Geoffrey Thomas Hangartner (born April 22, 1982) 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 ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

for 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 ...

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 ...

(NFL). He was drafted by the Panthers in the fifth round of the

2005 NFL Draft The 2005 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 NFL draft, draft was held April 23–24, 2005 NFL seaso ...

. 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 ...

at Texas A&M. He played both the center and

positions. Hangartner 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. ...

Early years

Hangartner attended

New Braunfels High School New Braunfels High School (commonly referred to as NBHS) is a public high school in New Braunfels, Texas, United States, that was established in 1845. Up until 2008, New Braunfels was one of the largest 4A high schools in Texas and is classified ...

in New Braunfels, Texas and was a student and a letterman in football. In football, he helped lead his team to two state playoff appearances, and as a senior, was a first-team All-District choice and a second-team All-State selection.

College career

Hangartner started 36 consecutive games at center and

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

for Texas A&M. As a senior in 2004, Hangartner moved from center to tackle, where he started all 12 contests. He was also a first-team All- Big 12 choice and was selected to play in the Hula Bowl. In the spring of 2004, Hangartner and a teammate were suspended from the team following Hangartner's arrest for

driving while intoxicated Driving under the influence (DUI)—also called driving while impaired, impaired driving, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, operating while intoxicated (OWI), operating under the influence (OUI), operating vehicle under the infl ...

. Witnesses said that racial slurs had been yelled from Hangartner's vehicle toward another car. Hangartner denied issuing any racial slurs and later took a polygraph backed up his assertions.

Professional career

Carolina Panthers

Hangartner was selected in the fifth round of the

by the Panthers. He reportedly scored 47 (out of a possible 50) on the

Wonderlic Personnel Test The Wonderlic Contemporary Cognitive Ability Test (formerly Wonderlic Personnel Test) is an assessment used to measure the cognitive ability and problem-solving aptitude of prospective employees for a range of occupations. It is a proprietary ...

administered during the 2005

NFL Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footba ...

. Although he spent the entire 2005 season backing up Jeff Mitchell appearing sparingly on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

, and as a reserve on the offensive line, he took over the starting position in the

2006 NFL season The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League. Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006. The season began with the reigning Super Bowl XL champion Pittsburgh defeating the Miami in t ...

after starter

Justin Hartwig Justin Hartwig (born November 21, 1978) is a former American football center who played in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the sixth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at Kansas. Hartwi ...

went down with an injured groin muscle.

Buffalo Bills

Hangartner was signed by the

on February 28, 2009, to a four-year contract worth about $10 million. He became their starting center, replacing the tandem of

Melvin Fowler Melvin Thaddeus Fowler, Jr. (born March 31, 1979) is a former American football center. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at Maryland. Fowler has been a member of the Minne ...

and

Duke Preston Raymond Newton Preston III (born June 12, 1982, in San Diego, California) is a former American football center for the Buffalo Bills and Dallas Cowboys. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played coll ...

. That year, he started all 16 games at center for a team with won-lost record of 6-10, most of them between two rookies: left

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

Andy Levitre Andrew Steven Levitre ( ; born May 15, 1986) is a former American football offensive guard. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round, 51st overall in the 2009 NFL Draft, and has also played for the Tennessee Titans and Atlanta Fal ...

and right guard

Eric Wood Eric Wood (born March 18, 1986) is a former American football center. He played college football at the University of Louisville and was drafted in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft (28th overall) by the Buffalo Bills of the National Footba ...

. In 2010, the same trio started up the middle, but the Bills were going downhill at 4-12, scoring only 283 points (17.7 points/game), 28th of 32 teams in the NFL. In 2011, the Bills opted for youth, replacing Hangartner with Wood. Hangartner was released on September 3, 2011.

Second stint with the Panthers

On September 5, 2011, Hangartner was signed for a second time by the Carolina Panthers. He started all 16 games in

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

at right guard—next to All-Pro center Ryan Kalil—and was instrumental in the Panthers' resurgence as a potent offense, with rookie Cam Newton at quarterback. He started 12 games in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, including eight at center to fill in for an injured Kalil. For the 2013 season, Hangartner was expected to move back to his starting right guard spot next to a healthy Kalil. However, on August 1, 2013—during training camp—Hangartner was released by the Panthers, as they chose instead to focus on their younger linemen.

Third stint with the Panthers

On November 5, 2013, the Panthers re-signed Hangartner after a three-month absence to help with injuries on the offensive line. Hangartner announced his retirement on March 11, 2014.Carolina Panthers guard/center Geoff Hangartner says he’s retiring

References

External links

Carolina Panthers bioBuffalo Bills bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hangartner, Geoff 1982 births Living people People from New Braunfels, Texas Sportspeople from New Braunfels, Texas Players of American football from Houston Players of American football from San Antonio American football centers American football offensive guards Texas A&M Aggies football players Carolina Panthers players Buffalo Bills players