|
Mike Wagner
Michael Robert Wagner (born June 22, 1949) is an American former professional football player who was a safety for 10 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Western Illinois Leathernecks. He won four Super Bowls with the Steelers as a member of their famed Steel Curtain defense. Playing career Born in Waukegan, Illinois, Wagner graduated in 1967 from Carmel High School in Mundelein. He played college football at Western Illinois University in Macomb, earning NAIA All-American status in 1969. He was added to the Western Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame in 1976. Wagner was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 11th round of the 1971 NFL draft, the 268th overall selection. First looked at as a wide receiver on offense, he was soon switched to defense as a safety. Wagner tied for the NFL lead with eight interceptions in 1973, appeared in the 1975 and 1976 Pro Bowls and recorded 36 career interceptions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Safety (American Football Position)
Safety (S), historically known as a safetyman, is a position in gridiron football on the American football positions#Defense, defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety (FS) and the strong safety (SS). Their duties depend on the defensive scheme. The defensive responsibilities of the safety and cornerback usually involve pass coverage towards the middle and sidelines of the field. While American (11-player) formations generally use two safeties, Canadian (12-player) formations generally have one safety and two Halfback (Canadian football), defensive halfbacks, a position not used in the American game. As professional and college football have become more focused on the passing game, safeties have become more involved in covering the Eligible receiver, eligible pass receivers.Safeties are the last line of defense; they are expected to be reliable tacklers, and many ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1976 Pro Bowl
The 1976 Pro Bowl was the NFL's 26th annual all-star game which featured the outstanding performers from the 1975 season. The game was played on Monday night, January 26, 1976, at the new Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, with 32,108 in attendance. The final score was NFC 23, AFC 20. It was also the first Pro Bowl game played indoors. The game featured the best players in the National Football League as selected by the league's coaches. John Madden of the Oakland Raiders led the AFC team against an NFC team led by Los Angeles Rams head coach Chuck Knox. The AFC's Billy "White Shoes" Johnson was named the game's MVP on the strength of a 90-yard punt return touchdown and a second punt return of 55 yards that set up a field goal. The referee was Fred Silva. Players on the winning NFC team received $2,000 apiece while the AFC participants each took home $1,500. Rosters The 40-man Pro Bowl squads consisted of the following players: Offense Defense Spec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Western Illinois Leathernecks
The Western Illinois Leathernecks are the teams and athletes that represent Western Illinois University, located in Macomb, Illinois, in NCAA Division I sports. The school is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. Its football team is a member of the Division I FCS (formerly Division I-AA) OVC–Big South Football Association. Previously Western Illinois was a member of the Summit League, with its football team playing in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). On May 12, 2023 the school announced its departure from the Summit League to become a full member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) in most sports beginning seven weeks subsequent on July 1. Two Leathernecks teams played outside the OVC in the fall 2023 season before joining the rest of the school's teams in the OVC in 2024—the football team in the MVFC, and the men's soccer team in the Summit League. History and nickname WIU's nickname, the Leathernecks, and its mascot, the English bulldog, are taken fro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steel Curtain
The Steel Curtain was the nickname, first for the defensive line, but soon for the entire defensive unit of the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers football team of the National Football League (NFL). The line was the backbone of the Steelers dynasty, which won four Super Bowls ( IX, X, XIII, and XIV) in six years. The Steelers began their 1976 season 1–4 and lost their quarterback, Terry Bradshaw. For the nine games remaining in the season, the Steelers recorded five shutouts (three of them uninterrupted), and only allowed two touchdowns (both in a single game), and five field goals. The defense allowed an average 3.1 points per game and the team had an average margin of victory of 22 points. Eight of the Steelers' starting eleven defensive players were selected for the Pro Bowl that year, and four would be selected to the Hall of Fame. Lineup The Steel Curtain included: * No. 75 "Mean" Joe Greene – defensive tackle 1969–1981, 4-time Super Bowl champion ( IX, X, XIII, XI ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Super Bowls
The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the exception of the Pro Bowl between the 1967 and 2009 seasons), superseding the History of the National Football League championship, NFL Championship Game. Since Super Bowl LVI, 2022, the game has been played on the second Sunday in February. Prior Super Bowls were played on Sundays in early to mid-January from 1967 to 1978, late January from 1979 to 2003, and the first Sunday of February from 2004 to 2021. Winning teams are awarded the Vince Lombardi Trophy, named after the legendary Vince Lombardi, Packers coach who won the first two Super Bowls. Because the NFL restricts the use of its "Super Bowl" trademark, it is frequently referred to as the "big game" or other generic terms by non-sponsoring corporations. The day the game is held is common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
College Football
College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, first gained popularity in the United States. Like gridiron football generally, college football is most popular in the United States and Canada. While no single governing body exists for college football in the United States, most schools, especially those at the highest levels of play, are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA. In Canada, collegiate football competition is governed by U Sports for universities. The Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (for colleges) governs soccer and other sports but not gridiron football. Other countries, such as Organización Nacional Estudiantil de Fútbol Americano, Mexico, American football in Japan, Japan and Korea American Football Association, South Korea, also host colle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and the highest professional level of American football in the world. Each NFL season begins annually with a NFL preseason, three-week preseason in August, followed by the NFL regular season, 18-week regular season, which runs from early September to early January, with each team playing 17 games and having one Bye (sports), bye week. Following the conclusion of the regular season, seven teams from each conference, including the four division winners and three Wild card (sports), wild card teams, advance to the NFL playoffs, playoffs, a single-elimination tournament, which culminates in the Super Bowl, played in early February ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at each end. The offense (sports), offense, the team with possession of the oval-shaped Ball (gridiron football), football, attempts to advance down the field by Rush (gridiron football), running with the ball or Forward pass#Gridiron football, throwing it, while the Defense (sports), defense, the team without possession of the ball, aims to stop the offense's advance and to take control of the ball for themselves. The offense must advance the ball at least ten yard, yards in four Down (gridiron football), downs or plays; if they fail, they turnover on downs, turn over the football to the defense, but if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs to continue the Glossary of American football#drive, drive. Points are scored primarily b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fumble
A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful handing that results in loss of ball possession by a player. Unlike other events which cause the ball to become loose, such as an incomplete pass, a fumbled ball is considered a live ball, and may be recovered and advanced by any member of either team. A fumble may be forced by a defensive player who either grabs or punches the ball or butts the ball with their helmet (a move called "tackling the ball"). A fumbled ball may be recovered and advanced by either team (except, in American football, after the two-minute warning in either half/overtime or on 4th down at any point during the game, when the fumbler is the only offensive player allowed to advance the ball, otherwise the ball is ruled dead at the spot of the fumble, except when it is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Interception
In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team but caught or otherwise brought under control by a player of the opposing team, who thereby usually gains possession of the ball for their team. It is commonly seen in football, including American football, American and Canadian football, as well as association football, rugby league, rugby union, Australian rules football and Gaelic football, as well as any sport by which a loose object is passed between players toward a goal. In basketball, this is called a Steal (basketball), steal. Gridiron football In American football and Canadian football, an interception occurs when a forward pass that has not yet touched the ground is caught by a player of the defensive team. This leads to an immediate change of possess ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall Of Fame
The Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall of Fame (PPFHOF) is a nonprofit organization established in 2010. The PPFHOF is dedicated to honoring the greatest players, coaches and staff members in Pittsburgh professional football history. It was founded in 2010 and inducted its first hall of fame class in 2011. The electorate is a broad cross section of former Pittsburgh Steelers (including players Dermontti Dawson, Levon Kirkland, Andy Russell, Chad Brown, Ernie Mills, Roy Jefferson, Lee Flowers, Leon Searcy, Reggie Harrison, and radio announcer Bill Hillgrove among others)Electorate . Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall of Fame official website. Retrieved 2014-04-02. and researchers specializing in Steelers history.Home page ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
