Clifford Toney (born December 17, 1958) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

who played five seasons with the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at Commonwealth Stadium. The E ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL). He was selected by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

in the eighth round of the

1981 NFL draft The 1981 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 during April 28–29, 1981, at the New ...

after playing

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, firs ...

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

Early life and college

Clifford Toney was born on December 17, 1958, in

Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is the List of municipalities in Alabama, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the List of United States cities by population, 100th-most populous ...

. He lettered for the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...

from 1977 to 1980. He finished third in the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

(SEC) with five interceptions in 1978, earning

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(AP) second-team

All-SEC The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season. Seasons Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC: * ...

honors. He made one interception in 1979. In 1980, Toney finished third in the SEC with five interceptions for the second time, garnering AP second-team All-SEC recognition.

Professional career

Toney was selected by the

in the eighth round, with the 219th overall pick, of the

. He was released later in 1981. Toney played in 14 games for the

of the

in 1984, recording one interception for an 88-yard touchdown and one sack. He appeared in 14 games again in 1985 and made one interception for a 56-yard touchdown. Toney played in 11 games during the 1986 season, totaling five interceptions for 35 yards and a touchdown and one sack. He appeared in 10 games in 1987, accumulating 33 tackles and one interception for two yards. The Eskimos won the

75th Grey Cup The 75th Grey Cup was the 1987 Canadian Football League championship game that was played at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, between the Edmonton Eskimos and the Toronto Argonauts. The Eskimos defeated the Argonauts 38–36, on Jerry Kauric's last ...

against the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

on November 29, 1987. He played in 15 games during his final season in 1988, recording 44 tackles and four interceptions for 160 yards and two touchdowns.

References

External links

Stats Crew profileCliff Toney trading card
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toney, Cliff Living people 1958 births American football defensive backs Canadian football defensive backs Auburn Tigers football players Atlanta Falcons players Edmonton Elks players Players of American football from Huntsville, Alabama Players of Canadian football from Alabama 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen