Gordon Carl "Gordie" Lockbaum
(born November 16, 1965) is an American former
college football player, who was a standout "two-way" (both offensive and defensive) player in
NCAA Division I-AA
The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athleti ...
.
College career
Lockbaum was raised in
Glassboro, New Jersey
Glassboro is a borough in Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the borough's population was 18,579,[Glassboro High School
Glassboro High School is a comprehensive community public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Glassboro, in Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the sole secondary school of the Glassbor ...]
where he competed in football, baseball, and wrestling; he graduated in 1984.
Lockbaum attended the
College of the Holy Cross in
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
, from 1984 to 1988, where he played
wide receiver and
halfback on offense,
defensive back on defense, and was a
kick returner
A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...
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 ...
.
Lockbaum was a starting
cornerback
A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...
during his freshman season, and moved to
strong safety as a sophomore. Before his junior season, the Holy Cross coaching staff (head coach
Mark Duffner
Mark Duffner (born July 19, 1953) is an American football coach who is currently a senior defensive assistant for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). Duffner served as the head coach of the Maryland Terrapins football ...
, offensive coordinate
Tom Rossley
Tom Rossley (born August 9, 1946) is a former American football coach and player. He was the head football coach at Southern Methodist University (SMU) from 1991 to 1996, compiling a record of 15–48–3.
Coaching career Early career
Rossley sta ...
, and defensive coordinator
Kevin Coyle
Kevin Coyle (born January 14, 1956) is an American football coach who is currently the defensive coordinator at Fresno State. Prior to that, Coyle was a senior analyst at LSU. He served as head coach of the Atlanta Legends of the Alliance of Amer ...
) decided to use Lockbaum on both offense and defense. He became the first two-way player since
Leroy Keyes
Marvin Leroy Keyes (February 18, 1947 – April 15, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a running back and safety for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chie ...
of
Purdue in 1968.
In Lockbaum's junior season of 1986, he rushed for 827 yards on 144 carries, caught 57 passes for 860 yards, and scored 22 touchdowns on offense; on defense he had 46 tackles, two fumble recoveries, and one interception; on special teams he returned 21 kickoffs for 452 yards.
[ In a game against Dartmouth he scored six touchdowns, and in a game against ]Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
he was on the field for 143 of 171 total plays. He was named WTBS college football player of the year,Maxwell Award
The Maxwell Award is presented annually to the college football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best al ...
voting,[ and was runner-up for the inaugural ]Walter Payton Award
The Walter Payton Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding offensive player in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) of college football as chosen by a nationwide panel of media and college sports ...
(Division I-AA player of the year). After the conclusion of the regular season, Lockbaum was selected for three all-star games; the Senior Bowl
The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game played annually in late January or early February in Mobile, Alabama, which showcases the best NFL Draft prospects of those players who have completed their college eligibility. Pr ...
, the East–West Shrine Game, and the Blue–Gray Football Classic
The Blue–Gray Football Classic was an annual American college football all-star game held in Alabama, usually in late December and often on Christmas Day. The brainchild of Alabama college football legend Champ Pickens, the contest began in ...
. He appeared in all three games, seeing the most action in the Shrine Game, where he played five positions (cornerback, free safety, strong safety, fullback, and wide receiver).
Lockbaum was a two-time First Team All-America selection (1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
**Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal enter ...
and 1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
) as a defensive back. He still holds several Holy Cross offensive records, including most touchdowns in a season and most points in a season (22 and 132, respectively, accomplished in both 1986 and 1987). Lockbaum was inducted into the Glassboro High School Hall of Fame in 1989,[ the Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1993, the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001,][ and the ECAC Hall of Fame in 2017.
]
Professional career
Lockbaum was selected 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 ...
by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the ninth round, and played for them during the preseason as a running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball,
and block. Ther ...
, but was released by the team in August of that year. In 1989, he was signed by the Buffalo Bills, who moved him to safety
Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.
Meanings
There are two slightly dif ...
, but he was again released before the start of the regular season. In 1994, he played briefly for the Massachusetts Marauders
The Massachusetts Marauders were a professional arena football team that was based in Worcester, Massachusetts. They were a member of the Arena Football League (AFL) from 1988 to 1994. The team was established in Detroit in 1988, as the Detroit D ...
of 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 ...
.
Personal life
Lockbaum received a degree in economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...
from Holy Cross, and became an executive for an insurance company. His son, also nicknamed Gordie,[ played ]shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...
in the 2002 Little League World Series for the Worcester team that reached the US championship game, and later attended Amherst College where he was a defensive back on the football team.
References
Further reading
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External links
30 for 30 Shorts: The Throwback
at ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc.
History
Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...
Gordie Lockbaum Interview by Charter TV3 Central Mass.
at YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lockbaum, Gordie
1965 births
Living people
Glassboro High School alumni
People from Glassboro, New Jersey
Players of American football from New Jersey
Players of American football from Pennsylvania
Sportspeople from Gloucester County, New Jersey
Holy Cross Crusaders football players
College Football Hall of Fame inductees
Massachusetts Marauders players
College of the Holy Cross alumni