Shane Grice (born December 20, 1976) 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 wit ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

and

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense (sports), offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide ...

who played one game 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 ma ...

(NFL) for the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

and five seasons in the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

(AFL) for the

Georgia Force The Georgia Force was an Arena Football League (AFL) team based in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States (part of suburban Atlanta) that played in the South Division of the American Conference. The team was owned by Doug MacGregor and Donn Je ...

. He played college football at Ole Miss.

Early life and education

Shane Grice was born on December 20, 1976, in

Tupelo, Mississippi Tupelo () is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. With an estimated population of 38,300, Tupelo is the sixth-largest city in Mississippi and is considered a commercial, industrial, and cultural hub of North ...

. He attended Shannon High School, graduating in c. 1997, before joining the

Itawamba Community College Itawamba Community College is a public community college with its main campus in Fulton, Mississippi. Additional campuses are in Belden and Tupelo. History Itawamba Community College began as an extension of Itawamba County Agricultural High ...

, where he played one season in football. In 1998, he transferred to the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi ( byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

, where he played three seasons for their

Ole Miss Rebels football The Ole Miss Rebels football program represents the University of Mississippi, also known as "Ole Miss". The Rebels compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Western Division of ...

team. Grice was a starter in 26 games for the Rebels, and helped them have the seventh-fewest sacks given up in the nation as a senior.

Professional career

After going unselected in the

2001 NFL Draft The 2001 NFL Draft was the 66th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft, which is officially referred to as the "NFL Player Selection Meeting," was held at the ...

, Grice was signed by 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 ...

. He was released at the final roster cuts on August 27. Grice was later signed to the practice squad of the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine ...

, before being re-signed to the active roster by the Buccaneers on September 26. He spent seven games on the inactive list before being released. Grice was later signed to the Buccaneers practice squad, before being promoted to the active roster for the season finale against 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 play ...

. He made his NFL debut in the game. He was released by the Buccaneers after the third preseason game in August . Near the end of the 2002 season, Grice was signed to the practice squad of the Chicago Bears, but did not appear in any games. In 2003, Grice was sent to the

Barcelona Dragons Two American football franchises have been referred to as the Barcelona Dragons: * Barcelona Dragons (NFL Europe) The Barcelona Dragons was an American football team that was a part of the World League of American Football and later in the resu ...

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally f ...

, where he appeared in ten games, nine as a starter. He returned to the Bears following the NFL Europe season end, but did not make the final roster. In 2004, Grice was signed by the

of the

(AFL). In his first season with the team, he appeared in all 11 games, making 9.5 tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery. He was also used as a

, and made one catch for six yards. He ended up playing five seasons with the Force, earning second-team All-Arena honors in 2008, his last season, after starting all 16 games. He finished his career with seven catches for 39 yards and a touchdown on offense, and 15 tackles on defense.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grice, Shane 1976 births Living people Players of American football from Mississippi American football offensive guards American football tight ends Ole Miss Rebels football players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Chicago Bears players Georgia Force players