Frank Wycheck
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| No. 36, 22, 89 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Tight end | ||||||||
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| Born: | October 14, 1971 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Maryland | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1993 / round: 6 / pick: 160 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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Frank John Wycheck (born October 14, 1971) is a former American football tight end and current sports talk radio host. He played college football at the University of Maryland. As a professional, Wycheck played 11 seasons for the Washington Redskins and the Tennessee Titans. He has also spent time as a professional wrestler. In 2005, Wycheck became color commentator on the Tennessee Titans radio network, and in 2004, Wycheck began co-hosting a morning sports radio show on Nashville radio station WGFX.
Early life and college
Born in Philadelphia, Wycheck attended Archbishop Ryan High School in Northeast Philadelphia and the University of Maryland, College Park.
Professional career
Washington Redskins
Wycheck was drafted in sixth round (160th overall) of the 1993 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. With the arrival of new coach Norv Turner in 1994, the Redskins made a failed attempt to switch Wycheck to fullback. Later that same season, Wycheck was suspended by the league for testing positive for anabolic steroids. Wycheck was released by the Redskins in 1995.
Tennessee Oilers/Titans
In 1995, Wycheck was signed by the Houston Oilers, who later became the Tennessee Titans.
Upon the Oilers franchise's rocky transition into Tennessee, Wycheck quickly adopted Nashville as his hometown (even before the team officially left Houston), and thereby became one of the most visible players in the community. When the team reached enormous popularity in Nashville, Wycheck's stellar performance on the field and visibility in the media helped him become one of the most popular players on the team. Even following his retirement, he remains a popular public figure in Middle Tennessee.
Wycheck also made the Pro Bowl in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Wycheck is perhaps most famous for his participation in the Music City Miracle, where, with the Titans down 16-15 with 16 seconds remaining, to the Buffalo Bills in the wild card round of the playoffs in 2000, after taking a handoff from Lorenzo Neal, he threw the ball across the field to Kevin Dyson, who turned the ball upfield 75 yards for the game winning touchdown. The Titans would go on to make the Super Bowl that year, but would lose by a touchdown. Wycheck continued to play for the Titans before retiring after the 2003 season.
Wycheck amassed 505 receptions for 5,126 yards and 28 touchdowns over his 11-year career, one of only seven tight ends to surpass 500 receptions in NFL history (the others being Jason Witten, Shannon Sharpe, Ozzie Newsome, Kellen Winslow, Tony Gonzalez, and Antonio Gates). Wycheck led the Titans in receiving for three consecutive seasons (1999–2001). Wycheck also went 5-for-6 passing the ball in his career (all on trick plays), resulting in 148 yards, two touchdowns, and a perfect 158.3 passer rating.
Professional wrestling appearances
On May 31, 2007 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling announced that during a press conference in Nashville, that an altercation between Wycheck and James Storm disrupted events. Wycheck, with the help of Jeff Jarrett, delivered a guitar shot to James Storm after the "Tennessee Cowboy" spat beer in the former Tennessee Titan's face. TNA Wrestling would then announce that Wycheck has agreed in principle to a match with James Storm at Slammiversary on June 17, 2007. The match was made official on TNA's website later that day. At Slammiversary, he teamed with Jerry Lynn to defeat Storm and Ron Killings in a tag match. Wycheck won the match with a Cradle Piledriver, Lynn's finishing move.[1]
Broadcasting career
In 2001, Wycheck "hosted" his own Titan player show with George Plaster and Willy Daunic on WGFX 104.5 FM until his retirement from the game. Wycheck became a co-host of the morning drive time show The Wake Up Zone with Kevin Ingram and Mark Howard on the Nashville radio station WGFX "104.5 The Zone".[2]
Beginning with the 2005 season, Wycheck assumed color commentary duties on the Tennessee Titans Radio Network.[3]
Personal life
In 1995, Wycheck married Cherryn Krol.[4][5] They have two children: Deanna (born 1991) and Madison (born 1997).[5] Wycheck is a strong supporter of the Tennessee Special Olympics, hosting the Wycheck Harley Ride charity event.[5]
References
- ^ "TNA scores with Slammiversary". slam.canoe.ca. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
- ^ "Frank Wycheck". WGFX. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
- ^ "Wycheck to join Titans Radio broadcast team". Tennessee Titans. January 21, 2005. Archived from the original on September 22, 2005.
- ^ Silary, Ted (November 30, 1994). "NFL Suspends Wycheck After Steroid Test". Philadelphia Daily News. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
- ^ a b c "Frank Wycheck". Tennessee Titans. Archived from the original on February 4, 2004.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference
- 1971 births
- Living people
- American Conference Pro Bowl players
- American football tight ends
- American sports radio personalities
- Houston Oilers players
- Maryland Terrapins football players
- National Football League announcers
- Sportspeople from Philadelphia
- Players of American football from Pennsylvania
- Tennessee Oilers players
- Tennessee Titans broadcasters
- Tennessee Titans players
- Washington Redskins players
- American radio sports announcers