Derrick Owens Lassic (born January 26, 1970) 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 ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

in the

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 ...

(NFL) for 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

. He played

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 ...

at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

Early life

Lassic attended North Rockland High School, where he helped his team achieve three straight Section 1 Class A bowl wins. As a senior, he set county records with 1,719 rushing yards, 31 total

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

s, 26 rushing touchdowns and 194 scored points. He was named the New York State large-school Player of the Year, All-state and a USA Today's High School

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

. He also had 31 receptions for 586 yards. He finished his high school career with 2,846 rushing yards. He also practiced track and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

College career

Lassic accepted a football scholarship from the

. As a

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

freshman, he appeared in 10 games and was fifth on the team with 142 rushing yards on 33 carries. In the 32–16 win against

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

, he rushed for 58 yards on 8 carries. In the 37–14 win against the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bac ...

, he made 4 receptions for 80 yards, including a 54-yard catch. That season, Alabama won its first SEC championship since 1981. As a sophomore, he was slowed by a

turf toe Sod is the upper layer of turf that is harvested for transplanting. Turf consists of a variable thickness of a soil medium that supports a community of turfgrasses. In British and Australian English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', ...

injury, rushing for 281 yards on 68 carries. He scored his first

(an 18-yard run) in the season opener 24–27 loss against the

. He missed the eighth game against

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, Un ...

because of his toe injury. He had 11 carries for 67 yards against the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

. As a junior, he was the backup

behind

Siran Stacy Siran Stacy (born August 6, 1968) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide and was sele ...

, posting 70 carries for 368 rushing yards (third on the team) and 2

s. He had 9 carries for 70 yards against

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

. He compiled 10 carries for 76 yards against the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. As a senior, he was named the starter at

, registering 905 rushing yards (fifth in the SEC) on 178 carries (5.1 yards per carry), 10 rushing

s, 129 receiving yards and one receiving

. He was named the

1993 Sugar Bowl The 1993 Sugar Bowl took place on January 1, 1993, in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the final game of the 1992 NCAA Division I-A football season, 1992 college football season and served as the first College football nat ...

MVP after

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

beat

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

34–13 to win the National Championship. He finished his college career 11th on the school's all-time rushing list (1,696 yards).

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Lassic was selected by the

in the fourth round (94th overall) of the

1993 NFL draft The 1993 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 25–26, 1993, at the Marriot M ...

. The team was forced to start him in the first two games (both losses) after Emmitt Smith’s contract holdout extended into the regular season. He became the first rookie

in league history to start a season opener for a defending

Super Bowl 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 excep ...

champion, and the third rookie

in franchise history to start a season opener. Although Smith signed in time for the third game against the Phoenix Cardinals, Lassic still started and led the team in rushing with 60 yards on 14 carries, while scoring his first 2

s during a 17–10 win. From that point his workload was significantly reduced, on the way to the Cowboys winning back-to-back

s. In the eleventh game against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

, he was demoted to third-string running back after being passed on the depth chart by fellow rookie Lincoln Coleman. In the thirteenth game against the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

, he lined up at receiver to compensate the loss of an injured Alvin Harper, when the team used three

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

sets. He was declared inactive in the final three games of the season. In the Cowboys’ playoff run he was limited to four touches; he did not play in Super Bowl XXVIII. He finished with 75 carries for 269 yards and 3

s, but he suffered from the national pressure and the loyalty his teammates had towards Smith. Erik Williams criticized Lassic's running style, saying "He runs too fast. We have a flow and he isn't able to see it", Nate Newton said, "Lassic was a nice kid, but if we expected to get back to the Super Bowl, we needed Emmitt in the lineup". In

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

, he tore his right quadricep muscle during kickoff coverage duty, in the Cowboys' 17-9 preseason win against the

. He 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 t ...

on December 6,

. In Cowboys lore, he is remembered for being the starting

for the first two games of the 1993 season when Smith held out in a contract dispute.

Carolina Panthers

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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

selected him from the Cowboys roster in the 20th round (40th overall) of the 1995 NFL expansion draft. He was waived with an injury settlement on August 27, after suffering from knee, hamstring and thigh problems during

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

San Francisco 49ers

On March 18,

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, Lassic signed with the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

. He was waived on July 29.

Toronto Argonauts

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, he signed with 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 ...

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 ...

and was waived on August 17.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lassic, Derrick 1970 births Living people Sportspeople from Rockland County, New York Players of American football from New York (state) American football running backs Alabama Crimson Tide football players Dallas Cowboys players