Let's pretend you're on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" and your category is sports. Your question is "Which Southern Conference member has more former players currently active in the National Football League?"
Your choices are A. Furman, B. Georgia Southern, C. Western Carolina and D. Appalachian State
You have no 50-50 or Lifeline, but you can poll the audience. 50% of the audience says Georgia Southern, 30% says Appalachian State, and 20% says Furman. No one pushes the C button.
You are not sure, but you go with 50% of the audience and answer "Georgia Southern." Regis awaits your answer. You select B, Georgia Southern. Regis inquires "Is that your final answer" and you ponder for a few seconds as you remember that Georgia Southern has won five NCAA I-AA championships and, obviously, has had a ton of very talented players...and, being a Catamount fan, you wouldn't pick Appalachian State for a million dollars. You answer feels right. You say "yes" and Regis says "sorry" and presents you with a check for $1,000 and tells everyone "Western Carolina has six players currently the NFL's active rosters...the most of any Southern Conference member."
For the record, those six Catamounts...there is no such thing as a former Catamount...are Clyde Simmons (Chicago Bears), Tony Jones (Denver Broncos), Willie Williams (Seattle Seahawks), Andrew Jordan (Minnesota Vikings), David Patten (Cleveland Browns) and Brad Hoover (Carolina Panthers). In addition, Dan Best (offensive lineman) is on the Carolina Panthers practice squad and could be activated at a moment's notice.
My purpose in this week's feature is to give our younger readers, viewers, surfers some history on the WCU-NFL connection. The first Catamount to make an NFL regular season roster was Steve Williams, a defensive lineman, who was drafted by San Francisco in 1972. He did not make it with the 49ers and spent the '72 season in the CFL (Edmonton). "Big Steve" was then signed by the Baltimore Colts in '73 and played for three seasons in the NFL and started several games for the Colts in those seasons. Steve lives in Columbia, Maryland and is in charge of a facility that tracks satellites for NASA.
There was a long dry spell after Steve Williams as several Catamounts went to preseason camp with NFL teams, but couldn't make the opening day rosters. Eddie McGill (`78-'81), a product of Enka High, was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals, now Arizona, in '82 and spent three seasons there playing on Sundays as a tight end/wide receiver. He also had a couple of short stints with Buffalo in '85 and the New York Giants in '86. Eddie is now with FedEx in Asheville.
McGill's signing and pro success was the first of several for WCU players in the 1980s, many of which played on the '83 NCAA I-AA Championship finalist and '84 team which was also nationally ranked. Place Kicker Dean Biasucci started the streak when he signed with the Falcons in '84 only to be cut and signed by the Indianapolis Colts where he spent 11 seasons and broke all the Colts place kicking and scoring records and played in a Pro Bowl. He finished his career with the St. Louis Rams in 1995 and is now working the cinema/acting business in California. Tiger Greene, no doubt the most colorful of the lot, signed with Atlanta after the '84 season and started several game with the '85 Falcons as a defensive back. The East Henderson High grad moved to the Green Bay Packers for the next six seasons where he was a starter for most of the '86 thru '91 seasons. The last I heard from Tiger was when he was a golf pro in the Atlanta area. Louis Cooper, an All-America linebacker on the '83 and '84 teams, spent seven years in the NFL as a frequent starter with the Kansas City Chiefs (`85'90), the Miami Dolphins ('91) and Philadelphia Eagles ('92) Arguably the most successful of WCU products to reach the NFL is Clyde Simmons who is currently playing defensive end for the Chicago Bears and is in his 15th season as a pro. After gaining All-America honors as a Catamount in '85, he was drafted in the 9th round by the Eagles and spent one year as a backup before becoming an established star during the next six seasons in which he was named to two Pro Bowl teams. Clyde moved to the Arizona Cardinals for for three seasons (`93-'95) and continued to start. He spent the next two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars and one season ('98) with the Cincinnati Bengals. He signed a two-year deal with Chicago last year and remains active as a pass rush end and mentor/coach for the Bears young defensive linemen.
A couple of other standouts on the '83 I-AA championship game team - running back Leonard Williams and defensive back Fred Davis - had a cup of coffee in the NFL as free agent signees. Williams saw limited action with the Kansas City Chiefs in the '86 season and more as a Buffalo Bills in the '87 strike season. Davis played with the Seattle Seahawks in '87.
An case could be made for Tony Jones as Western's "Most Famous" NFL player. T-Bone was signed a free agent offensive lineman in '88 by the original Cleveland Browns after Coach Bob Waters convinced his old `49ers teammate and Browns scout, Howard Mudd, to take a chance on Jones. I remember Waters telling Mudd "If you sign him, you won't be able to cut him...the money and bright lights will motivate him and when he is motivated, he is as good as I've seen on this level." Jones became a starter for the Browns in his second season ('89) and has established himself as one of the best blockers in the NFL over the past 11 season as a starter for the Browns, Ravens and currently the Broncos. He has two Super Bowl rings and recently signed a long-term deal (reportedly $35 million) to complete his career in Denver.
Kirk Roach, who broke most of WCU's place kicking records and set several NCAA I-AA marks from '84 thru '87, was a wide-spread "can't miss" NFL player, when he became WCU's highest draft pick to date (5th round, Buffalo Bills) in '88. He had a tremendously strong and accurate leg, but was not your stereotypical kicker as he was big, strong, tough and quick.
However, he went on the DL with complications following hernia surgery before the exhibition season started and never got on the playing field that season ('88) as his competitor, Scott Norwood, turned had a sensational season. Buffalo did not protect Roach and Green Bay signed him prior to the '89 season. However, he was released after a so-so exhibition season and never tried a comeback. Kirk is successful in the business world, living in Knoxville.
Willie Williams was drafted in the sixth round of the '93 draft by Pittsburgh and became a starter at cornerback in his second season. The three-time All-Southern Conference selection led the AFC in interceptions in '96. After solid years with the Steelers, he signed a free agent deal with Seattle in '97 and has started every game for the Seahawks for four seasons. Earlier this season, he returned an interception 69 yards for a score.
Andrew Jordan was picked by Minnesota in the '94 draft and worked his way into the starting tight end spot in the '95 season. After three seasons with the Vikings, he was released and signed by Miami in '97 then picked up later the same season by Tampa Bay. He then spent part of the '98 and '99 seasons with Philadelphia before he was resigned by the Vikings last year. The West Charlotte High product has gone full circle as he is now the starting tight end, again, for Minnesota.
David Patten's trip to a starting job in the NFL is truly a Cinderella Story. The Catamounts' and Southern Conference's top pass receiver in 1995, played in Canada and in the Arena League before signing as a free agent with the New York Giants in '97. He was waived during the exhibition season, but re-signed a few weeks later while working as a coffee bean grinder in his hometown of Columbia, SC. He impressed the Giants staff with his kick returns and other special teams play which earned him more playing time at wide receiver during the next two seasons. He had a pair of touchdown pass receptions last season. The new Cleveland Browns went after him during the past off-season and signed him as a kick returner and backup receiver. He recently moved into a starting spot and had 15 catches for 298 yards through the Browns first five games. He had the best game of his career last Sunday against Baltimore as he pulled in seven passes for 113 yards. He is also averaging 22.7 yards per kickoff return.
The latest Catamount to make it in the NFL is Brad Hoover, No. 2 on WCU's all-time rushing yardage list, who signed as a free agent last spring with the Carolina Panthers. The ex-Ledford High (Thomasville, NC) player impressed the Panthers with his determined demeanor and playing style that won the hearts of Western's fans. Through four games, he had five carries as a reserve fullback and is a member of several Panther special teams.
Who will be the next Catamount to wear an NFL uniform...Lorenzo Ferguson? David Rivers? Josh Jones?
Stay tuned and remember all this information in case you are selected to appear on "Who Wants
To Be A Millionaire?" Don't laugh...they have got to start searching for questions in strange
places soon.
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