Frank Thomas

Woodson Notable Sports Figures
Chronology
1965 Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana
1982 Named All-American Team at Purdue University
1987 Drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers
1989-94, Plays in the ProBowl
1996, 1999
1992 Grieves the loss of his father who died after having brain
surgery
1993 Named NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year
1994 NFL names him to the 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
1995 Tears his ACL, spends the season rehabilitating his knee, and
comes back to play in the Super Bowl
1998 Rated the 30th best player of all time by Pro Football Weekly
2000 Enters the season with 54 career interceptions, second among
active players
2001 Earns his first Super Bowl ring with the Baltimore Ravens
had to stick with my own. The only people I knew who
were mixed, like me, were my brothers and that made us
a very close and protective family.” Woodson confessed
that he, “. . . started playing football because [he] wanted
to play with [his brothers].”
Athletic Prowess
In high school, Woodson was a three sport athlete playing
football, basketball, and running track. The high
school football coaches were tough on him and in the
tenth grade he almost abandoned the sport altogether. Fortunately,
Woodson’s track coach convinced him to give it
another try, telling him that there was nothing worse than
quitting. During his senior year, Parade named Woodson
an All-American football player at both the cornerback
and running back positions. He also earned high honors as
part of the all-conference basketball team and twice took
the state championship in low and high hurdles.
College football coaches pursued Woodson at graduation
time and he chose Purdue University, staying close
to his family. At Purdue, he was a four year starter for
the Boilermakers, played 44 consecutive games and setting
13 team records, including 320 solo tackles and 11
interceptions.
On the football field Woodson could go anywhere
and do anything. He played various positions and excelled
in them all. Woodson’s coaches switched him
around right up until his final game at Purdue, in which
he played tailback, cornerback, returned kickoffs and
punts, and covered kicks on the special team units. In
that game he rushed for 97 yards, caught three passes
for 67 yards, made 10 tackles and returned three punts
for 30 yards. At the end of his college football career
Woodson earned All-American honors and was the runner
up in votes for the Jim Thorpe Award, which honors
the nation’s best collegiate defensive back.
Learning to Play Well
The Pittsburgh Steelers chose Woodson with the
tenth overall pick in the NFL draft of 1987. The biggest
1808
Awards and Accomplishments
1989-94, Seven time Pro Bowler
1996, 1999
1989, 1990, Named first-team All-Pro and All-NFL six times as
1992-94, cornerback, kickoff returner and safety
1999
1998 Named to the NFL’s 75th Anniversary team; Rated 30th-best
player of all-time by Pro Football Weekly
2001 Named first-team All-Pro by College & Pro Football
Newsweekly
challenge to Woodson in his first year in the NFL was
mastering one position. He had to buckle down and take
the time to learn the cornerback position in earnest. “I
was a nervous wreck,” he admitted to Sports Illustrated.
“I’d relied too long on my speed and physical talents,
and I didn’t understand the game.” The Steelers played
Woodson as a defensive backup and as a kick returner in
that first year. He revealed to Sporting News magazine,
“I had to make myself play well.” And play well he did.
By 1989 he led the NFL in kick returns with a 27.3-yard
average. That year he won the respect of his fellow players
who elected him to play in the Pro Bowl as a kick return
specialist.
Playing from the Shoulders Up
Woodson intercepted eight passes in 1993 and earned
the title NFL Defensive Player of the Year. The honor was
hard earned. That year Steelers Coach Bill Cowher had
decided to push Woodson to engage the ball more in each
game. Cowher explained to Sporting News, “He kind of
thrives on that and has taken his game to another level.
You have to get him around the football as much as you
can. If you leave him in one spot, they can scheme away
from him. We want him involved.” Woodson told the
Sporting News, “I am just trying to play more from the
shoulders up this year and let my abilities take over. I am
trying to think about what I am doing. In the past, I’d
have two or three great games and two or three bad ones.
I’ve eliminated those lapses.” In part because of Woodson’s
increased contact with the football, The Steelers entered
the 1993 play-offs as a wildcard team but were soon
eliminated by Joe Montana and the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Steelers defensive lineup finished second in the
NFL in 1994. While the linebackers and defensive linesmen
increased pressure on quarterbacks, Woodson went
man to man with receivers. He had 83 tackles, three
sacks, four interceptions and 23 pass defenses and was
named the AFC Defensive Back of the Year. Because of
their outstanding season record, Pittsburg was set to
enjoy home-field advantage throughout the play-offs.
Believing the hype that predicted an easy victory over
San Diego, the Steelers’ overconfidence even extended
to plans for a victory Super Bowl rap video. They were
on the verge of becoming the first franchise to win five