George Koonce (born October 15, 1968) is an American athlete and

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and ...

. A former

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, p ...

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), he served as the

at the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a public urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and a member of the University of Wiscons ...

between 2009 and 2010.

Playing career

Atlanta Falcons

Koonce was signed 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 ...

by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

out of the

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university, public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina. Founded on March 8, 1907, as a Normal school, teacher training school, East ...

, but was waived during the preseason.

WLAF Ohio Glory

Koonce started at linebacker for the World League's Ohio Glory in 1992.

Green Bay Packers

He was then signed by 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 ...

before the 1992 season. He played for the Packers from 1992–1999. He was an eight-year starter as the Packers returned to dominance, starting 102 of 112 games. He played all three linebacker positions with the Packers and, although not on the game day roster, traveled with the team when they won Super Bowl XXXI.

Seattle Seahawks

He was signed by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

as an

unrestricted 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 ...

before the 2000 season, and started all 16 games. After the 2000 season he retired with 720 tackles, 9 sacks, and 5 interceptions in 128 games (118 starts).

NFL statistics

Post-playing career

He was inducted into the National Junior College Hall of Fame in 2000 and also the hall of fame at

. In 1999, he founded the George Koonce Sr. Foundation to provide underprivileged children with educational, athletic, artistic and social opportunities which assist their development. Koonce's post-career ambitions have been centered around the world of academics. Earning his Master's in Sports Management from

and Ph.D. from

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Henni, John Martin ...

(one of only two players in Packers 100-year history to earn a PhD), Koonce has affectionately become known as “The Doctor of Defense.” He is a member of the NFL Player Engagement Advisory Board and has co-authored a book entitled Is There Life After Football? – Surviving the NFL. Currently, he serves as Senior Vice President of the Office of University Relations at Marian University in Fond du Lac,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

where he provides leadership and strategic direction while being responsible for growing awareness and increasing philanthropic support for the university through community and alumni engagement. Koonce also serves as an on-air personality at Green Bay's CBS affiliate for “Backstage with George Koonce,” and “Locker Room".

East Carolina University

He spent of two years as an Assistant Athletic Director for Development, assisting with fundraising and marketing of the department. He also earned his master's degree in Sport Management in 2006 from ECU.

Green Bay Packers

He served in the Packers front office as the Director of Player Development for the Green Bay Packers for the 2006 season. Koonce currently serves on the Packers Board of Directors.

Marquette University

He served as the Senior Associate Director of Athletics at

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

. He was responsible for fundraising, major gifts, community relations, and student welfare. He joined the Golden Eagles in 2007. He also pursued his Ph.D. in Sport Administration while at Marquette.

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee

He was introduced as the new

Director of Athletics on March 17, 2009, and began his duties on April 1. He was placed on

administrative leave Administrative leave is a temporary leave from a job assignment, with pay and benefits intact. Generally, the term is reserved for employees of non-business institutions such as schools, police, and hospitals. The definition of administrative leav ...

in April 2010, and his resignation was announced on June 2, 2010. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported, "Koonce's resignation was related to the death of Koonce's wife, Tunisia, who died of cancer last October" and that "the death of Koonce's wife put (him) in the position of being the principal caretaker for his two children, ages 3 and 12."

Marian University

In 2014, Koonce was hired as the Vice-President of Advancement at Marian University in

Fond du Lac, Wisconsin Fond du Lac () is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 44,678 at the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the United States Census Bureau's Fond du Lac United States metrop ...

. The university described his job duties as "growing awareness and increasing philanthropic support" within the region.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koonce, George 1968 births Living people American football linebackers Chowan Hawks football players East Carolina Pirates football players Green Bay Packers players Ohio Glory players Milwaukee Panthers athletic directors Seattle Seahawks players Sportspeople from New Bern, North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina