Frank LyDale Minnifield (born January 1, 1960) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

for the

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 Conference ( ...

in 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 ...

(NFL) from 1984 to 1992.

High school career

Minnifield attended Henry Clay High School in Lexington, Kentucky.

College career

Considered too small for college football at just 5'9" and 140 pounds, he walked on to the football team at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

, earning a scholarship spot for his final three years. As a junior in 1981, he led the nation in average yards per kickoff return (30.4) and led his team in punt returns.

Professional career

After graduation in 1982, Minnifield joined the Chicago Blitz (later the

Arizona Wranglers The Arizona Wranglers were a professional American Football team in the United States Football League that, name-wise, existed from late 1982 to mid-1985. They played at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe, a su ...

) of the USFL. He successfully sued the Wranglers for the right to move to the

NFL 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 major ...

, and signed as a free agent with the Browns in 1984. Minnifield became a fixture at cornerback for Cleveland and was named to the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

four straight years from 1986 to 1989. Known for his aggressive bump-and-run coverage and hard hitting style, he was named to the

NFL 1980s All-Decade Team The NFL 1980s All-Decade Team was chosen by voters of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The team was composed of outstanding performers in the National Football League in the 1980s. The squad consists of first- and second-team offensive, defensive and ...

as selected by voters of the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...

. He and fellow cornerback Hanford Dixon named the

Dawg Pound The Dawg Pound is the name of the bleacher section behind the east end zone in FirstEnergy Stadium, the home field of the Cleveland Browns, a National Football League (NFL) franchise based in Cleveland, Ohio. Formation According to Hanford Dixon, ...

cheering section at Cleveland Stadium.

Personal

Upon retirement, Minnifield founded Minnifield All-Pro Homes, a homebuilding company in Lexington. In 1993, he became the first African American executive named to the Lexington

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Board, and as of 2000, he was the only African American home builder in Lexington. Minnifield's son,

Chase Chase or CHASE may refer to: Businesses * Chase Bank, a national bank based in New York City, New York * Chase Aircraft (1943–1954), a defunct American aircraft manufacturing company * Chase Coaches, a defunct bus operator in England * Chase Co ...

, played in the NFL as a cornerback for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

References

External links