 Ware with theHouston Cougars | |||||||||||||||||
| No. 11, 10, 1 | |||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1968-07-31)July 31, 1968 (age 57) Galveston, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 205 lb (93 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school | Dickinson (TX) | ||||||||||||||||
| College | Houston (1987–1989) | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1990: 1st round, 7th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career CFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||
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Andre Trevor Ware (born July 31, 1968) is an Americansports analyst andcommentator, and a former professionalfootballquarterback. He played in theNational Football League (NFL),Canadian Football League (CFL) andNFL Europe. Ware playedcollege football for theHouston Cougars, winning theHeisman Trophy andDavey O'Brien Award in 1989. He was the first black quarterback to receive the Heisman.[3] In the1990 NFL draft, Ware was selected in the first round by theDetroit Lions with the seventh overall pick. He was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
Ware grew up in theGalveston, Texas region, hoping to play football at theUniversity of Texas. He said "I was going to Texas. All they had to do was lie to me and tell me I was going to play quarterback once I got there. Thank goodness they told me the truth [that] they were going to move me to defense".[4] After graduating fromDickinson High School, Ware instead played at theUniversity of Houston, where he won theHeisman Trophy in 1989, along with theDavey O'Brien Award, the latter award given to the most outstanding college quarterback of the year.[5] That season - his junior year - averaging 52 passes per contest (365-of-578, 63.1%), he threw for 4,699 yards (427.18 yds/g or 127 yds/quarter), 46 touchdowns,[6] and set 27NCAA records over the span of 11 games, seven of which he sat during the fourth quarter. Many of the records (including the notable 340 yards/5 TDs in the first quarter and 517 yards/6 TDs thrown in one half, set on October 21, 1989, in a 95–21 rout against theSMU Mustangs[7][8]) were thanks to the innovative use of therun and shoot offense, which his successor,David Klingler, also used to great effect. The1989 Cougars were the first FBS team to have a 4,000-yard passer,1,000-yard rusher, and1,000-yard receiver in the same season,[9] where they ended the season 9–2 after averaging 624.9 y/g and ranked the #14 team in the nation by theAssociated Press, but were on probation, making Ware the only quarterback to win the Heisman while playing for a team on probation.[10] He then declared for theNFL draft, forgoing his senior year.
Ware became the top draft pick of theDetroit Lions in the1990 NFL draft.[11] Head coachWayne Fontes overrode the advice of the team's scouting director, who resigned the next day. Ware joined the Lions for the1990 season, teaming with the previous Heisman Trophy winner from 1988,Barry Sanders. Ware spent four years with Detroit, playing 14 games and starting six: Coach Fontes insisted on starting the oft-injuredRodney Peete, and usually replacing Peete withErik Kramer when Peete was hurt or played poorly. Fontes generally only played Ware when the Lions were out of the playoffs or already losing a game by a wide margin. Ware's best stretch came late in the1992 season when the Lions were out of the playoffs: he won two of three games.
In1994 Ware was signed by theMinnesota Vikings, but was released before the start of the season. He ended up on the roster of theLos Angeles Raiders, but was released after several games without being activated. In 1995, he was signed by theJacksonville Jaguars, one of the NFL's twoexpansion teams that year. As a former Heisman Trophy winner, Ware's presence created much local excitement in Jacksonville,[12] but ultimately Ware was cut from the team the week before the regular season began.
It is debated why Ware failed in the NFL despite a prolific college career. While some have argued that Ware's coaches never gave him a fair chance to develop, others have noticed that he wasunable to adapt to an offensive system other than the run-and-shoot offense at Houston.[3]
Ware also played in theCanadian Football League with theOttawa Rough Riders, theBC Lions and theToronto Argonauts (where he backed up fellow Heisman winnerDoug Flutie). He spent five games with theBerlin Thunder, a GermanNFL Europe team.
Since 2002, Ware has been a part of theHouston Texans' radio broadcast team withMarc Vandermeer.
Since 2003, Ware has been a college football analyst forESPN. From 2003 until 2008, he called games onESPN, ESPN2 andESPN on ABC. In July 2009, ESPN announced that Ware would team up with long-time SEC broadcasterDave Neal in the fall of 2009 as color commentator forESPN Regional Television's coverage ofSoutheastern Conference Football. Ware continued in this role until 2013. From 2014 through 2019, he called games for ESPN'sSEC Network, then joined the ESPN College Football Friday Primetime team in 2020.[13]
In 2004, Ware was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame. On February 29, 2012, he was inducted into theTexas Sports Hall of Fame. Other members of his class includeTexas A&M University Women's basketball CoachGary Blair,Shawn Andaya, University of Texas Football CoachMack Brown,Fred Couples, CoachLovie Smith,G. A. Moore,Bubba Smith,Dave Parks, andTobin Rote.
