John Kendall Cowne (born May 23, 1962) is a former American football center who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins during the

1987 NFL season The 1987 NFL season was the 68th regular season of the National Football League. This season featured games predominantly played by replacement players, as the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) players were on strike from ...

. 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 Virginia Tech.

Career

He attended

Brentsville District High School Brentsville District High School, commonly known as Brentsville, is a public high school in Nokesville, Virginia, Nokesville in unincorporated Prince William County, Virginia, Prince William County, Virginia, United States, and part of Prince ...

and played

at Virginia Tech during the early 1980s. Cowne briefly made it to the National Football League (NFL) with the Washington Redskins. He was on the team's roster in 1987, playing weeks four to six as one of the replacement players hired during the 1987 players' strike. Due to the playoff success of the Redskins after rosters were restored, Cowne and other replacement players received bonus checks for their contributions towards the Redskins win. Although a center, he was primarily a long snapper on special teams. Cowne was only the third Hokie to play for the Redskins when signed in 1987. He had previously gone to training camp for the 1987 season with the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

, before being waived at the end of preseason. Cowne is currently employed by Loudoun County Public Schools, working at C.S. Monroe Technology Center. In addition to teaching, Cowne is a football coach at

Woodgrove High School Woodgrove High School is a public secondary school in Purcellville, Virginia. It serves grades 9-12 for Loudoun County Public Schools. History Woodgrove High School opened at the start of the 2010-11 school year to relieve overcrowding at Lou ...

Purcellville, Virginia Purcellville is a town in Loudoun County, Virginia. The population was 8,929 according to the 2020 Census. Purcellville is the major population center for Western Loudoun and the Loudoun Valley. Many of the older structures remaining in Purcellvil ...

. In 2011, his NFL jersey was added to the "Coaches Corner" Wall of Fame, a popular restaurant in Purcellville. In March 2018, he received a Super Bowl ring at a ceremony in Redskins Park.

References

1962 births Living people Players of American football from Fairfax County, Virginia American football centers Virginia Tech Hokies football players Washington Redskins players American football long snappers People from Purcellville, Virginia Players of American football from Loudoun County, Virginia National Football League replacement players {{offensive-lineman-1960s-stub