| No. 58, 54 | |||||||||
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| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1953-05-31)May 31, 1953 (age 72) Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 224 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Thomas Jefferson (NJ) | ||||||||
| College | USC | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1975: 3rd round, 68th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Richard Marlon Wood (born May 31, 1953) is an American former professionalfootball played who was alinebacker for theNew York Jets andTampa Bay Buccaneers of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theUSC Trojans, earningAll-American honors. Wood was the team captain and leading tackler of the Buccaneers' early teams, coached byJohn McKay.
Wood became a coach in the NFL, International leagues, college and in high school.
Wood playedhigh school football forThomas Jefferson High School inElizabeth, New Jersey.
Wood attended theUniversity of Southern California as a student and football player. There he was a three-timeAll-American for theUniversity of Southern California Trojans during the 1972–74 seasons. The Trojans football team won two National Championships during Wood's years there. He was a modest-sized player for anNCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division I-A)linebacker, but made up for his lack of size with lightning speed, stamina, and hard-hittingtackles.
His trademarkBatman "band of black" painted across his nose and around both eyes, as those eyes peered out from his helmet, was celebrated by his teammates, the sports press, and Trojan football fans, and they were a gesture to intimidate opponent's linemen and running backs.
Wood came to the varsity as a sophomore in 1972, and he not only led the undefeated Trojans in tackles, but also surpassed the total of his closest teammate by 30 tackles. He was given the responsibility of calling his team's defensive signals.
Wood had fiveinterceptions, returning one for atouchdown and he deflected four other passes. For his efforts, he gained first-teamAll-American honors. In his junior year he once again led U.S.C. to a conference title and another trip to theRose Bowl Game. He was a consensusAll-American in 1973. In 1974, Wood was part of his second victorious Rose Bowl team and national championship team. He repeated as a consensusAll-American honoree. While at U.S.C. the Trojans had a 31-3-2 won-loss-tied record.
In 2007, Wood was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame.
Wood was selected by theNew York Jets in the third round of the1975 NFL draft, but experienced a difficult rookie season. He also had trouble fitting into a Jets locker room atmosphere that he considered to be cold and unfriendly. A preseason trade to the expansionTampa Bay Buccaneers reunited him with his former U.S.C. coach,John McKay, and placed him in a more favorable situation.[1] With the Buccaneers, he became a key player on one of the league's best defensive units. After moving into the starting lineup during the1976 season, he started 88 consecutive games before being replaced byScot Brantley in1982.[2] He averaged 136 tackles per season as a starter, and his single-game high of 18 tackles remains tied as the team record.[3][4] As of2012, he ranks sixth all-time among Buccaneer defenders with 855 career tackles.[5] His two defensive touchdowns in1977, one of which occurred during the franchise's first victory,[6] established a franchise record that stood until1990.[7] WithRonde Barber andDerrick Brooks, he is one of three Buccaneers to have scored on both a fumble and an interception return in the same season.[8] Wood was captain of the1979 squad that advanced to theNFC Championship game.[9]
When the new head coachLeeman Bennett declined to renew his contract in 1985,[10] Wood joined the newsUSFLJacksonville Bulls team, where he was considered one of the league's most important signings.[11]
Wood returned to the Buccaneers in 1991 as an assistant defensive coach underhead coaches Richard Williamson and Sam Wyche.[12]Wood was fired by Wyche after the1993 season, but he returned to serve as an honorary captain for the coin toss of theNFC Championship Game that resulted in their appearance inSuper Bowl XXXVII.[13]
He served as the head coach withAmsterdam Crusaders in the Netherlands (1994) and the head coach of theGerman Football LeagueMunich Cowboys (1997) before taking the head coaching position at Tampa'sPaul R. Wharton High School in 1998. He coached that team to the state final game in the sixth year of its existence.[14]In 2003, Wood accepted a position as the defensive line coach with theFrankfurt Galaxy ofNFL Europe, where he coached in two world bowl games and coached several players who went on to play in the NFL.[15] As of 2012, he is an assistant coach atTampa Catholic High School.
Has a brother,Jake Wood, who playedMajor League Baseball from 1961 to 1967 with theDetroit Tigers and theCincinnati Reds, and also two older brothers who were career military airmen, Melvin and Walter Wood U.S. Air Force(Walter also retired as pilot for UPS) and a son, Marlon Wood, who playedwide receiver for theUniversity of Washington. Currently serving in the U.S. Army
Holds ablack belt inTae Kwon Do.[16]
A drummer, Wood occasionally performed in The Fifth Quarter, a band composed of Buccaneer teammates.[17]
Wood and Brantley have both been assisted byGay Culverhouse, in her efforts to get recognition for the problem of football-related dementia.[18] He suffers from [headaches] occasionally also,[19] and has been involved in litigation with the NFL disability board, who have denied medical benefits despite his having required surgery to insert a metal rod into his spine.[20] Wood's post-football life has been characterized by financial hardship, as part of his NFL earnings were lost to corrupt advisors.[21]