Louis Nicholas Vasquez (born April 11, 1987) is an American former professional

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player who was a

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in the

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(NFL). 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 ...

for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, and was selected by 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 ...

in the third round of the

2009 NFL Draft The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. T ...

Early life

Vasquez is of

Mexican American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

descent. He attended

Corsicana High School Corsicana Independent School District is a public school district based in Corsicana, Texas, United States. In addition to Corsicana, the district serves the central Navarro County towns of Angus, Mustang, Oak Valley, Retreat, and Richland. ...

Corsicana, Texas Corsicana is a city in Navarro County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 45, 56 miles northeast of Waco, Texas. The population was 23,770 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Navarro County, and an important Agri-busines ...

, a rural town located approx. 60 miles southeast of Dallas.

College career

College awards and honors

*2007 All- Big 12 honorable mention *2008 All-Big 12 second-team *2008

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second-team All-American *2008

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third-team All-American

Professional career

San Diego Chargers

At the 2009

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 ...

, Vasquez bench pressed 225 pounds 39 times. His 39 repetitions were the highest of any participant at the combine. Vasquez was drafted in the third round (78th overall) by the

. During the Chargers' training camp, Vasquez competed for the right guard starting position with veteran

Kynan Forney Kynan Lerrol Forney (born September 8, 1978) is a former American football player. He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the seventh round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at Hawaii. He also played for the San Diego Chargers. ...

. Vasquez won the job, and Forney (who was dealing with a neck injury at the time) was later released from the team. Vasquez became the sole rookie in the starting lineup. he remained at right guard during his tenure with San Diego

Denver Broncos

Vasquez signed a four-year contract with the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

on March 12, 2013. Vasquez was selected to be in the 2014 Pro Bowl after not allowing a single sack in 2013. He could not play due to the Broncos’ appearance in Super Bowl XLVIII. On February 7, 2016, Vasquez was part of the Broncos team that won Super Bowl 50. In the game, the Broncos defeated 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 ...

by a score of 24–10. Vasquez was released by the team on March 8, 2016. After Vasquez's release, '' The Denver Post'' published a story that explained, "Vasquez, 28, was the Broncos' starter at right guard for the past three seasons. He was released to save the team salary cap space. The Broncos did not approach him about restructuring his contract. Vasquez was an All-Pro in 2013, but over the past two seasons, struggled with nagging injuries and shifting positions. His power blocking prowess was not a great fit in Broncos coach Gary Kubiak's zone blocking scheme."

References

External links

Denver Broncos bio

San Diego Chargers bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vasquez, Louis 1987 births Living people People from Corsicana, Texas American football offensive guards American football offensive tackles Texas Tech Red Raiders football players San Diego Chargers players Denver Broncos players Unconferenced Pro Bowl players American sportspeople of Mexican descent Players of American football from Texas