La'Roi Glover
| No. -- Retired | |
| Defensive tackle | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: July 4, 1974 | |
| Place of birth: San Diego, California | |
| Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | Weight: 290 lb (132 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College: San Diego State | |
| NFL Draft: 1996 / Round: 5 / Pick: 166 | |
| Debuted in 1996 for the Oakland Raiders | |
| Career history | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2008 | |
| Tackles | 320 |
| Sacks | 83.5 |
| Interceptions | 2 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
La'Roi Damon Glover (pronounced /ləˈrɔɪ/); born July 4, 1974) is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League who ended his career with the St. Louis Rams. Glover retired from the NFL on June 22, 2009. He played 13 seasons with the Raiders, Saints, Cowboys, and Rams, and was a 6-Time Pro Bowl selection.
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[edit] Early years
A top ranking heavyweight and award-winning shot putter at Point Loma High School, he received letters in both wrestling and track.
Under coach Bennie Edens, he was part of the 1990 Pointers team that included Dan White and J. J. Stokes. During the 1990 season, Glover totaled 77 tackles, 17.5 sacks, six fumble recoveries and six forced fumbles, earning the honor of San Diego Co-Player of the Year.
In 1992 as a senior defensive lineman, he was named San Diego section co-Player of the Year, USA Today second-team All-America and CIF Player of the Year, Cal-Hi Sports first-team, the Los Angeles Times Lineman of the Year.
He is the third player from Point Loma High School to have his jersey (No. 76) retired along with Marcel Brown (No. 22) and Eric Allen (No. 25).
[edit] College career
Although he had various college offers, he chose to follow his older brother Darcel Glover to San Diego State University and remain close to home.
While attending SDSU, Glover was a four-year starter in football. As a senior he had 4.5 sacks and 36 tackles, was a defensive captain, won Aztec Outstanding Defensive Lineman honors, an All-Western Athletic Conference second team selection, and was chosen to play for the West squad in the East-West shrine game. As a sophomore, he was a second team All-Western Athletic Conference selection. As a freshman, he won All-Western Athletic Conference honorable mention honors. He graduated with double major in public administration and sociology.
Glover was overlooked at SDSU, never winning All-American status and gaining first-team All-WAC only once in 1994. He still ranks third in SDSU history in career tackles for loss with 44.5 and fourth in career sacks with 18.5.
In 2010 he was inducted into the Aztec Hall of Fame.
[edit] Professional career
[edit] Oakland Raiders
Glover was considered undersized, so he dropped to the 34th pick in the fifth round of the 1996 NFL Draft, where he was drafted by the Oakland Raiders.
After playing in just two games with the Raiders during his rookie year, he released a few days before the end of the season.
The Atlanta Falcons had a chance to acquire Glover in a trade a few days earlier, but declined the Raiders' request for a conditional low-round draft pick.
[edit] New Orleans Saints
He was claimed by the New Orleans Saints and was allocated to NFL Europe's Barcelona Dragonsin 1997, where he helped them win the World Bowl V, while earning all-league honors, ranking third in the league with 6.5 sacks and adding 36 tackles.
He returned to the United States and the NFL for the start of the 1997 season, and although he started just 2 of the 15 games he played in, Glover recorded 6.5 sacks.
Those experiences allowed him to developed into a top notch interior lineman, Glover then had 10 sacks and an interception in 1998 and 8.5 sacks in 1999.
He was a solid starter during his three seasons with Mike Ditka, but his career blossomed when Jim Haslett was hired as the Saints coach in 2000 and decided to move him to the three-technique tackle within a great front four group. That season he led the NFL with 17 sacks (a rare feat and second most ever by a defensive tackle), made his first All-Pro team and was voted the New Orleans Saints defensive MVP.
In 2001, after recording eight sacks, earning a second Pro Bowl selection and having played five seasons with the Saints, the team thought he was declining, so they refused to pick up a $5.5 million option bonus, making him a free agent.
[edit] Dallas Cowboys
In 2002 the Dallas Cowboys had endured back-to-back seasons of 5-11 when Glover signed with the team. His decision to play for the Cowboys instead of the better teams that courted him was thought to be a coup, and it was a key step in getting the Cowboys' talent base back to where it could be competitive.
During his time with the Cowboys, Glover solidified his place as one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL. He provided a veteran locker room presence helping anchor a young defensive line and was an integral part of the Cowboys' transformation from a 5-11 team into one that returned to the playoffs.
His last season with the team in 2005 he was splitting playing time with Jason Ferguson and was pushed to a backup role in early December. He was released at the end of the season, because of his diminished role, he was not seen as well-suited for the 3-4 defense the team was planning to install and also had a high salary cap number.
He played in all 64 games during his four seasons with the Cowboys, racked up 21.5 sacks and forced five fumbles in that period. He was named to the Pro Bowl all four seasons, three of those as a starter.
[edit] Saint Louis Rams
In 2006 Glover signed as a free agent with the St. Louis Rams, reunitng him with Jim Haslett.
He played the final 3 seasons of his career with the Rams and was not re-signed following the 2008 season, so he decided to retire. He was the Rams' 2007 Walter Payton Man of the Year.
Although his name does not come up much in conversations about the best defensive tackles, his play was recognized by being named to the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team after he retired.
During his career, he played 13 seasons, went to six straight Pro Bowls, had 320 tackles and 83.5 sacks, 8 forced fumbles and two interceptions. He was an extremely durable player and compensated for a lack of size with great tenacity and textbook technique.
[edit] Personal
He is married to Spring, with children, La’Roi, Jr., Neomie and Sophia. Glover is a guest member on the NBC 7/39 Football Night sportscaster team in San Diego.
In 2010 the Saint Louis Rams hired him as their director of player programs, where he helps players make the transition to pro football and assist them with various off-field matters.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- La'Roi Glover at ESPN.com
- La'Roi Glover at Pro-Football-Reference.com
- Dallas Cowboys Top 50 players
- The La'Roi Glover Foundation
- Rams Player Bio
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