- Norwood Vann
-
Norwood Vann (born February 18, 1962 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)[1] is a retired American football player from the mid 1980s who played 5 NFL seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Raiders in the early 1980s.
Contents
College
A member of the famed 1983 East Carolina Pirates, in his Senior year, Vann started at tight end[2] and earned the team's "Clutch Player Award".[3]
Pro career
Drafted in the 10th round with the 253rd pick of the 1984 NFL Draft (181 picks before Carl Lewis), Vann played five NFL seasons as a backup and special teams linebacker, tying for the league lead in safeties in his 1984 rookie year, with 1. Vann recovered 7 fumbles over his 4 years with the Rams, and then became a Los Angeles Raider in 1988. He played one game for the Raiders, and later was involved in the Buffalo Bills organization but did not play a game for the Bills.
Ram It
During his professional career, Vann is perhaps most notable for his energetic appearance in the LA Rams promotional video "Ram It" by "The Rammers",[4] in which he is one of the first five featured soloists, along with Jackie Slater, Nolan Cromwell, Gary Jeter, and Dennis Harrah. Following Jeter's segment, Vann's verse went: "This is limousine Woody, my moves are like dreams, they call me the demon on the special teams. I know how to rock from the toes to the head, when I pull the trigger, I'll knock you dead", leading into Dennis Harrah's "Mountain Man"-themed verse.
Vann, possibly due to his athletic dance moves, was also featured prominently as one of the five players in the front line during the "Ram It" chorus segments, alongside NFL Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson, 4-time Pro Bowler Nolan Cromwell, and 2-time Pro Bowlers David "Big Daddy" Hill and LeRoy Irvin, all players with considerably longer and more successful NFL careers than Vann.
Post-NFL
Following his release from the Bills organization, Vann played in the CFL for the Toronto Argonauts for several seasons, before retiring and returning to East Carolina to complete his undergraduate degree in Communications in 1995.[5]
In 1999, following the completion of his playing career, college teammate Reggie Branch compared some of his Washington Redskins Super Bowl-winning teammates to those at East Carolina, mentioning Vann specifically by name.[6]
In 1999, Vann was also inducted into the East Carolina Pirates hall of fame.
References
- ^ http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/V/VannNo20.htm
- ^ http://www.bonesville.net/articles/RonCherubini/PirateTimeMachine/2004/Emory/Sidebar2.htm
- ^ http://ecupirates.cstv.com/hallfame/norwood-vann.html
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ix081prSiNc
- ^ http://ecupirates.cstv.com/hallfame/norwood-vann.html
- ^ http://www.bonesville.net/Articles/RonCherubini/PirateTimeMachine/2005/Branch/012605_Branch.htm
East Carolina Pirates football Head coaches Kenneth Beatty (1932–1933) · Doc Mathis (1934–1935) · Bo Farley (1936) · J. D. Alexander (1937–1938) · O. A. Hankner (1939) · John Christenbury (1940–1941) · No team (1942–1945) · Jim Johnson (1946–1948) · Bill Dole (1949–1951) · Jack Boone (1952–1961) · Clarence Stasavich (1962–1969) · Mike McGee (1970) · Sonny Randle (1971–1973) · Pat Dye (1974–1979) · Ed Emory (1980–1984) · Art Baker (1985–1988) · Bill Lewis (1989–1991) · Steve Logan (1992–2002) · John Thompson (2003–2004) · Skip Holtz (2005–2009) · Ruffin McNeill (2010– )Seasons 1932 · 1933 · 1934 · 1935 · 1936 · 1937 · 1938 · 1939 · 1940 · 1941 · 1942 · 1943 · 1944 · 1945 · 1946 · 1947 · 1948 · 1949 · 1950 · 1951 · 1952 · 1953 · 1954 · 1955 · 1956 · 1957 · 1958 · 1959 · 1960 · 1961 · 1962 · 1963 · 1964 · 1965 · 1966 · 1967 · 1968 · 1969 · 1970 · 1971 · 1972 · 1973 · 1974 · 1975 · 1976 · 1977 · 1978 · 1979 · 1980 · 1981 · 1982 · 1983 · 1984 · 1985 · 1986 · 1987 · 1988 · 1989 · 1990 · 1991 · 1992 · 1993 · 1994 · 1995 · 1996 · 1997 · 1998 · 1999 · 2000 · 2001 · 2002 · 2003 · 2004 · 2005 · 2006 · 2007 · 2008 · 2009 · 2010 · 2011 · futureConference championships Bowl games 1952 Lions Bowl · 1953 Elks Bowl · 1963 Eastern Bowl · 1964 Tangerine Bowl · 1965 Tangerine Bowl · 1978 Independence Bowl · 1992 Peach Bowl · 1994 Liberty Bowl · 1995 Liberty Bowl · 1999 Mobile Alabama Bowl · 2000 Galleryfurniture.com Bowl · 2001 GMAC Bowl · 2006 PapaJohns.com Bowl · 2007 Hawai'i Bowl · 2009 Liberty Bowl · 2010 Liberty Bowl · 2010 Military BowlNFL Draft Roger Thrift · Glenn Bass · Tom Michel · Wayne Lineberry · Leslie Strayhorn · Tim Dameron · Carlester Crumpler · Carl Summerell · Reggie Pinkney · Harold Randolph · Eddie Hicks · Zack Valentine · Mike Brewington · Sam Harrell · Tony Collins · Tootie Robbins · George Crump · Jody Schulz · John Robertson · Earnest Byner · Norwood Vann · Hal Stephens · Jeff Pegues · Clint Harris · Terry Long · Steve Hamilton · Ricky Nichols · Stefon Adams · Tony Baker · Kevin Walker · Ellis Dillahunt · Anthony Simpson · Anthony Thompson · James Singletary · Junior Robinson · Walter Wilson · Ernie Logan · Dion Johnson · Chris Hall · Luke Fisher · Jeff Blake · Robert Jones · Tom Scott · Carlester Crumpler Jr. · Bernard Carter · Jerris McPhail · Emmanuel McDaniel · Lamont Burns · Larry Shannon · Troy Smith · Rod Coleman · Leonard Henry · David Garrard · Brian Rimpf · Guy Whimper · Aundrae Allison · Chris Johnson · Davon Drew · Linval Joseph · Matt Dodge · C. J. Wilson · Dwayne HarrisRetired numbers Facilities Rivalries Miscellaneous Categories:- Los Angeles Rams players
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