Dick Stockton, is an American retired sportscaster. Stockton began his career in Philadelphia, then moved to Pittsburgh, where he worked as the sports director for KDKA-TV. ...

and sideline reporter Kristina Pink. On select weeks, he also teamed up with

Thom Brennaman Thomas Wade Brennaman (born September 12, 1963) is an American television sportscaster. He is the son of former Cincinnati Reds radio sportscaster Marty Brennaman. Broadcasting career After graduating in 1982 from Cincinnati's Anderson High Sch ...

and Charles Davis in a three-man booth.

Coaching career

After the 2000 season, Spielman interviewed for the vacant

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

head coaching position previously held by John Cooper; however, the job eventually went to

Jim Tressel James Patrick Tressel (born December 5, 1952) is an American college football coach and university administrator who is currently the president of Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio. Before becoming an administrator, Tressel was the ...

. In 2005, Spielman coached the

of the

to a 2–14 record.

Executive career

Spielman was hired by the

as special assistant to chairman and president & CEO on December 15, 2020.

Personal life

Spielman and his first wife Stefanie had four children. Stefanie survived four bouts with

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or ...

, during which both she and her husband were active in raising funds for breast cancer research. While undergoing treatment, she lost her hair, prompting Spielman to shave his head in a show of solidarity. Stefanie died on November 19, 2009, after the disease returned for the fifth time. In 2013, Spielman married Carrie Yocom, and adopted her two daughters. The family resides in

Upper Arlington Upper Arlington, often known by its initials U.A., is a city in Franklin County, Ohio, United States, on the northwest side of the Columbus metropolitan area. The Old Arlington neighborhood is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. ...

, a suburb of

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...

. His elder brother is Rick Spielman, former general manager of the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...

. His son Noah played football for

Wheaton College Wheaton College may refer to: * Wheaton College (Illinois), a private Christian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois * Wheaton College (Massachusetts) Wheaton College is a private liberal arts college in Norton, Massachus ...

,Noah Spielman Bio - Wheaton Football
/ref> while his nephew J.D. currently plays football for TCU. His daughter Macy will be playing basketball in 2021-22 for Ashland University.

References

15. https://goashlandeagles.com/news/2021/6/8/womens-basketball-womens-basketball-adds-former-bg-guard-spielman-to-roster.aspx

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spielman, Chris 1965 births Living people All-American college football players American football linebackers Buffalo Bills players Cleveland Browns players College football announcers College Football Hall of Fame inductees Columbus Destroyers coaches Detroit Lions announcers Detroit Lions players National Conference Pro Bowl players National Football League announcers Ohio State Buckeyes football players Players of American football from Canton, Ohio Sportspeople from Canton, Ohio