Gary Spani (born January 9, 1956) 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 ...

player who was a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

of 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) from 1978 to 1986. He has worked for the Chiefs' front office since 1989, and was the directors of community engagement for the Chiefs. Spani was born in

Satanta, Kansas Satanta is a city in Haskell County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 1,092. Every year there is a celebration of Satanta's Indian heritage called Satanta Day. History The town is named after Kio ...

, but raised in

Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County, Kansas, Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big ...

, and graduated from

Manhattan High School Manhattan High School is a public high school in Manhattan, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9–12. It is part of the Manhattan–Ogden USD 383 school district. For the 2013–2014 school year, Manhattan High had an enrollment o ...

. 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 ...

for the

Kansas State Wildcats The Kansas State Wildcats (variously "Kansas State", "K-State", or "KSU") are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Kansas State University. The School colors, official color of the teams is Royal Purple; white and silver are gener ...

. At

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

, he was a three-time All

Big Eight Conference The Big Eight Conference was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored American football, football. It was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate ...

selection, was conference defensive player of the year in 1977, and was named the school's first consensus

All America 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 ...

n in 1977. He still holds the all-time tackles record for Kansas State University. Following graduation, Spani was named MVP of the

East-West Shrine Game East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *'' East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...

. The Chiefs selected Spani in the third round of the

1978 NFL draft The 1978 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 May 2–3, 1978, at the Roosevelt Hotel ...

. As a professional, Spani was a hardnosed and tenacious player. He was a

team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

for the Chiefs in 1983. He formerly held the all-time tackles record for the Kansas City Chiefs, where he registered 999 career stops. His single-season record of 157 tackles with the Chiefs, set in

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

, stood until

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

when it was broken by Mike Maslowski. He also recorded 9.5 sacks, recovered 10 fumbles and scored 4 touchdowns during his Chiefs career. Spani was elected to the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

in 2002 and the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame in 2003. Daughter Shalin Spani played college basketball for the Kansas State University Wildcats from 2007 to 2010. She later married K-State star quarterback and

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

finalist Collin Klein. Daughter Taber Spani plays college basketball for the Tennessee Lady Vols. His third daughter, Tanis Spani, is a member of the Southwest Baptist University Lady Bearcat basketball team.
SBU Women's Basketball. Retrieved April 2, 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spani, Gary 1956 births Living people People from Haskell County, Kansas Sportspeople from Manhattan, Kansas All-American college football players American football linebackers Kansas State Wildcats football players Kansas City Chiefs players College Football Hall of Fame inductees