Calvin O'Neal

Calvin O'Neal
No. 51
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1954-10-06) October 6, 1954 (age 70)
Osceola, Arkansas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High school:Saginaw (Saginaw, Michigan)
College:Michigan
NFL draft:1977 / round: 6 / pick: 163
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Calvin O'Neal (born October 6, 1954) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for the Baltimore Colts of the National Football League (NFL) in 1978. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines, earning first-team All-American honors while serving as team co-captain in 1976.

Amateur career

O'Neal is a 1972 graduate of Saginaw High School,[1] where he won All-State and All-Saginaw Valley honors in football and was named Most Valuable Player of the Saginaw Valley Conference, after averaging 14 tackles per game.[2] He was also a standout in basketball and track and field at Saginaw High from 1969–71.[2] O'Neal was teammates with quarterback Tom Slade both at Saginaw High School and at the University of Michigan.[3]

He attended the University of Michigan on a football scholarship. He served as co-captain along with Rob Lytle and Kirk Lewis.[4] The 1976 team was ranked #1 for eight weeks, but lost two of its last four games including a Rose Bowl loss to the USC Trojans. However, the team had four All-Americans (O'Neal, Lytle, Jim Smith, and Mark Donahue) as well as nine All Big Ten Conference players.[4] O'Neal made ten tackles in his first game for the Wolverines,[2] was twice named an All-Big Ten linebacker and was a Consensus All-American and team co-captain in 1976.[5] He was a team leader on defense, setting a season record with 151 tackles in 1975, and had a record 378 tackles for his career.[5] O'Neal combined strength and speed from his inside linebacking spot, and had three interceptions in 1976 for 60 return yards and a touchdown.[5]

Professional career

O'Neal was selected by the Baltimore Colts in the sixth round (163rd pick) of the 1977 NFL Draft.[6] He played in 15 games for the Colts in 1978.[1]

O'Neal lives in Shreveport, Louisiana.[7] He is the founder of Lifestyle Business Affairs, an enrichment program for high school and collegiate student-athletes.[8] O'Neal was inducted into the Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.[2]

Notes

  1. ^ a b "Calvin O'neal". databaseFootball.com. databaseSports.com. Archived from the original on February 10, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d "Calvin O'Neal". saginawcountysports.org. Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on January 6, 2009. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
  3. ^ Camp, Terry (June 8, 2006). "Mid-Michigan football legend needs help". ABC Inc., WJRT-TV/DT Flint, MI. Archived from the original on August 31, 2006. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
  4. ^ a b "1976 Football Team". The Regents of the University of Michigan. March 31, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
  5. ^ a b c "University of Michigan Football All-American, 1976, Team Co-Captain, 1976: Calvin O'Neal". The Regents of the University of Michigan. February 10, 2007.
  6. ^ "History:Full Draft – Alphabetically". NFL Enterprises LLC. 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
  7. ^ "Former Colts: Where are they now?". ColtPower.com and Scout.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
  8. ^ "Lifestyle Business Affairs". Lifestyle/Business Affairs. 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007. [dead link‍]