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{{short description|American football quarterback}}
{{Short description|American football player (born 1959)}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL player
{{Infobox NFL biography
|image=
|image=
|position=[[Quarterback]]
|number=15
|number=15
|position=[[Quarterback]]
|birth_date={{birth date and age|1959|2|17}}
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1959|2|17}}
|birth_place=[[Portland, Oregon]]
|birth_place=[[Portland, Oregon]], U.S.
|death_date=
|death_date=
|height_ft=6
|height_in=3
|weight_lbs=215
|draftyear=1981
|draftyear=1981
|draftround=2
|draftround=2
|draftpick=33
|draftpick=33
|high_school=[[Lake Oswego High School|Lake Oswego]] {{nowrap|([[Lake Oswego, Oregon]])}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Neil Lomax (1996) - Hall of Fame|url=https://footballfoundation.org/hof_search.aspx?hof=1975|access-date=2020-10-01|website=National Football Foundation|language=en}}</ref>
|college=[[Portland State University|Portland State]]
|college=[[Portland State Vikings football|Portland State]]
|teams=
|teams=
* [[Arizona Cardinals|St. Louis / Phoenix Cardinals]] ([[1981 NFL season|1981]]–[[1988 NFL season|1988]])
* [[Arizona Cardinals|St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals]] ([[1981 NFL season|1981]]–[[1988 NFL season|1989]])
|statlabel1=[[Touchdown|TD]]–[[Interception|INT]]
|statlabel1=[[Touchdown|TD]]–[[Interception|INT]]
|statvalue1=136–90
|statvalue1=136–90
|statlabel2=Yards
|statlabel2=Passing yards
|statvalue2=22,771
|statvalue2=22,771
|statlabel3=[[Passer rating|QB Rating]]
|statlabel3=[[Passer rating]]
|statvalue3=82.7
|statvalue3=82.7
|nfl=LOM692150
|highlights=
|highlights=
* 2× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1985 Pro Bowl|1984]], [[1988 Pro Bowl|1987]])
* 2× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1985 Pro Bowl|1984]], [[1988 Pro Bowl|1987]])
* [[List of National Football League season passing yards leaders|NFL passing yards leader]] (1987)
* [[Pro Football Writers of America NFL All-Rookie Team|PFWA All-Rookie Team]] ([[Pro Football Writers of America NFL All-Rookie Team#1981|1981]])
* First-team [[Division I-AA|I-AA]] [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] (1980)
* [[Portland State Vikings football#Retired numbers|Portland State Vikings No. 11]] retired
|CollegeHOF=1975
|CollegeHOF=1975
|pfr=LomaNe00
|pfr=LomaNe00
}}
}}
'''Neil Vincent Lomax''' (born February 17, 1959) is a former [[American football]] [[quarterback]] who played his entire career for the [[Arizona Cardinals|St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals]].
'''Neil Vincent Lomax''' (born February 17, 1959) is an American former professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[quarterback]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL), playing his entire career for the [[Arizona Cardinals|St. Louis / Phoenix Cardinals]]. He played [[college football]] for the [[Portland State Vikings football|Portland State Vikings]], setting numerous [[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] (NCAA) passing records running head coach [[Mouse Davis]]'s [[run and shoot offense]]. Lomax was inducted into the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] in 1996.


==College career==
==College career==
Lomax was a standout college player at [[Portland State University]], going from fifth-string freshman quarterback on partial scholarship to emergency starter to [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] legend. By the end of his college career, Neil Lomax held 90 NCAA records, including one game where he threw for seven [[touchdown]] passes in a single quarter. He also had a game against [[University of Northern Colorado|Northern Colorado]] in 1979 where he was 44/77 for 499 yards passing. As of 2012, that game ranks 4th all-time at Portland State for yards thrown in a game. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications in 1981.
From [[Lake Oswego, Oregon]], a suburb south of [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], Lomax was a standout [[College football]] player at [[Portland State University]], going from fifth-string freshman quarterback in 1977 on a partial scholarship to emergency starter to [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] legend in the [[run and shoot offense]] of head coach [[Mouse Davis]].<ref name=wnlox>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YK1fAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0DIMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4249%2C4501744 |work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |location=(Idaho) |agency=Associated Press |title=Who's Neil Lomax? |date=November 11, 1980 |page=4C}}</ref> By the end of his college career in 1980, he held 90 NCAA records, including <!--one game where he threw for--> seven [[touchdown]] passes in the first quarter against [[Delaware State Hornets football|Delaware State]], which ended in a [[1980 Delaware State vs. Portland State football game|105–0 shutout]] for the [[1980 NCAA Division I-AA football season|Division I-AA]] Vikings.<ref name=wnlox/><ref name=lclamk>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2_hVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9uEDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6760%2C2832573 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=wire service reports |title=Lomax collars a mark, so do Vikings 105-0|date=November 9, 1980 |page=8B}}</ref>
Two weeks earlier, independent Portland State crushed [[1980 NCAA Division II football season|Division II]] [[1980 Cal Poly Pomona Broncos football team|Cal Poly Pomona]] 93–7.<ref name=rlup93>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=r-9VAAAAIBAJ&sjid=8eEDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6863%2C8157940 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=wire service reports |title=Portland State rolls up 93 points, QBs 603 yards |date=October 26, 1980 |page=8C}}</ref> In his final collegiate game, Lomax threw for 474 yards with five touchdown passes as PSU waxed [[Weber State Wildcats football|Weber State]] 75–0 to finish at 8–3; he ended his college career with more than {{convert|13200|yd|mi|abbr=off}} passing and over a hundred touchdown passes.<ref name=fvtdfy>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=5vhVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9uEDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3992%2C7108324 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=wire service reports |title=Lomax gets 5 TDs. 474 yards |date=November 23, 1980 |page=8C}}</ref>


Lomax also had a game at Division II [[Northern Colorado Bears football|Northern Colorado]] in 1979 where he was 44/77 for 499 yards passing.<ref name=getrec>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=1ABWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=E-IDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1286%2C3427772|work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon) |agency=wire service reports |title=Lomax gets records, UNC gets win |date=October 21, 1979 |page=8B}}</ref> As of 2012, that game ranks fourth all-time at Portland State for yards thrown in a game.
*1977: 102/181 for 1,670 yards with 18 TD vs 5 INT.
He graduated with a <!--Bachelor of Science-->degree in communications in 1981. He was inducted into the [[Portland State University|Portland State]] Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997 and had his #11 retired by the university.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://goviks.com/honors/portland-state-athletics-hall-of-fame/neil-lomax/34|work=Portland State University|title=Neil Lomax (1997) - Portland State Athletics Hall of Fame|access-date=June 14, 2023}}</ref>
*1978: 241/436 for 3,506 yards with 26 TD vs 22 INT.

*1979: 299/516 for 3,950 yards with 26 TD vs 16 INT.
=== College statistics ===
*1980: 296/473 for 4,094 yards with 37 TD vs 12 INT.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Season
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="7"| Passing
|-
! {{abbr|Cmp|Passes completed}} !! {{abbr|Att|Passes attempted}} !! {{abbr|Pct|Completion percentage}} !! {{abbr|Yds|Passing yards}} !! {{abbr|Y/A|Yards per passing attempt}} !! {{abbr|TD|Passing touchdowns}} !! {{abbr|Int|Interceptions}}
|-
! [[1977 NCAA Division II football season|1977]] || Portland State
| 102 || 181 || 56.4 || 1,670 || '''9.2''' || 18 || '''5'''
|-
! [[1978 NCAA Division I-AA football season|1978]] || Portland State
| 241 || 436 || 55.3 || 3,506 || 8.0 || 26 || 22
|-
! [[1979 NCAA Division I-AA football season|1979]] || Portland State
| '''299''' || '''516''' || 58.0 || 3,950 || 7.7 || 26 || 16
|-
! [[1980 NCAA Division I-AA football season|1980]] || [[1980 Portland State Vikings football team|Portland State]]
| 296 || 473 || '''62.6''' || '''4,094''' || 8.7 || '''37''' || 12
|-
! colspan="2"| Career || 938 || 1,606 || 58.4 || 13,220 || 8.2 || 107 || 55
|}


==Professional career==
==Professional career==
Lomax was drafted as the fifth pick by the then-[[St. Louis Cardinals (football)|St. Louis Cardinals]] in the second round of the [[1981 NFL Draft]]. Despite his college heroics, he had an up-and-down nine-year career for some very mediocre Cardinals teams, displaying brilliance in his two Pro Bowl years (1984 and 1987), but also occasionally playing poorly enough to be benched.
Lomax was selected by the [[1981 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|St. Louis Cardinals]] in the [[1981 NFL draft#Round two|second round]] of the [[1981 NFL draft]], the 33rd overall pick. Despite his college heroics, he had an up-and-down nine-year career for some very mediocre Cardinals teams, displaying brilliance in his two Pro Bowl years (1984 and 1987), but also occasionally playing poorly enough to be benched.


In Lomax' first season in [[1981 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|1981]], he played in 14 games while starting seven of them (with 15-year veteran [[Jim Hart (American football)|Jim Hart]] starting the other nine), going 4-3 while throwing four touchdowns and ten interceptions while passing for 1,575 yards on a 50.4 completion percentage. In the strike-shortened nine game season of 1982, Lomax started every game, passing for 1,367 yards for five touchdowns and six interceptions while having a 53.2 completion percentage. Lomax started the playoff game that the Cardinals had against the [[Green Bay Packers]], throwing 32-of-51 for 385 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, but the Cardinals lost 41–16. It was his only playoff appearance.
In Lomax' first season in [[1981 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|1981]], he played in 14 games while starting seven of them (with 15-year veteran [[Jim Hart (American football)|Jim Hart]] starting the other nine), going 4–3 while throwing four touchdowns and ten interceptions while passing for 1,575 yards on a 50.4 completion percentage. In the strike-shortened nine-game season of 1982, Lomax started every game, passing for 1,367 yards for five touchdowns and six interceptions while having a 53.2 completion percentage. Lomax started the playoff game that the Cardinals had against the [[Green Bay Packers]], throwing 32-of-51 for 385 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, but the Cardinals lost 41–16. It was his only playoff appearance.


Lomax started thirteen games the following year while Hart started the other three. He went 7-5-1 while throwing for 2,636 yards with 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for a 59.0% completion percentage, but the team failed to return to the postseason, finishing 8-7-1 after starting the season 1-5.
Lomax started 13 games the following year while Hart started the other three. He went 7–5–1 while throwing for 2,636 yards with 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for a 59.0% completion percentage, but the team failed to return to the postseason, finishing 8–7–1 after starting the season 1–5.


During 1984, Lomax started every game, and he had his best season yet, throwing for 4,614 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions on a 61.6% completion percentage, all career highs. His passing yards rank 20th all-time for a season. He was named to the Pro Bowl that year. Although the Cardinals finished 9-7, the head-to-head record with the [[New York Giants]] and the [[Dallas Cowboys]] (for which the Cardinals went a combined 2-2 against, alongside with losing the season finale against the [[Washington Redskins]]) meant that St. Louis lost out on a playoff spot. Lomax started in each game again in 1985, but the team went 5-11, as he threw for 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on 3,214 yards and a 56.3% completion percentage. For 1986, Lomax started 14 games while [[Cliff Stoudt]] started the other two, with the former going 4-9-1 over the latter's 0-2 record. He threw for 2,583 yards while having 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on a 57.0% completion percentage. The following season was both Lomax's penultimate year as a Cardinal and the final one for the team in St. Louis. He started in 12 games, with [[Shawn Halloran]] (who started two games and went 1-1) and [[Sammy Garza]] (who started one game and losing it) doing the others; Lomax went 6-6 while throwing for 3,387 yards with 24 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 59.4% completion percentage. He was named to the Pro Bowl that year. In his final year in 1988, the Cardinals' first in Arizona, Lomax started 14 games (while [[Cliff Stoudt]] started two others) and went 7-7, throwing for 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for 3,395 yards and a 57.6 completion percentage.
On January 3, 1984, the Cardinals released Jim Hart and Lomax became the permanent starter, starting in every game, and he had his best season yet, throwing for 4,614 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions on a 61.6% completion percentage, all career highs. His passing yards rank 20th all-time for a season. He was named to the Pro Bowl that year. Although the Cardinals finished 9–7, the head-to-head record with the [[New York Giants]] and the [[Dallas Cowboys]] (for which the Cardinals went a combined 2–2, along with losing the season finale against the [[Washington Redskins]]) meant that St. Louis lost out on a playoff spot. Lomax started in each game again in 1985, but the team went 5–11, as he threw for 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on 3,214 yards and a 56.3% completion percentage. For 1986, Lomax started 14 games while [[Cliff Stoudt]] started the other two, with the former going 4–9–1 over the latter's 0–2 record. He threw for 2,583 yards while having 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on a 57.0% completion percentage. The following season was both Lomax's penultimate year as a Cardinal and the final one for the team in St. Louis. He started in 12 games, with [[Shawn Halloran]] (who started two games and went 1–1) and [[Sammy Garza]] (who started one game, losing it) doing the others; Lomax went 6-6 while throwing for 3,387 yards with 24 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 59.4% completion percentage. He was named to the Pro Bowl that year. In his final year in 1988, the Cardinals' first in Arizona, Lomax started 14 games (while [[Cliff Stoudt]] started two others) and went 7–7, throwing for 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for 3,395 yards and a 57.6 completion percentage.


Lomax was forced to retire before the 1990 season (after missing all of 1989) due to a severely [[arthritis|arthritic]] hip. In 1991, he underwent [[hip replacement surgery]]. Lomax finished with a career record of 47-52-2, 136 touchdowns, and over 22,000 yards passing, with those categories (along with completions and attempts) being second most as a Cardinal, after Hart.
Lomax was forced to retire before the 1990 season (after missing all of 1989) due to a severely [[arthritis|arthritic]] hip. In 1991, he underwent [[hip replacement surgery]]. Lomax finished with a career record of 47–52–2, 136 touchdowns, and over 22,000 yards passing, with those categories (along with completions and attempts) being second most as a Cardinal, after Hart.


==NFL career statistics==
==After football==
{| class="wikitable"
Lomax is the president of ProMax Event Management and an avid [[golf]]er. For the 2005 [[OSAA]] Football season, Lomax served as offensive coordinator and quarterback coach for the [[Tigard High School]] Tigers in [[Tigard, Oregon]]. He was inducted into the [[Oregon Sports Hall of Fame]] in 1993 and into the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] in 1996. In 2008 he began working with the Roosevelt Rough Riders, where he served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under head coach Christian Swain. Lomax was then hired as the quarterbacks coach for Tualatin High School in Tualatin Oregon. On March 21, 2018, Lomax was announced as the new head football coach at Fort Vancouver high school in Vancouver, Washington.
|-
! colspan="2"| Legend
|-
| style="background:#ff0; width:3em;"|
| [[Pro Bowl]] appearance
|-
| style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|
| Led the league
|-
| '''Bold'''
| Career high
|}


=== Regular season ===
==Personal==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
Lomax and his wife Laurie live in [[Lake Oswego, Oregon]].<ref name=promax>{{cite web|url=http://www.videas.net/promaxevents/lomax.htm|title=ProMax Founder Neil Lomax biography|accessdate=August 9, 2007|publisher=ProMax Event Management|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928203141/http://www.videas.net/promaxevents/lomax.htm|archivedate=September 28, 2007}}</ref> They have four children: the oldest, Nick, was a quarterback at [[Boise State Broncos football|Boise State]]; his daughter Ali played basketball at [[Westmont College]], his second son, Jack, was a quarterback at [[Lake Oswego High School]] and at [[Oregon State Beavers football|Oregon State]]; and his youngest son Mitch played for Lake Oswego [[2007 Little League World Series|Little League]]'s Oregon state championship baseball team and Lake Oswego's Oregon state championship football team.<ref name=promax/><ref name=sbsun>{{cite news|url=http://www.sbsun.com/search/ci_6552995|title=Baseball and barbecue do mix; Civitan LL hosts Oregon champs|publisher=San Bernardino Sun|date=August 9, 2007|last=Tenorio|first=Gina|accessdate=August 6, 2007}}</ref>
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="3"| Games
! colspan="9"| Passing
! colspan="5"| Rushing
|-
! GP !! GS !! Record !! Cmp !! Att !! Pct !! Yds !! Avg !! TD !! Int !! Lng !! Rtg !! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD
|-
! [[1981 NFL season|1981]] !! [[1981 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| 14 || 7 || 4−3 || 119 || 236 || 50.4 || 1,575 || 6.7 || 4 || 10 || 75 || 59.9 || 19 || 104 || '''5.5''' || 22 || 2
|-
! [[1982 NFL season|1982]] !! [[1982 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| 15 || 9 || 5−4 || 109 || 205 || 53.2 || 1,367 || 6.7 || 5 || 6 || 42 || 70.1 || 28 || 119 || 4.3 || 19 || 1
|-
! [[1983 NFL season|1983]] !! [[1983 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| 13 || 13 || 7−5–1 || 209 || 354 || 59.0 || 2,636 || 7.4 || 24 || 11 || 71 || 92.0 || 27 || 127 || 4.7 || '''35''' || 2
|-
! style="background:#ffff00"|[[1984 NFL season|1984]] !! [[1984 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || '''9−7''' || '''345''' || '''560''' || '''61.6''' || '''4,614''' || '''8.2''' || '''28''' || '''16''' || 83 || '''92.5''' || '''35''' || '''184''' || 5.3 || 20 || '''3'''
|-
! [[1985 NFL season|1985]] !! [[1985 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| '''16''' || '''16''' || 5−11 || 265 || 471 || 56.3 || 3,214 || 6.8 || 18 || 12 || 47 || 79.5 || 32 || 125 || 3.9 || 23 || 0
|-
! [[1986 NFL season|1986]] !! [[1986 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| 14 || 14 || 4–9–1 || 240 || 421 || 57.0 || 2,583 || 6.1 || 13 || 12 || 48 || 73.6 || '''35''' || 148 || 4.2 || 18 || 1
|-
! style="background:#ffff00;"|[[1987 NFL season|1987]] !! [[1987 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| 12 || 12 || 6−6 || style="background:#cfecec;"|275 || style="background:#cfecec;"|463 || 59.4 || style="background:#cfecec;"|3,387 || 7.3 || 24 || 12 || 57 || 88.5 || 29 || 107 || 3.7 || 19 || 0
|-
! [[1988 NFL season|1988]] !! [[1988 Phoenix Cardinals season|PHX]]
| 14 || 14 || 7−7 || 255 || 443 || 57.6 || 3,395 || 7.7 || 20 || 11 || '''93''' || 86.7 || 17 || 55 || 3.2 || 13 || 1
|-
! [[1989 NFL season|1989]] !! [[1989 Phoenix Cardinals season|PHX]]
| colspan="17"| ''did not play due to injury''
|-
! colspan="2"| Career !! 108 !! 101 !! 47−52–2 !! 1,817 !! 3,153 !! 57.6 !! 22,771 !! 7.2 !! 136 !! 90 !! 93 !! 82.7 !! 222 !! 969 !! 4.4 !! 35 !! 10
|}

=== Playoffs ===
{| class="wikitable " style="text-align:center"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="3"| Games
! colspan="9"| Passing
! colspan="5"| Rushing
|-
! GP !! GS !! Record !! Cmp !! Att !! Pct !! Yds !! Avg !! TD !! Int !! Lng !! Rtg !! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD
|-
! [[1982–83 NFL playoffs|1982]] !! [[1982 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season|STL]]
| 1 || 1 || 0−1 || 32 || 51 || 62.7 || 385 || 7.5 || 2 || 2 || 36 || 82.6 || 4 || 9 || 2.3 || 6 || 0
|-
! colspan="2"| Career !! 1 !! 1 !! 0−1 !! 32 !! 51 !! 62.7 !! 385 !! 7.5 !! 2 !! 2 !! 36 !! 82.6 !! 4 !! 9 !! 2.3 !! 6 !! 0
|}

==After football==
Lomax was the head coach for [[Fort Vancouver High School]] in [[Vancouver, Washington]] for two seasons before resigning in January 2020. He resigned as his commute from [[Wilsonville, Oregon]] was too much.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Valencia|first=Paul|date=January 6, 2020|title=Neil Lomax gives advice as he exits Fort Vancouver football {{!}} ClarkCountyToday.com|url=https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/sports/neil-lomax-gives-advice-as-he-exits-fort-vancouver-football/|access-date=October 1, 2020}}</ref> He is now an assistant coach, for quarterbacks, at George Fox University.


==References==
==References==
Line 57: Line 158:


==External links==
==External links==
* {{College Football HoF|1975}}
*{{Oregon Encyclopedia|lomax_neil_1959_}}
* {{Oregon Encyclopedia|lomax_neil_1959_}}
* {{Footballstats |nfl=neil-lomax |espn= |cbs= |yahoo= |si= |pfr=L/LomaNe00 |rotoworld= }}


{{Portland State Vikings quarterback navbox}}
{{St. Louis Cardinals 1981 draft navbox}}
{{St. Louis Cardinals 1981 draft navbox}}
{{Arizona Cardinals starting quarterback navbox}}
{{Arizona Cardinals starting quarterback navbox}}
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[[Category:1959 births]]
[[Category:1959 births]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Oregon]]
[[Category:American football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:American football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:Phoenix Cardinals players]]
[[Category:Phoenix Cardinals players]]
[[Category:Portland State Vikings football players]]
[[Category:Portland State Vikings football players]]
[[Category:St. Louis Cardinals (football) players]]
[[Category:St. Louis Cardinals (football) players]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:High school football coaches in Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Lake Oswego, Oregon]]
[[Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:Lake Oswego High School alumni]]
[[Category:Lake Oswego High School alumni]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Lake Oswego, Oregon]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Portland, Oregon]]

Latest revision as of 23:28, 26 October 2024

Neil Lomax
No. 15
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1959-02-17) February 17, 1959 (age 65)
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:Lake Oswego (Lake Oswego, Oregon)[1]
College:Portland State
NFL draft:1981 / round: 2 / pick: 33
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
TD–INT:136–90
Passing yards:22,771
Passer rating:82.7
Stats at Pro Football Reference
College Football Hall of Fame

Neil Vincent Lomax (born February 17, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL), playing his entire career for the St. Louis / Phoenix Cardinals. He played college football for the Portland State Vikings, setting numerous National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) passing records running head coach Mouse Davis's run and shoot offense. Lomax was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.

College career

[edit]

From Lake Oswego, Oregon, a suburb south of Portland, Lomax was a standout College football player at Portland State University, going from fifth-string freshman quarterback in 1977 on a partial scholarship to emergency starter to NCAA legend in the run and shoot offense of head coach Mouse Davis.[2] By the end of his college career in 1980, he held 90 NCAA records, including seven touchdown passes in the first quarter against Delaware State, which ended in a 105–0 shutout for the Division I-AA Vikings.[2][3] Two weeks earlier, independent Portland State crushed Division II Cal Poly Pomona 93–7.[4] In his final collegiate game, Lomax threw for 474 yards with five touchdown passes as PSU waxed Weber State 75–0 to finish at 8–3; he ended his college career with more than 13,200 yards (7.5 miles) passing and over a hundred touchdown passes.[5]

Lomax also had a game at Division II Northern Colorado in 1979 where he was 44/77 for 499 yards passing.[6] As of 2012, that game ranks fourth all-time at Portland State for yards thrown in a game. He graduated with a degree in communications in 1981. He was inducted into the Portland State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997 and had his #11 retired by the university.[7]

College statistics

[edit]
Season Team Passing
Cmp Att Pct Yds Y/A TD Int
1977 Portland State 102 181 56.4 1,670 9.2 18 5
1978 Portland State 241 436 55.3 3,506 8.0 26 22
1979 Portland State 299 516 58.0 3,950 7.7 26 16
1980 Portland State 296 473 62.6 4,094 8.7 37 12
Career 938 1,606 58.4 13,220 8.2 107 55

Professional career

[edit]

Lomax was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the second round of the 1981 NFL draft, the 33rd overall pick. Despite his college heroics, he had an up-and-down nine-year career for some very mediocre Cardinals teams, displaying brilliance in his two Pro Bowl years (1984 and 1987), but also occasionally playing poorly enough to be benched.

In Lomax' first season in 1981, he played in 14 games while starting seven of them (with 15-year veteran Jim Hart starting the other nine), going 4–3 while throwing four touchdowns and ten interceptions while passing for 1,575 yards on a 50.4 completion percentage. In the strike-shortened nine-game season of 1982, Lomax started every game, passing for 1,367 yards for five touchdowns and six interceptions while having a 53.2 completion percentage. Lomax started the playoff game that the Cardinals had against the Green Bay Packers, throwing 32-of-51 for 385 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, but the Cardinals lost 41–16. It was his only playoff appearance.

Lomax started 13 games the following year while Hart started the other three. He went 7–5–1 while throwing for 2,636 yards with 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for a 59.0% completion percentage, but the team failed to return to the postseason, finishing 8–7–1 after starting the season 1–5.

On January 3, 1984, the Cardinals released Jim Hart and Lomax became the permanent starter, starting in every game, and he had his best season yet, throwing for 4,614 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions on a 61.6% completion percentage, all career highs. His passing yards rank 20th all-time for a season. He was named to the Pro Bowl that year. Although the Cardinals finished 9–7, the head-to-head record with the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys (for which the Cardinals went a combined 2–2, along with losing the season finale against the Washington Redskins) meant that St. Louis lost out on a playoff spot. Lomax started in each game again in 1985, but the team went 5–11, as he threw for 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on 3,214 yards and a 56.3% completion percentage. For 1986, Lomax started 14 games while Cliff Stoudt started the other two, with the former going 4–9–1 over the latter's 0–2 record. He threw for 2,583 yards while having 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on a 57.0% completion percentage. The following season was both Lomax's penultimate year as a Cardinal and the final one for the team in St. Louis. He started in 12 games, with Shawn Halloran (who started two games and went 1–1) and Sammy Garza (who started one game, losing it) doing the others; Lomax went 6-6 while throwing for 3,387 yards with 24 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 59.4% completion percentage. He was named to the Pro Bowl that year. In his final year in 1988, the Cardinals' first in Arizona, Lomax started 14 games (while Cliff Stoudt started two others) and went 7–7, throwing for 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for 3,395 yards and a 57.6 completion percentage.

Lomax was forced to retire before the 1990 season (after missing all of 1989) due to a severely arthritic hip. In 1991, he underwent hip replacement surgery. Lomax finished with a career record of 47–52–2, 136 touchdowns, and over 22,000 yards passing, with those categories (along with completions and attempts) being second most as a Cardinal, after Hart.

NFL career statistics

[edit]
Legend
Pro Bowl appearance
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Lng Rtg Att Yds Avg Lng TD
1981 STL 14 7 4−3 119 236 50.4 1,575 6.7 4 10 75 59.9 19 104 5.5 22 2
1982 STL 15 9 5−4 109 205 53.2 1,367 6.7 5 6 42 70.1 28 119 4.3 19 1
1983 STL 13 13 7−5–1 209 354 59.0 2,636 7.4 24 11 71 92.0 27 127 4.7 35 2
1984 STL 16 16 9−7 345 560 61.6 4,614 8.2 28 16 83 92.5 35 184 5.3 20 3
1985 STL 16 16 5−11 265 471 56.3 3,214 6.8 18 12 47 79.5 32 125 3.9 23 0
1986 STL 14 14 4–9–1 240 421 57.0 2,583 6.1 13 12 48 73.6 35 148 4.2 18 1
1987 STL 12 12 6−6 275 463 59.4 3,387 7.3 24 12 57 88.5 29 107 3.7 19 0
1988 PHX 14 14 7−7 255 443 57.6 3,395 7.7 20 11 93 86.7 17 55 3.2 13 1
1989 PHX did not play due to injury
Career 108 101 47−52–2 1,817 3,153 57.6 22,771 7.2 136 90 93 82.7 222 969 4.4 35 10

Playoffs

[edit]
Year Team Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Lng Rtg Att Yds Avg Lng TD
1982 STL 1 1 0−1 32 51 62.7 385 7.5 2 2 36 82.6 4 9 2.3 6 0
Career 1 1 0−1 32 51 62.7 385 7.5 2 2 36 82.6 4 9 2.3 6 0

After football

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Lomax was the head coach for Fort Vancouver High School in Vancouver, Washington for two seasons before resigning in January 2020. He resigned as his commute from Wilsonville, Oregon was too much.[8] He is now an assistant coach, for quarterbacks, at George Fox University.

References

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  1. ^ "Neil Lomax (1996) - Hall of Fame". National Football Foundation. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Who's Neil Lomax?". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 11, 1980. p. 4C.
  3. ^ "Lomax collars a mark, so do Vikings 105-0". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. November 9, 1980. p. 8B.
  4. ^ "Portland State rolls up 93 points, QBs 603 yards". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. October 26, 1980. p. 8C.
  5. ^ "Lomax gets 5 TDs. 474 yards". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. November 23, 1980. p. 8C.
  6. ^ "Lomax gets records, UNC gets win". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. October 21, 1979. p. 8B.
  7. ^ "Neil Lomax (1997) - Portland State Athletics Hall of Fame". Portland State University. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  8. ^ Valencia, Paul (January 6, 2020). "Neil Lomax gives advice as he exits Fort Vancouver football | ClarkCountyToday.com". Retrieved October 1, 2020.
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