Brian Cushing: Difference between revisions
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==Early years== |
==Early years== |
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Cushing is one of three children of |
Cushing is one of three children of Tangy descent. His mother was born in [[Tangville]] and his father was born in TANGY . His brother Michael was a rugby player at [[Providence College]]. Cushing trained throughout his childhood in [[Closter, New Jersey]]. Cushing attended [[Bergen Catholic High School]] in [[Oradell, New Jersey]] and went on to lead the Crusaders to the 2004 Group IV State Championship as a linebacker, tight end, and running back against [[Don Bosco Preparatory High School]], providing huge plays in the 13-10 win.<ref>Mehta, Manish. [http://www.nj.com/sports/index.ssf/2009/04/family_of_former_bergen_cathol.html "Family of former Bergen Catholic star Brian Cushing seething at unfounded steroid rumors as NFL draft approaches"], ''[[The Star-Ledger]]'', April 23, 2009. Accessed February 16, 2011.</ref> He was named "2004 North Jersey Player of the Year" by ''[[The Record (Bergen County)]]''.<ref>Rosen, Dan. [http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkxMDYmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTY2MjUyMjMmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2 "B.C. gave it his all for BC"], ''[[The Record (Bergen County)]]'', December 12, 2004. Accessed December 1, 2007. "The 6-foot-2, 225-pound two-way standout led the Crusaders to a State title with a 13-10 win over archrival Don Bosco on Dec. 3, and is The Record's 2004 North Jersey Player of the Year."</ref> and played in the 2005 [[U.S. Army All-American Bowl]] alongside future USC teammates [[Patrick Turner]], [[Rey Maualuga]] and [[Mark Sanchez]]. {{Citation needed|date=November 2010}} |
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Cushing was recruited by top colleges such as the [[University of Florida]], [[University of Virginia]], [[University of Notre Dame|Notre Dame]], and [[Boston College]], before ultimately committing to the [[University of Southern California]]. Cushing was a four year starter who also started in four Rose Bowls. Only two players have ever done this; Archie Griffin from Ohio State University was the other. {{Citation needed|date=November 2010}} |
Cushing was recruited by top colleges such as the [[University of Florida]], [[University of Virginia]], [[University of Notre Dame|Notre Dame]], and [[Boston College]], before ultimately committing to the [[University of Southern California]]. Cushing was a four year starter who also started in four Rose Bowls. Only two players have ever done this; Archie Griffin from Ohio State University was the other. {{Citation needed|date=November 2010}} |
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Revision as of 19:23, 21 November 2011
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| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | January 24, 1987 Park Ridge, New Jersey | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Southern California | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 15 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 10, 2011 | |||||||||
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Brian Cushing (born January 24, 1987) is a professional American football inside linebacker for the Houston Texans of the National Football League. Cushing was selected in the 1st round (15th overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Texans. He played college football at the University of Southern California.
Early years
Cushing is one of three children of Tangy descent. His mother was born in Tangville and his father was born in TANGY . His brother Michael was a rugby player at Providence College. Cushing trained throughout his childhood in Closter, New Jersey. Cushing attended Bergen Catholic High School in Oradell, New Jersey and went on to lead the Crusaders to the 2004 Group IV State Championship as a linebacker, tight end, and running back against Don Bosco Preparatory High School, providing huge plays in the 13-10 win.[1] He was named "2004 North Jersey Player of the Year" by The Record (Bergen County).[2] and played in the 2005 U.S. Army All-American Bowl alongside future USC teammates Patrick Turner, Rey Maualuga and Mark Sanchez. [citation needed]
Cushing was recruited by top colleges such as the University of Florida, University of Virginia, Notre Dame, and Boston College, before ultimately committing to the University of Southern California. Cushing was a four year starter who also started in four Rose Bowls. Only two players have ever done this; Archie Griffin from Ohio State University was the other. [citation needed] Brian Cushing also played alongside Sean
College career
Cushing attended USC and played for the Trojan football team (2005-2008 seasons) under head coach Pete Carroll and Linebacker Coach Ken Norton Jr. Cushing shared the #10 jersey with Trojan starting quarterback John David Booty from 2005 to 2007.
Cushing was on the 2007 preseason Phil Steele's All-America team and on the 2007 Bednarik Award and Lott Trophy watch lists.
Cushing returned a failed onside kick attempted by Notre Dame at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for a late fourth-quarter touchdown on November 25, 2006.
During his college career Cushing recorded 377 Tackles, 18 Sacks, 12 Forced Fumbles, 5 Fumbles Recovered, and 7 Interceptions.
On January 1, 2007, Cushing was named the Defensive MVP of the Rose Bowl Game, after recording 2½ sacks and forcing a third-quarter fumble that changed the momentum of the game.[3]
Cushing was one of twelve senior USC players, including the four senior linebackers Cushing, Kaluka Maiava, Clay Matthews III and Rey Maualuga, invited to the 2009 NFL Scouting Combine.[4] He also participated in the 2009 Senior Bowl with Maualuga, Matthews, Patrick Turner and others. Alongside fellow USC linebackers Maualuga and Matthews, he was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated's 2009 NFL Draft Preview magazine, as all three were regarded as potential first round selections.[5]
College awards and honors
- 2005 Scout.com Freshman All American All-American[6]
- 2006 All-Pac-10 Second-team[7]
- 2007 All-Pac-10 Honorable Mention[8]
- 2007 Rose Bowl Defensive MVP[9]
- 2008 All-Pac-10 First-team selection by the conference's head coaches[10] and Rivals.com[11]
- 2008 Rivals.com First-team All-American[12]
- 2008 SI.com First-team All-American[13]
- 2008 AP.com First-team All-American[14]
Professional career
2009 NFL Draft
| Height | Weight | 40-yard dash | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | Wonderlic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
243 lb (110 kg) |
4.57* s | 3.52* s | 6.94* s | 37* | 11* 6* | 35* reps | 29* |
Houston Texans
Cushing was drafted with the 15th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.
He scored his first career points on October 4, 2009 when he recorded a safety against the Oakland Raiders. The safety was the first recorded by a Texan since the 2002 season.[17]
Cushing was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 6 of the 2009 NFL Season. Cushing became the first rookie to earn the award in the season.[18] In Week 8, Cushing was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week again, becoming the first Texans rookie to win the award twice in one season.[19] Cushing was also named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month for November.[20]
Cushing finished tied with Ray Lewis for the AFC lead with 134 tackles and was selected to the 2010 Pro Bowl as a starter. Cushing was one of three rookies to make it to the Pro Bowl,[21] another being a former USC teammate.
On January 5, 2010, Cushing was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. Cushing is the second Texan to win the award, the first being DeMeco Ryans in 2006.[22]
On May 7, 2010, Adam Schefter of ESPN reported that Cushing would be suspended for the first four games of the 2010 season for a positive test in September 2009 violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substances policy for having above normal levels of hCg, a hormone, in his system. Cushing had previously denied rumors of his using performance-enhancing substances prior to being drafted. Cushing still denies that he ever ingested or injected any performance enhancers and claimed the test result could have been from a cancerous tumor. Cushing then stated that he would undergo further medical tests to determine how hCg entered his system.[23]
On May 12, 2010, in a revote of the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year award after his suspension was made public, Cushing received the most votes again, retaining his award. His second team All-Pro status from his rookie season, however, was rescinded by the AP. Cushing is the 1st player ever to have a revote, even though several other players in the NFL's past history have had similar violations during their rookie season.[33]
NFL awards and honors
- 2x AFC Defensive Rookie of the Month (November 2009 & December 2009)[20]
- 2x AFC Defensive Player of the Week (2009 weeks 6 & 8)[24]
- 2009 AFC Defensive Player of the Month of November
- 2009 Pro Bowl selection (starter)
- 2009 All-Rookie Selection (Sporting News, Pro Football Writers Association)
- 2009 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year
References
- ^ Mehta, Manish. "Family of former Bergen Catholic star Brian Cushing seething at unfounded steroid rumors as NFL draft approaches", The Star-Ledger, April 23, 2009. Accessed February 16, 2011.
- ^ Rosen, Dan. "B.C. gave it his all for BC", The Record (Bergen County), December 12, 2004. Accessed December 1, 2007. "The 6-foot-2, 225-pound two-way standout led the Crusaders to a State title with a 13-10 win over archrival Don Bosco on Dec. 3, and is The Record's 2004 North Jersey Player of the Year."
- ^ USC in parade of star power: Trojans jettison Michigan 'claim', New York Daily News, January 2, 2006
- ^ Ted Miller, Pac-10 NFL combine invitees, ESPN.com, February 2, 2009, Accessed February 2, 2009.
- ^ Gary Klein, USC's Maualuga, Cushing and Matthews grace Sports Illustrated cover, LATimes.com, April 21, 2009, Accessed April 26, 2009.
- ^ "Scout.com Freshman All-Americans".
- ^ "Pac-10 Football Awards and All-Conference Team Announced".
- ^ "Pac-10 Football Awards and All-Conference Team Announced".
- ^ "USC's Cushing looks for another big Rose Bowl". USA Today. December 30, 2007. Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ^ "Pac-10 Announces All-Conference Football Awards".
- ^ "Rivals.com 2008 All-Pac 10 Team".
- ^ "Rivals.com 2008 All-America Teams".
- ^ "SI.com's 2008 All-Americans". CNN. December 16, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ^ "AP.com's 2008 All-Americans".
- ^ "Brian Cushing". NFL Draft Scout.com. 2009-02-29. Retrieved 2009-04-19.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Nawrocki, Nolan (April 21, 2009). "The Way We Hear It — draft edition". Pro Football Weeklywebsite. Retrieved April 25, 2009.
- ^ "NFL.com Texans' defense steps up in rout of Raiders".
- ^ "Houston Texans Cushing wins AFC Defensive Player of the Week".
- ^ "Houston Texans Cushing wins second AFC Player of the Week award".
- ^ a b "Houstontexans.com Cushing wins NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month".
- ^ "Miles Austin, Brian Cushing, Ray Rice named to Pro Bowl".
- ^ "Cushing seventh straight LB named top defensive rookie".
- ^ NFL Def. Rookie of the Year Brian Cushing suspended 4 games for steroids violation. USA Today. 2010-05-07.
- ^ "Houston Chronicle Texans' Cushing wins AFC defensive honor".
External links
- 1987 births
- Living people
- American Conference Pro Bowl players
- American football linebackers
- American people of Irish descent
- American people of Polish descent
- American sportspeople in doping cases
- Bergen Catholic High School alumni
- Doping cases in American football
- Houston Texans players
- Players of American football from New Jersey
- People from Park Ridge, New Jersey
- U.S. Army All-American football players
- USC Trojans football players