Stephen Spach
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Stephen Joseph Spach (born July 18, 1982) is a former
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...
who played 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 ...
. He was signed by the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
of 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 ...
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 ...
in 2005. 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
Fresno State California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...
. Spach was also a member of the
Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
,
New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
,
Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...
,
St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...
, and
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
.


Early years

Spach attended Clovis High School and was a letterman in football and basketball. In football, he helped lead his team to a 12-1 record, a Tri-River Athletic Conference Championship and a Central Section Championship as a senior (1999 season). Spach walked-on as a freshman (finally earning a scholarship as a redshirt sophomore) at
California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...
and contributed to four winning seasons under Head Coach Pat Hill (2001-2004). During that stretch the
Bulldogs The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.2004 MPC Computers Bowl on the final play of his senior season, Spach caught the game-winning 25-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Paul Pinegar on the Bulldogs' first offensive play in overtime. He played both the Tight End and Fullback positions throughout his time at Fresno State. Spach earned his degree in Recreation Administration, finishing his studies with an internship with Progressive Sports Conditioning in Fresno, CA.


Professional career


Philadelphia Eagles

Following the NFL Draft in 2005, Spach was signed to a 3-year contract as an undrafted free agent with the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
. He entered training camp in Lehigh at the bottom of the tight end depth chart, but impressed enough in camp and in the preseason to solidify a position on the 53-man regular season roster behind starter
L.J. Smith John Smith III (born May 13, 1980), commonly known as L. J., which stands for "Little John", is a former American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of the 2003 ...
. Spach contributed primarily in a blocking role at tight end and fullback, as well as on special teams throughout the season. A foot injury in a division game against the Washington Redskins midway through the season sidelined Spach three games, and allowed for the return of tight end
Chad Lewis Chad Wayne Lewis (born October 5, 1971) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Rams. Early life Lewis grew up in Orem, Utah and played football and ran track at Or ...
to the Eagles roster. Upon returning to the game roster, Spach contributed mainly at fullback and on special teams through the remainder of the Eagles disappointing 2005 season. After the 2006 preseason, Spach was released by the Eagles as part of the final roster cut. He was out of football for the entire 2006 NFL season.


Minnesota Vikings

Spach signed a future contract with the Minnesota Vikings in January 2007 and joined the team in March for offseason training. An overflow of tight ends on the roster (including the newly signed Visanthe Shiancoe) contributed to Spach's eventual release, again on the final roster cut in September following the 2007 NFL preseason.


New England Patriots

He was signed by the New England Patriots to a 2-year contract in December 2007. He played in the final three games of the Patriots historic 16-0 regular season, contributing mainly as a blocking tight end and on special teams. He also saw action in the AFC Championship Game victory over the San Diego Chargers on January 20, 2008, but was listed among the team's 8 inactive players for the Super Bowl XLII loss to the New York Giants in Arizona. In 2008, Spach made the regular season roster for New England and saw action in the first two weeks of the season (both victories), before being released September 15, 2008.


Arizona Cardinals

Six weeks later, Spach was signed to a contract with the Arizona Cardinals on October 28, 2008. He played varying roles for the Cardinals throughout the remaining 9 regular-season games, but only caught 2 receptions totaling 15 yards in the regular season. In the Cardinals first round home playoff win over the Atlanta Falcons Spach had 3 receptions, including a 24-yard first down catch from Kurt Warner late in the 4th quarter on third down and 16 that allowed Arizona to kneel the ball for the victory. A week later Spach suffered a torn ACL in the 4th quarter of Arizona's divisional playoff win against the Carolina Panthers. He was placed on injured reserve and was unable to play in the following NFC Championship and Super Bowl XLIII. He was re-signed by the Cardinals to a 1-year contract in March 2009 and remained on the roster the entire 2009 season, mainly contributing in a reserve role as a blocker and on special teams, totaling 4 catches for 38 yards on the season. In March 2010 he was signed by the Cardinals to another 1-year deal and played in 15 games, starting 11. He finished the season with 7 receptions for 40 yards. On January 2, 2011 during warm-ups before the final 2010 regular season game in San Francisco, Spach tore a calf muscle and was unable to play. He signed again with Arizona for the 2011 season, following the NFL Lockout. He was signed to a 1-year contract but was released after the preseason on September 4, 2011. He signed with the St. Louis Rams the following day.


St. Louis Rams

On September 5, 2011, he was signed by the
St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...
. He saw action in 10 regular season games at both the tight end and fullback positions.


Jacksonville Jaguars

Spach was signed by the
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
on September 10, 2012. He was released on September 19, 2012.


Personal life

Spach resides in Clovis, California with his wife and sons.


References


External links


Arizona Cardinals bioNew England Patriots bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spach, Stephen 1982 births Living people Sportspeople from Fresno, California Players of American football from California American football tight ends American football fullbacks Fresno State Bulldogs football players Philadelphia Eagles players Minnesota Vikings players New England Patriots players Arizona Cardinals players St. Louis Rams players Jacksonville Jaguars players