Rhondy Weston (born June 7, 1966) is a former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

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) for the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

. 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 the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

. The

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

selected him in the third round of the

1989 NFL Draft The 1989 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 23–24, 1989, at the Marriott Marq ...

Early years

Weston was born in

Belle Glade, Florida Belle Glade is a city in south-central Florida and it is the far western part of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States, on the southeastern shore of Lake Okeechobee. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 17,467. Bel ...

. He attended

Glades Central High School Glades Central Community High School is a high school located in Belle Glade, Florida. In the 2014–15 school year its enrollment numbered 992 students. It is known for having one of the best high school football teams in the nation, with more foo ...

, where he played

for the Glades Central Raiders. As a senior, he was recognized as a high school All-American. One of his teammates was future

NFL 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 major ...

player

Louis Oliver Louis Oliver, III (born March 9, 1966) is an American former college and professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. Oliver played college football for the ...

College career

Weston accepted a football scholarship from the

, and played for head coach

Galen Hall Galen Samuel Hall (born August 14, 1940) is a retired American college and professional football coach and player. He is a native of Pennsylvania, and an alumnus of Penn State University, where he played college football. Hall was previously t ...

Florida Gators football The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of ...

team from

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

. As a freshman, he was a backup and had 2 sacks in the third game of the season against

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Unive ...

. The next year he was named the starter at right defensive tackle and posted 96 tackles, including a season-high 15 tackles against the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

. As a junior in 1987, he was a first-team All-SEC selection and an honorable-mention All-American, after finishing the year with 54 tackles, 14 tackles for loss (second on the team) and 6 sacks (second on the team), although he played the final four games with a broken jaw he suffered in a nightclub fight. He was a part of a defense that was third in the nation in pass defense (123.6 yards per game), fourth in total defense (247.8) and recorded back-back shutouts for the first time in school history since 1956. As a senior, Weston was part of a dominant

defensive line 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 ...

, along with

Trace Armstrong Raymond Lester "Trace" Armstrong III (born October 5, 1965), is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for fifteen seasons from the late 1980s to the early 2000s. He played ...

and Jeff Roth. He suffered injuries in the preseason that kept him from starting 2 of the season's first 5 games. He returned against

, tallying 4 tackles (2 for loss), 2 passes defensed and his only career interception. Against

Memphis State University } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

, he had a season-high 10 tackles, one sack and one forced fumble. He finished the year with 49 tackles, 15 tackles for loss (led the team), 10 sacks (led the team), 5 passes defensed, one forced fumble, was a second-team All-SEC selection and an honorable-mention All-American.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Weston was selected by the

in the third round (68th overall pick) of the

. After having a disappointing training camp, he was waived on August 29 and replaced with

Dean Hamel Dean Edward Hamel (born July 7, 1961) is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at the University of Tulsa and was drafted in the ...

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

, Weston was claimed by the

and eventually released on September 4. He was signed to the team's practice squad on September 6. He was promoted to the active roster during the regular season and played in twelve games, with two starts, at

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. He had two quarterback sacks and a fumble recovery.

Cleveland Browns

On March 8,

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

, Weston signed with the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

as a

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 ...

, but suffered a right knee injury and was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

on September 8. He never fully recovered and was waived injured on August 19,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

Personal life

Weston mother died in a car accident when he was a junior in college. He donated one of his kidneys to childhood friend Tommy Duhart, who had battled severe diabetes. He later returned to Gainesville and completed his bachelor's degree in health and human performance, graduating from the University of Florida in 2010.

References

Bibliography

* Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). . * Golenbock, Peter, ''Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory'', Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). . * Hairston, Jack, ''Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told'', Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). . * McCarthy, Kevin M.,
Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football
', Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). . * Nash, Noel, ed., ''The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football'', Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). . {{DEFAULTSORT:Weston, Rhondy 1966 births Living people People from Belle Glade, Florida Sportspeople from the Miami metropolitan area Players of American football from Florida American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Florida Gators football players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Cleveland Browns players