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Phil Villapiano

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Phil Villapiano
No. 41
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1949-02-26) February 26, 1949 (age 75)
Long Branch, New Jersey
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High school:Ocean Township
College:Bowling Green State
NFL draft:1971 / round: 2 / pick: 45
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Interceptions:11
Touchdowns:1
Stats at Pro Football Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Philip James Villapiano (born February 26, 1949) is a former American football linebacker who played 13 seasons in the NFL.

Early life

Villapiano played high school football at both Asbury Park High School and Ocean Township High School in Monmouth County, New Jersey. He played college football at Bowling Green State University, and while there was selected as Mid-America Conference Player of the Year.[1][2]

Career

He was AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1971, All-NFL in 1975 and 1976, and All-AFC from 1972-1976. Phil also played in four Pro Bowls and was a member of the Oakland Raiders Super Bowl XI winning team. One of the fastest linebackers of his era, Phil specialized in making big plays - none bigger than his momentum changing goal-line tackle against the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI, where he forced the fumble that was recovered by Willie Hall.[3] Villapiano was the linebacker assigned to cover Franco Harris during the Immaculate Reception on December 23, 1972.[4]

In March 2018, Villapiano was inducted into the Reese’s Senior Bowl Hall of Fame. The next month Phil was voted as the Jersey Shore’s Greatest Sports Personality Winner. Phil Villapiano was also selected as a 2019 Senior Class candidate for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Personal life

Phil has three children; Andrea, Phil, and Michael. Michael was a quarterback at Brown University.[5] Phil's wife, Susan, died of breast cancer on November 22, 2016.[6]

Activities after playing career

In March 2018, Villapiano joined with former NFL stars Harry Carson and Nick Buoniconti to support a parent initiative called Flag Football Under 14, which recommends no tackle football below that age out of a concern for the brain health of the young players. He said, "At some point, those of us who have had success in this game must speak up to protect both football players and the future of the game, and supporting 'Flag Football Under 14' is our best way to do that."[7]

References

  1. ^ Phil Villapiano, Archived 2008-10-07 at the Wayback Machine, database Football. Accessed December 15, 2007.
  2. ^ Harvin, Al. "An Offseason Game; New Jersey Sports", The New York Times, January 12, 1973. Accessed November 16, 2008. "Some of the other Jersey residents on the team, according to Davis, are Bob Tucker, the New York Giants' tight end from Lincroft; Phil Villapiano, Oakland Raider linebacker from Ocean Township, and Ron Johnson, Giant running back, now a resident of Fort Lee."
  3. ^ Izenberg, Jerry (February 4, 2017). "One Raiders star walked the walk with the gift of his Super Bowl ring". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  4. ^ Bouchette, Ed (September 23, 2012). "Phil Villapiano: No whining from him". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  5. ^ "#17: Michael Villapiano". Brown University Athletics. 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  6. ^ "Villapiano, Susan Penrod". Madison.com. November 25, 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  7. ^ Former NFLers call for end to tackle football for kids, CNN, Nadia Kounang, March 1, 2018.
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