.jpg) Arrington in 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||
| No. 56, 55 | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born: | (1978-06-20)June 20, 1978 (age 46) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 257 lb (117 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||
| High school: | North Hills (Pittsburgh) | ||||||||||||||||||
| College: | Penn State (1997–1999) | ||||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2000: 1st round,2nd pick | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||||
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LaVar RaShad Arrington (born June 20, 1978) is an American former professionalfootball player who was alinebacker for seven seasons in theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for thePenn State Nittany Lions and was selected with thesecond overall pick by theWashington Redskins of the2000 NFL draft. He was also a member of theNew York Giants.
Arrington was born inPittsburgh,Pennsylvania. He playedlinebacker andrunning back atNorth Hills Senior High School in Pittsburgh. After his senior year, he was named the 1996Parade National Player of the Year, Bobby Dodd National High School Back of the Year[1] theGatorade Player of the Year andUSA Today Pennsylvania Player of the Year. He became the second player in Pennsylvania Class 4-A history torush for more than 4,000 career yards, with 4,357 on 711 carries and 72 touchdowns. He played in the 1997Big 33 Football Classic, the annual game between Pennsylvania and Ohio's best high school football players.[2] In basketball, he was recruited to play basketball forGeorgetown,UMass, andNorth Carolina.[3]
Also a standout sprinter, Arrington was on the school'strack & field team, where he recorded personal-best times of 10.85 seconds in the100 meters and 23.14 seconds in the200 meters. He also had top-jumps of 1.96 meters in thehigh jump and 6.76 meters in thelong jump.[4]
He was inducted into theWPIAL Hall of Fame on June 24, 2011.[5]
While attendingPenn State University, Arrington played for coachJoe Paterno'sNittany Lions teams from 1997 to 1999. His signature play with the Nittany Lions came during a game againstIllinois. On a fourth and short yardage play, Arrington anticipated the snap count and jumped over the offensive line to tackle the runner in the backfield. The play became known as "The LaVar Leap".[6] Arrington's tendency for spectacular plays and his cover appearance on theSports Illustrated 1999 College Football Preview Issue led many to mention him as a possibleHeisman Trophy candidate.[7] Arrington received several honors during his college career, including theChuck Bednarik Award,Dick Butkus Award, andLambert Award in 1999. He was anAll-Big Ten selection, a first-team All-American in 1998, and a consensus first-team All-American in 1999.[8] Arrington finished ninth in balloting for the 1999 Heisman Trophy. He left Penn State after his junior season to enter the NFL draft.
On December 11, 2014, theBig Ten Network included Arrington on "The Mount Rushmore ofPenn State Football", as chosen by online fan voting. Arrington was joined in the honor byJohn Cappelletti,Jack Ham, andShane Conlan.
| Height | Weight | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft3+3⁄8 in (1.91 m) | 250 lb (113 kg) | |||||||||||
| Values from NFL Combine[9] | ||||||||||||
TheWashington Redskins chose Arrington with the second overall pick, in the2000 NFL draft, and he played for the Redskins from2000 to2005.[10] After four seasons with the Redskins, Arrington signed an eight-year, $68 million contract extension. His agent Carl Poston was accused of neglecting to inspect the final revision of the contract, in which $6.5 million worth of bonuses contained in earlier drafts were missing. Poston was eventually suspended for two years by theNational Football League Players' Association (NFLPA) over the mishandling of Arrington's contract;[11] Arrington did not support the NFLPA's decision.[12] Arrington's final two seasons with the Redskins was marred by knee injuries and conflicts with coachesJoe Gibbs andGregg Williams. In March 2006 Arrington paid the Redskins $4.4 million to buy his free agency.[12]
In April 2006, Arrington agreed to a seven-year, $49 million contract with theNew York Giants. He was injured in week 7 against theDallas Cowboys and missed the rest of the season with a rupturedAchilles tendon. On February 12, 2007, he was released by theNew York Giants.[13]
Arrington's agent Kevin Poston initially stated that his client intended to play during the2007 NFL season, saying "things could change at some point, but as of this moment LaVar is focused on playing this season."[14]
However, on June 18, 2007, Arrington was involved in a seriousmotorcycle accident in suburbanMaryland. He was on theRoute 50 off-ramp of theCapital Beltway when he lost control of his 2007Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14, striking a guardrail. Arrington was rushed to Prince George's Medical Center, in serious but stable condition.[15] Arrington sustained a broken right forearm, broken lower vertebrae, and deep cuts to his leg. He was issued two citations, one for failure to control speed to avoid a collision, the other for operating a vehicle without a class license that contributed to a crash. A September 23, 2007,New York Daily News article confirmed his retirement.[16]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Sfty | Int | Yds | Lng | TD | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | |||
| 2000 | WAS | 16 | 11 | 55 | 45 | 10 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2001 | WAS | 14 | 14 | 99 | 82 | 17 | 0.5 | 0 | 3 | 120 | 67 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2002 | WAS | 16 | 16 | 95 | 70 | 25 | 11.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2003 | WAS | 16 | 16 | 90 | 77 | 13 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 6 | 2 | -7 | 0 | |
| 2004 | WAS | 4 | 2 | 15 | 11 | 4 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2005 | WAS | 13 | 8 | 47 | 39 | 8 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2006 | NYG | 6 | 5 | 16 | 14 | 2 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career | 85 | 72 | 417 | 338 | 79 | 23.5 | 1 | 3 | 120 | 67 | 1 | 38 | 6 | 7 | -6 | 1 | ||
Arrington started working on pregame and postgame shows forComcast SportsNet before the Redskins'2007 season week 3 loss to the Giants. He became a permanent member of the Comcast team on October 14 for theGreen Bay Packers game.
He returned to Comcast SportsNet's on-air lineup for week 3 of the2008 NFL season, appearing on the pregame and postgame shows, and onWashington Post Live. Comcast also featured a segment entitled "Life on the Sidelines with LaVar Arrington" during itsRedskins Kickoff program on game days.[17]
Arrington did a weekday afternoon radio talk show inWashington, DC withDJChad Dukes, titled "The LaVar Arrington Show with Chad Dukes." The inaugural show aired on July 20, 2009, on106.7 The Fan. He also hosts his own weekly sports show titled "SportsWeek with Lavar Arrington" on local Washington television station DC50.[18]
On July 10, 2014, it was announced that Arrington would be joiningNFL Network'sNFL AM program.[19]
In 2019 Arrington began working as a football analyst on FS1 on the "Speak For Yourself" sports talk program.[20]
Arrington formed a sports agency, Leap Management, LLC, in 2008. The firm's first clients were2009 NFL draft prospectsAaron Maybin,Derrick Williams,Josh Gaines, and Tyrell Sales.[21]
Arrington founded Xtreme Procision (XP) in 2010, a state-of-the-art football training system aimed at developing the world's next generation of football players.[22] Xtreme Procision offers football training camps nationwide, as well as football training products with visual target zones to aid in accelerating development.[23]
LaVar Arrington was named afterLeVar Burton, following the actor's portrayal ofKunta Kinte in the 1977 television miniseriesRoots.[24] He has an older brother, Michael, who played basketball atSlippery Rock University and a younger brother, Eric. His father, Michael, became an ordained minister after he retired from the military. His mother, Carolyn, is a special education teacher in the Pittsburgh public school system.[3] Arrington lives inLos Angeles County, California with his wife Trishia. The couple have four children.[25]
Arrington opened a restaurant named The Sideline inLandover, Maryland on January 30, 2008.[26] In March 2009 one man was killed and six other people were injured after an argument ended in a burst of gunfire just outside the main entrance to the restaurant. The restaurant went bankrupt and closed in December 2009.[27]
Arrington appeared in several television commercials for Eastern Motors with fellow athletesCarmelo Anthony,Clinton Portis,Sean Taylor, andAntawn Jamison.[28] He appeared on a 2002 episode of theTLC programWhile You Were Out, where he helped redesign a room for his brother, Michael. Arrington served as a judge for ESPN'sDream Job.
