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Preseason Week 1Indianapolis Colts (0-0)
vs.St. Louis Rams (0-0)
1:30 p.m. (EST), Sunday, August 12, 2012, Lucas Oil Stadium
The Indianapolis Colts kickoff its2012 campaign with a home pre-season contest against the St.Louis Rams. The game will markthe start of a new era in Colts foot-ball led by General Manager RyanGrigson and Head Coach ChuckPagano, who were hired in Janu-ary of 2012 to lead the franchise.The Colts roster features a wealthof talented new faces, including a10-man draft class headlined bythe first overall selection in the2012 NFL Draft, quarterback An-
drew Luck. Others joining the team in their first season includewide receiver Donnie Avery, offensive lineman Mike McGlynn,nose tackle Brandon McKinney, defensive end Cory Redding, cen-ter Samson Satele and safety Tom Zbikowski. The trio of McKin-ney, Redding and Zbikowski all played for Pagano when he servedas the defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens in 2011. In-dianapolis is stacked with tenured veteran leadership as well assafety Antoine Bethea (2006), outside linebacker Dwight Freeney(2002), outside linebacker Robert Mathis (2003), long snapperJustin Snow (2000), kicker Adam Vinatieri (2006) and wide re-ceiver Reggie Wayne (2001) have all been with the Colts for six-plus years.Following Sunday’s preseason contest against the Rams, Indi-anapolis will return to Anderson University to continue its 2012training camp. Practices will resume on Tuesday, August 14.
COLTS HOST ST. LOUIS RAMS IN PRESEASON OPENER
Indianapolis Colts Head CoachChuck Pagano
Avis Roper - Senior Director of [email protected] Matt Conti - Football Communications Manager
THIS WEEK’S MEDIA AVAILABILITY (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)Monday, August 6
- Walk-Through: 9:30 a.m.- Players Available10:50 a.m.- Practice 1:50 p.m.-Coordinators: AfterPractice
Tuesday, August 7- Walk-Through: 9:30 a.m.- Players Available 10:50 a.m.- Practice 6:30 p.m.-Coach Pagano: AfterPractice
Wednesday, August 8- Players’ Day OffNo Availability
Thursday, August 9- Walk-Through: 9:30 a.m.- Players Available10:50 a.m.- Practice 1:50 p.m.-Coach Pagano: AfterPractice
Friday, August 10- Walk-Through: 9:30 a.m.- Players Available10:50 a.m.- Practice 1:50 p.m.-Coach Pagano: AfterPractice
Saturday, August 11- No availability
Sunday, August 12- Colts vs. Rams, 1:30 p.m.Monday, August 13- Coach Pagano Conference Call
Pam Humphrey - Public Relations [email protected]
The Colts will open the 2012 preseason with a home con-test against the St. Louis Rams. The game will mark thesecond consecutive year the teams have met in the firstweek of the preseason. Colts fans will have a chance tosee their team in action for the first time with Head CoachChuck Pagano at the helm and quarterback Andrew Luckunder center. The matchup features a pair of No. 1 overalldraft selections as Luck will face his counterpart, Ramsquarterback Sam Bradford, who was chosen first overall in2010. Sunday’s game will also feature the first competitionfor the rest of the Colts’ 10-man 2012 NFL Draft class, in-cluding second and third round draft selections, tight endsCoby Fleener and Dwayne Allen.
Coverage ProvidedBy WNDY
Play-by-Play: Don FischerColor Analyst: Jim SorgiSideline: Jeffrey Gorman
On Radio: WFNI & WLHKPlay-by-Play: Bob LameyColor Analyst: Will WolfordSideline: Kevin Lee
BROADCAST INFORMATION
COLTS PRESEASON WEEK 1GAMEDAY STORYLINE
Leading Passers: Comp. Att. Yards TDs INTs RatingCurtis Painter 132 243 1,541 6 9 66.6Sam Bradford 191 357 2,164 6 6 70.5Leading Rushers: Att. Yards Avg. Long TDsDonald Brown 134 645 4.8 80t 5Steven Jackson 260 1,145 4.4 47t 5Leading Receivers: Rec. Yards Avg. Long TDsReggie Wayne 75 960 12.8 56t 4Brandon Lloyd 51 683 13.4 37 5
THIS WEEK’S OPPONENT: THE ST. LOUIS RAMS
2011 Final Regular Season StatisticsColts (rank) Rams (rank)15.2 (28T) Points Per Game 12.1 (32)286.8 (30) Total Offense Per Game 283.6 (31)99.6 (26) Net Rushing Yards Per Game 104.2 (23)187.2 (27) Net Passing Yards Per Game 179.4 (30)26:13 Possession Average 28:0726.9 (28) Opponent Points Per Game 25.4 (26)370.9 (25) Opponent Total Offense Per Game 358.4 (22)143.9 (29) Opponent Net Rushing Yards Per Game 151.7 (31)227.0 (15) Opponent Net Passing Yards Per Game 206.7 (7)-12 (26T) Turnover Differential -5 (23)
TALE OF THE TAPEVS. ST. LOUIS
2011 REGULAR SEASONTEAM LEADERS
All-time preseason results: Rams lead, 2-0Colts preseason home results: No meetingsColts preseason road results: Rams lead, 2-0Last preseason meeting: 2011, Rams 33 vs. Colts 10All-time regular season record: Colts lead, 23-17-2Last regular season meeting: 2009, Colts 42 at Rams 6
Preseason ResultsRams lead series, 2-0
Year Result Location2006 Rams 19 Colts 17 St. Louis2011 Rams 33 Colts 10 St. Louis
Running back Donald Brown totaled four carries for 21 yards againstthe Rams in the 2011 preseason opener.
ALL-TIME PRESEASON RESULTSVS. ST. LOUIS
“On the spirit of the team during training camp:“Love the energy, love the enthusiasm. We’re here tocompete. We’re here to get better. We’re here to makeeach other better. During two-a-days, it’s hot; the temper-atures are on the rise so to speak, tempers are going toflare. I love the spirit and enthusiasm and the way they’reworking and the way they’re competing.”
QUOTING HEAD COACHCHUCK PAGANO
Colts 42 - Rams 6October 25, 2009
Edward Jones Dome - St. Louis, MORecap:The Colts jumped out to a 14-3 first quarter lead and never lookedback, claiming a 42-6 victory and a 6-0 start to the 2009 campaign.Quarterback Peyton Manning completed 23-of-34 passes for 235yards with three touchdowns while wide receiver Reggie Waynecontributed with 83 receiving yards and one TD. On the ground,the Colts totaled 156 yards while finding the endzone twice. TheIndianapolis defense intercepted Rams quarterback Marc Bulgertwice while limiting the veteran to 140 passing yards.
THE LAST TIME OUT...(REGULAR SEASON)
Preseason (0-0)Date Opponent Time Result/Network8/12 ST. LOUIS 1:30 p.m. WNDY8/19 at Pittsburgh 8 p.m. NBC8/25 at Washington 4 p.m. WNDY8/30 CINCINNATI 7 p.m. WNDYRegular Season (0-0)Date Opponent Time Result/Network9/9 at Chicago 1 p.m. CBS9/16 MINNESOTA 1 p.m. FOX9/23 JACKSONVILLE 1 p.m. CBS9/30 BYE10/7 GREEN BAY 1 p.m. FOX10/14 at New York Jets 1 p.m. CBS10/21 CLEVELAND 1 p.m. CBS10/28 at Tennessee 1 p.m. CBS11/4 MIAMI 1 p.m. CBS11/8 at Jacksonville 8:20 p.m. NFL Network11/18 at New England 1 p.m. CBS*11/25 BUFFALO 1 p.m. CBS*12/2 at Detroit 1 p.m. CBS*12/9 TENNESSEE 1 p.m. CBS*12/16 at Houston 1 p.m. CBS*12/23 at Kansas City 1 p.m. CBS*12/30 HOUSTON 1 p.m. CBS** Denotes Flexible Scheduling
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTSSCHEDULE
Former Rams:•Colts General Manager Ryan Grigson was a national combine scout and area scout for the Rams from 1999-2003.•Colts WR-Donnie Avery was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the second round of the 2008 NFL draft. Avery spent three seasons with the Rams. •Colts CB-Justin King was selected by the Rams in the 2008 NFL draft. King spent three years on the Rams roster. Former Colts:•Rams TE-Brody Eldridge was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in 2010. Eldridge spent two seasons with the team.•Rams G-Quinn Ojinaka spent the 2011 season with the Colts. Indiana/Missouri Connections: •Colts OLB-Jerry Brown is a native of St. Louis, Missouri.•Colts DT-Chigbo Anunoby is a Jefferson City, Missouri native. NFL Connections:•Colts T-Winston Justice competed with Rams WR-Steve Smith and S-Quintin Mikell for the Philadelphia Eagles from 2008-2010.•Colts WR-Quan Cosby and CB-Cassius Vaughn were teammates with Rams LB-Mario Haggan on the Denver Broncos.•Colts WR-Donnie Avery and NT-Antonio Johnson were teammates with Rams CB-Cortland Finnegan and DT-William Hayes on the Tennessee Titans. •Colts C-Samson Satele was teammates with Rams DT-Kendall Langford on the Miami Dolphins. College Connections:•Colts DT-Drake Nevis and Rams DT-Michael Brockers competed at LSU together.•Colts LB-Pat Angerer and G-Seth Olsen were teammates with Rams CB-Bradley Fletcher and G-Bryan Mattison at the University of Iowa. •Colts T-Winston Justice and DE-Fili Moala were teammates with Rams WR-Steve Smith at USC.•Colts WR-Jarred Fayson and Rams TE-Michael Hoomanawanui competed at the University of Illinois together.Coaching Connections: •Colts defensive coordinator Greg Manusky and Rams offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer spent five consecutive seasons coaching together,first with the Washington Redskins and then with the San Diego Chargers. •Colts linebackers coach Jeff FitzGerald was the linebackers coach under Rams assistant head coach Dave McGinnis, when McGinnis was the headcoach for the Arizona Cardinals from 2001-2003. •Colts safeties coach Roy Anderson and Rams special teams coordinator John Fassel spent two seasons together as assistant coaches for the Balti-more Ravens (2005-07).•Colts tight ends coach Alfredo Roberts and Rams offensive line coach Paul Boudreau were both coaches for the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2003-05.
CHUCK PAGANOCoaching Years in NFL: 11th YearColts Head Coach: 1st YearRegular Season: 0-0 (.000)Postseason: 0-0 (.000)
The Indianapolis Colts ushered in a newera with the hiring of Chuck Pagano to
serve as the team’s new head coach on January 25, 2012.Pagano brings a wealth of experience, totaling 28 years inthe professional and collegiate ranks. Prior to joining theColts, Pagano spent four successful seasons with Balti-more, including the 2011 campaign as the team’s defensivecoordinator. From 2008-11, the Ravens ranked third in theNFL in passing yards allowed (202.0), second in points pergame allowed (16.3), second in total net yards allowed(292.3) and first in opponent passer rating (69.6). In 2011,Baltimore ranked third inthe league in total de-fense en route to an AFCChampionship game ap-pearance. He guided thedefensive backfields forthe Oakland Raiders(2005-06) and ClevelandBrowns (2001-04) priorto a one-year stint as thedefensive coordinator forNorth Carolina in 2007.Pagano also coachedcollegiately at Miami,East Carolina, UNLV,Boise State and USC.
Coaching Background1984-85 USC Grad. Assist.1986 Univ. of Miami Grad. Assist.1987-88 Boise State OLBs1989 East Carolina Secondary1990-91 UNLV Def. Coord./
Secondary1992-94 East Carolina Secondary/
OLBs1995-2000 Univ. of Miami Secondary/
Special Teams2001-04 Browns Secondary2005-06 Raiders DBs2007 North Carolina Def. Coord.2008-10 Ravens Secondary2011 Ravens Def. Coord.2012 Colts Head Coach
JEFF FISHERCoaching Years in NFL: 26th YearRams Head Coach: 1st Year
Regular Season: 142-120 (.542)Postseason: 5-6 (.455)
Jeff Fisher was named the 26th headcoach in franchise history on January 17,
2012. Fisher ranks 21st on the NFL’s career wins list (147)and fourth among active coaches. He spent 16 full seasonsas head coach of the Tennessee Titans, 11 of which in-cluded the title of executive vice president. Fisher guidedthe Titans to six playoff appearances, three division titles,two AFC Championship games (1999, 2002) and oneSuper Bowl appearance (XXXIV). He joined the Oilers/Ti-tans coaching staff in 1994 and was elevated to head coachin November of 1994, replacing Jack Pardee, for the sea-son’s final six games. Previously, Fisher coached with thePhiladelphia Eagles (defensive backs, 1986-88), Los An-geles Rams (youngest defensive coordinator in NFL (30),1989-1991), and San Francisco 49ers (defensive backs,1992-93). He played with the Chicago Bears (1981-85) asa defensive back and return specialist and earned a Super
Bowl ring followingChicago’s Super BowlXX victory (1985), de-spite spending the yearon injured reserve withan ankle injury that pre-maturely ended hisplaying career.
Coaching Background1986-88 Eagles DBs1988-90 Eagles Def. Coord.1991 Rams Def. Coord.1992-93 49ers DBs1994 Oilers Def. Coord.1994-2010 Oilers/Titans Head Coach2012 Rams Head Coach
THIS WEEK’S OPPONENT: THE ST. LOUIS RAMSNOTABLE CONNECTIONS
OFFENSEWR Reggie Wayne - Has totaled 862 receptions for 11,708 yardsand 73 touchdowns, ranking second in all categories in franchisehistory. Leads all NFL active wide receivers with 145 consecutivestarts and 166 games played.LT Anthony Castonzo - The Colts’ 2011 first round draft pick re-turns for his second season after starting all 12 games he partic-ipated in last year.LG Jeff Linkenbach - Started all 16 games for the first time in hiscareer in 2011 and in two seasons, has started 20-of-32 regularseason contests.C Samson Satele - Signed by the Colts as an unrestricted freeagent this offseason and has started 74-of-78 games over thecourse of his career with the Raiders and Dolphins. RG Mike McGlynn - Signed by the Colts as an unrestricted freeagent this offseason and has started 18-of-26 games in his NFLcareer with the Eagles and Bengals.RT Winston Justice - Joins the Colts for his first season and hasstarted 31-of-47 career games, all with the Eagles. In 2009, wasnamed to the USA Today All-Joe Team. TE Coby Fleener - Indianapolis’ second round pick in the 2012NFL Draft, Fleener appeared in 51 games (16 starts) with Stanfordand amassed 1,543 yards and 18 touchdowns on 96 receptions. WR Austin Collie - Has totaled 172 receptions for 1,839 yardsand 16 touchdowns in 41 career games with the Colts. Wasnamed to multiple all-rookie teams in 2009.QB Andrew Luck - The two-time Heisman Trophy finalist setschool career records for touchdown passes (82) and pass com-pletion percentage (67.0) at Stanford while logging 713 comple-tions for 9,430 yards.F Dwayne Allen - Winner of the John Mackey Award as a seniorat Clemson. In his collegiate career, started 33-of-41 games andrecorded 93 receptions for 1,079 yards and 12 touchdowns.RB Donald Brown - In 40 career games, has tallied 341 carriesfor 1,423 yards and 10 touchdowns. Set a career-high with 645rushing yards and five touchdowns in 2011.
DEFENSEDE Cory Redding - Joins the Colts for his first season and in 131career games (101 starts), has totaled 407 tackles (279 solo), 25.5sacks, one interception, nine fumble recoveries, four forced fum-bles and 12 passes defensed. NT Antonio Johnson - The sixth-year veteran has compiled 134tackles, 1.5 sacks, one fumble recovery and two passes defensedin 53 career games (33 starts).DT Fili Moala - In three seasons with the Colts has recorded 65tackles, 2.0 sacks and one pass defensed. In 2011, posted 22stops and both of his career sacks. SLB Robert Mathis - A four-time Pro Bowl selection who rankssecond all-time in franchise history with 83.5 sacks. Has four ca-reer 10.0-plus sack seasons and has compiled 19 multiple-sackcontests and two career three-plus sack games.MIKE Kavell Conner - In two seasons with the Colts, has regis-tered 151 tackles, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries andtwo passes defensed.WILL Pat Angerer - Has started 27-of-32 contests and notched221 tackles (126 solo), 2.0 sacks, one interception, three forcedfumbles, one fumble recovery and five passes defensed. Led theColts and ranked fourth in the NFL in stops with 146 in 2011.RUSH Dwight Freeney - A seven-time Pro Bowl selection andthe all-time franchise leader in sacks with 102.5. Became the 26thplayer to top 100.0 career sacks in 2011. Is the only Colts playerwith seven double-digit sack seasons.LCB Cassius Vaughn - Acquired by the Colts in a trade this off-season from Denver. Has returned an interception and a kickoffreturn for touchdowns. In 22 games has tallied 22 tackles.SS Tom Zbikowski - Has competed in 53 career games andrecorded 49 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, five passes de-fensed and 58 special teams stops.FS Antoine Bethea - A two-time Pro Bowl choice who has led theColts in interceptions over the last six seasons with 12. Hastopped the 100-tackle mark in each of the last four seasons.RCB Jerraud Powers - Has started all 34 contests he has partic-ipated in and has posted 175 tackles, five interceptions, oneforced fumble, one fumble recovery and 25 passes defensed.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS PRONUNCIATION GUIDE
DE - James Aiono (Eye-oh-no)DT - Chigbo Anunoby (Ann-u-noby)DB - Antoine Bethea (buh-THAY)RB - Delone Carter (deh-LON)CB - Antonio Fenelus (fuh-NELL-us)ILB - Moise Fokou (Moses) (FOE-koo)OLB - Tim Fugger (FEW-ger)RB - Deji Karim (DAY-jhee) (kuh-REEM)DB - Joe Lefeged (lah-FEJ)DT - Fili Moala (FEE-lee) (Muh-wa-luh)
RB - Mewelde Moore (Muh-WELL-dee)OT - Ty Nsekhe (N-sec-ee)DT - Drake Nevis (NEVV-iss)DB - Jerraud Powers (juh-ROD)OT - Joe Reitz (Rights)C - Samson Satele (saw-tell-EE)P - Brian Stahovich (stuh-HOV-itch)K - Adam Vinatieri (vin-uh-TARE-ee)S - Tom Zbikowski (Zi-buh-kow-ski)
COLTS PROBABLE STARTERS
THIS WEEK’S OPPONENT: THE ST. LOUIS RAMSCOLTS PROBABLE STARTERS
COLTS NOTES
Tuesday, August 79:30-10:50 a.m. – Walk-Through (CLOSED TO PUBLIC)10:50 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Player Interviews6:30-9:10 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available Wednesday, August 8Players’ Day OffNo AvailabilityThursday, August 99:30-10:50 a.m. – Walk-Through (CLOSED TO PUBLIC)10:50 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Player Interviews1:50-4:30 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available Friday, August 109:30-10:50 a.m. – Walk-Through (CLOSED TO PUBLIC)10:50 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Player Interviews1:50-4:30 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available Saturday, August 11No AvailabilitySunday, August 12Indianapolis Colts vs. St. Louis Rams (1:30 p.m.)Monday, August 13Players’ Day OffConference Call with Coach PaganoTuesday, August 149:30-10:50 a.m. – Walk-Through (CLOSED TO PUBLIC)10:50 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Player Interviews1:50-4:30 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available Wednesday, August 159:30-10:50 a.m. – Walk-Through (CLOSED TO PUBLIC)10:50 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Player Interviews1:50-4:30 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available Thursday, August 166:30-9:10 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available 9:10-10:00 p.m. – Player InterviewsFriday, August 17BREAK CAMP9:45 a.m.-12:35 p.m. – PracticeAfter Practice – Chuck Pagano available 12:35-1:35 p.m. – Player Interviews
UPCOMING COLTS TRAINING CAMPSCHEDULE
The Colts have made roster moves heading into the pre-season opener with the St. Louis Rams. The team placedlinebacker A.J. Edds and offensive guard Ben Ijalana onthe Injured Reserve list and signed offensive tackle TyNsekhe as a free agent. On August 2, Indianapolis then ac-quired linebackers Moise Fokou and Greg Lloyd in a tradewith the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for cornerbackKevin Thomas and a conditional seventh round selection inthe 2013 NFL Draft.
Fokou, 6-1, 236 pounds, is a four-year NFLveteran who has totaled 98 tackles (66 solo),one sack, four passes defensed, one forcedfumble and two fumble recoveries in 43 ca-reer games (22 starts). In 2011, he totaled 27tackles and two passes defensed and in
2009, he tied for first on the team in special teams tackles(20) and also recovered two fumbles. Fokou was originallya seventh round (230th overall) draft selection by the Ea-gles in 2009 after his collegiate career at Maryland.
Lloyd, 6-1, 247 pounds, was a seventh rounddraft selection by Philadelphia in 2011. Hespent the first 12 weeks of the season on thepractice squad and was then elevated to the53-man roster in November where he was in-active for the last five games. At UConn,
Lloyd registered 177 tackles, 3.0 sacks and one intercep-tion. He is the son of Rhonda Nelson and former Steelerslinebacker Greg Lloyd.
RECENT ROSTER MOVES
The Colts and Rams will meet in the preseasonopener for the second consecutive year. Thematchup is the third between the teams in the pre-
season as St. Louis currently holds a 2-0 advantage.Indianapolis will travel to Pittsburgh for its road pre-season opener on a Sunday night nationally tele-vised broadcast (NBC) in Week 2. The Steelers
hold an 11-9 preseason mark against the Colts.The Colts will travel to Washington in Week 3 tobattle the Redskins in the preseason for the secondconsecutive year. Indianapolis has faced Washing-
ton the most in its preseason history (28 games) as theRedskins lead 15-12-1.
Indianapolis closes the preseason with a homecontest against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Coltswon last year’s preseason finale at Paul Brown
Stadium, but trail in the all-time series as Cincinnati holdsa 13-7 advantage.
2012 PRESEASON OPPONENTS
COLTS NOTES
Colts General Manager Ryan Grigson and the organizationwere busy this offseason upgrading the roster and welcom-ing many new faces. Among those joining the Colts for theirfirst year are six unrestricted free agents:
Wide Receiver Donnie AveryAvery has seen action in 39 games (28starts) in his NFL career with the St. LouisRams (2008-10) and Tennessee Titans(2011). He has compiled 103 career recep-tions for 1,308 yards (12.7 avg.) and ninetouchdowns and has contributed with 14rushes for 99 yards and one touchdown.Guard/Center Mike McGlynnMcGlynn will enter his fifth NFL seasonafter spending previous years with thePhiladelphia Eagles (2008-10) and Cincin-nati Bengals (2011). He has competed in26 career games with 18 starts.
Nose Tackle Brandon McKinneyMcKinney enters his seventh NFL season.In 61 career games (six starts) with the SanDiego Chargers (2006-08) and BaltimoreRavens (2008-11), he has totaled 82 tack-les (42 solo), one forced fumble, one fum-ble recovery and two passes defensed.Defensive End Cory ReddingRedding enters his 10th NFL season hav-ing spent time with the Detroit Lions (2003-08), Seattle Seahawks (2009) andBaltimore Ravens (2010-11). In 131 careergames (101 starts), he has totaled 407tackles (279 solo), 25.5 sacks, one inter-ception, nine fumble recoveries, four forced
fumbles and 12 passes defensed.Center Samson SateleSatele will enter his sixth NFL season. Heplayed two years (2007-08) with the Dol-phins before being traded to the OaklandRaiders (2009-11). Satele has competed in78 career games (74 starts) and was a full-time starter the last two years with theRaiders.Safety Tom ZbikowskiZbikowski enters his fifth NFL season afterspending the last four years with the Balti-more Ravens (2008-11). He has competedin 53 career games (14 starts) and has to-taled 49 tackles (41 solo), two intercep-tions, one sack, five passes defensed and58 special teams stops. Zbikowski has also
contributed with 14 kickoff returns for a 21.8 average and16 punt returns for a 6.3 average.
UFAS IN THE FOLDAndrew Luck, Quarterback (First Round, 1st Overall)A two-time Heisman Trophy finalist in 2010 and 2011 atStanford. Started all 38 games he played in at Stanford andcompleted 713-of-1,064 passes (67.0) for 9,430 yards, 82touchdowns and 22 INTs. Set school records for touchdownpasses and pass completion percentage.Coby Fleener, Tight End (Second Round, 34th Overall)Appeared in 51 games and totaled 1,543 yards and 18touchdowns on 96 receptions. Earned first-team All-Amer-ica honors as a senior. Finished his collegiate career tiedfor fifth on the school record list with 18 touchdown catches.Dwayne Allen, Tight End (Third Round, 64th Overall)Recorded 93 receptions for 1,079 yards and 12 touch-downs at Clemson and was the school’s first recipient ofthe John Mackey Award in 2011. Earned first-team All-America honors from numerous media outlets.T.Y. Hilton, Wide Receiver (Third Round, 92nd Overall)Holds Florida International records for receptions (229), re-ceiving yards (3,351) and touchdowns (24). Also con-tributed with 498 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on69 carries.Josh Chapman, Nose Tackle (Fifth Round, 136th Overall)Produced 88 tackles (44 solo), 2.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles forloss and four passes defensed during his 54-game colle-giate career at Alabama. Was part of two national champi-onship teams in 2009 and 2011.Vick Ballard, Running Back (Fifth Round, 170th Overall)Totaled 379 rushes for 2,157 yards and 29 touchdownswhile adding 30 catches for 293 yards and two touchdownsat Mississippi State. Registered 2,450 all-purpose yardswith an average of 98.0 yards per game.LaVon Brazill, Wide Receiver (Sixth Round, 206th Overall)Appeared in 41 games at Ohio and finished his career with187 receptions for 2,515 yards and 18 touchdowns and 31carries for 239 yards and one touchdown. Earned All-Macsecond-team honors in 2011.Justin Anderson, Guard (Seventh Round, 208th Overall)Started 26-of-40 games at Georgia and was named to theFreshman All-SEC team. Received one of the team’s MostImproved Player Awards on offense in 2011.Tim Fugger, Linebacker (Seventh Round, 214th Overall)Started 31-of-47 games at Vanderbilt and totaled 90 tackles(53 solo), 14.0 sacks, eight forced fumbles, two fumble re-coveries, five passes defensed and one interception.Chandler Harnish, Quarterback (Seventh Round, 253rd Overall)At Northern Illinois, threw for 8,944 yards and 68 touch-downs while adding 538 carries for 2,983 yards and 24TDs. Was named the MAC Offensive Player of the Year in2011.
MEET THE DRAFT PICKS
Former Colts coach Tony Dungy made a rare appearance at practice on Sunday, July 29 as some members of his family joined him.
Dungy came to Anderson on Saturday evening and met with coach Chuck Pagano before watching practice and addressing the teamon Sunday.
“This was actually the first practice I’ve seen of anybody since I left. It was fun to see the start of a new era,” Dungy said.
During the special teams part of practice, quarterback Andrew Luck made his way over to the Super Bowl winning coach and the twoshared a few words before the rookie went to work in his first day of an NFL training camp.
“I got a chance to meet Andrew (Luck), watch him, see the decisions he’s making and justthe command of the huddle and command of the field. They’re going to be in good hands.They’re going to be in good hands for a long time,” Dungy said.
After practice ended on Sunday afternoon, Pagano held his players a little longer at midfieldand it didn’t take long for everyone to figure out who was in the middle of that huddle.
Even though their coaching careers did not cross paths on the same team, Pagano’s respectfor Dungy is endless.
“He’s got so much and he’s done so many great things,” Pagano said. “What I told the team(was he’s the) all-time winningist coach in Colts history, every one of his teams here went tothe playoffs, 92 wins, won a Super Bowl and more importantly than that it’s what he’s doneoff the field, and how he is as a man and how he is as a father, and all the lives that he’s im-pacted.”
COLTS NOTES
COLTS ONLINE
Facebook.com/Colts@NFLColts
Colts veterans Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis havelogged 173.0 sacks between the two dating back to 2003,Mathis’ first year in the NFL. The sack total ranks first in theleague among any other pair of teammates dating back to2003.Freeney, who entered the NFL as a rookie with the Colts in2002, holds the franchise record and currently ranks tiedfor 23rd in the league with 102.5 quarterback takedowns inhis 10 seasons. Mathis enters the 2012 campaign with 83.5sacks, which ranks second in franchise history.The duo became the first defensive end tandem since 1970from the same team to be named to three consecutive ProBowls. Freeney and Mathis have also recorded 10.0-plussacks each in 2004,2005, 2008 and 2010,which surpassed Reg-gie White and ClydeSimmons for the mostseasons (four) of 10.0-plus sacks each byteammates in the NFL.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTSSTAT OF THE WEEK
FORMER COLTS COACH TONY DUNGYVISITS TRAINING CAMP
Former Colts Coach Tony Dungy addressesthe team following training camp practice.
Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis
CURRENT COLTS’ STREAKS ENTERING THE 2012 SEASON
96 Consecutive regular season games in which wide receiver Reggie Wayne has caught at least one pass.
5 Consecutive seasons wide receiver Reggie Wayne has led the team in receiving (2007-11).
42.5 The number of sacks defensive end Dwight Freeney has registered in his last 61 regular season games.
41.5 The number of sacks defensive end Robert Mathis has registered in his last 61 regular season games.
130 Consecutive regular season games in which kicker Adam Vinatieri has scored at least one point.
TRAINING CAMP FEATURE: REDDING AND ZBIKOWSKI SEE THE SAME COACH IN PAGANOBy Kevin Bowen, Colts.com
The relationship goes both ways, coaches getting to know players and playersgetting to know coaches.That has been the theme of the offseason for the Indianapolis Colts as a newcoaching staff has been paired with a ton of new faces in the locker room.Over the course of the offseason, the Colts brought in three former BaltimoreRavens who are some of the few Colts players that had previous ties to ChuckPagano.Safety Tom Zbikowski had Pagano as a position coach from 2008-2010, and adefensive coordinator in 2011.He says although Pagano is in a different role this season and has more to dealwith, he still sees the same guy. “He’s still just as personable as he was as a defensive backs coach, as a defen-sive coordinator. He’s a players’ coach,” Zbikowski said.
“It’s still going to be intense. It’s all about fundamentals, soundfootball and playing hard. It’s personal to him and that’s theway it should be.”Building off that ‘players’ coach’ mentality, it doesn’t matterwhether you’re at the top or bottom of the depth chart, Paganois determined to get to know each and every one of his play-ers.“(Coach) really gets to know all of his players,” Zbikowski saidof Pagano. “From the guys that came from other teams, thatwas one thing that was brought up on that (other players) mightnot have had conversations with their other head coach.”Former Ravens Brandon McKinney and Cory Redding havejoined Zbikowski as new Colts.For the 10-year veteran in Redding, taking a role as a leaderin helping his new teammates get to know their new coach isnothing new to him. Redding spent last season playing under Pagano’s defenseand hasn’t seen a bit of change from his new head coach.“Same guy, same mentality. The approach he’s having with usas a head coach is the exact same approach he took the yearhe was a defensive coordinator with the Ravens. Straight up,tell it like it is,” Redding said.The three new defenders are helping their teammates learn anew hybrid 3-4 system that at times might seem a bit foreign.Helping their new teammates with the X’s and O’s part of thescheme is one thing, but Redding wants to make it clear he ishere for all teammates in helping them get to know their coachon a personal level.“The guys can react in a certain way, but to have all threevoices in the locker room to let the guys know why Chuck saidwhat he said, why Chuck is doing some of the things that he’sdoing that kind of eases the guys’ minds,” Redding said. “Then they’re like ‘OK, we’ll trust the system, we’ll trust youguys, because you have been there, you understand and youall know him, so we’re going to go ahead and trust him.’ Andthat’s a credit to the guys in the locker room who have beenthere before us. They’re willing to accept change. Change isgreat and this one will be great. So as long as everybody getson board it will be fine.”
The Indianapolis Colts hold four players on its roster from thestate of Indiana. Running back Darren Evans (Warren Central)hails from Indianapolis while offensive guard Joe Reitz grew upjust north of the city in Fishers. Inside linebacker A.J. Edds (re-cently placed on IR), who competed at Greenwood Community,resides 20 minutes south of Indianapolis. The Colts also selectedBluffton, Indiana native, Chandler Harnish in the seventh roundof the 2012 NFL Draft.
HOMEGROWN TALENT
Inside LinebackerA.J. Edds
Greenwood, IN
Running BackDarren Evans
Indianapolis, IN
Offensive GuardJoe ReitzFishers, IN
QuarterbackChandler Harnish
Bluffton, IN
COLTS NOTES
Defensive end Cory Redding who was signed by the Colts asan unrestricted free agent in the offseason played for CoachPagano in Baltimore for two seasons (2010-11).
Underlined = Rookie in 2012
WR 87 Reggie Wayne 15 LaVon Brazill 84 Griff Whalen
10 Jeremy Ross
14 Quan Cosby
LT 74 Anthony Castonzo 66 George Foster 65 Ty Nsekhe
LG 72 Jeff Linkenbach 76 Joe Reitz 68 Jason Foster
C 64 Samson Satele 62 A.Q. Shipley 60 Zane Taylor
RG 75 Mike McGlynn 73 Seth Olsen 61 Hayworth Hicks
RT 69 Winston Justice 67 Mike Tepper 78 Steven Baker
79 Justin Anderson
TE 80 Coby Fleener 86 Kyle Miller 81 Andre Smith
WR 17 Austin Collie 11 Donnie Avery 13 T.Y. Hilton
85 Jabin Sambrano
7 Kris Adams
16 Jarred Fayson
QB 12 Andrew Luck 5 Drew Stanton 8 Chandler Harnish
F 83 Dwayne Allen 80 Dominique Jones
RB 31 Donald Brown 26 Mewelde Moore 33 Vick Ballard
34 Delone Carter
32 Darren Evans
39 Deji Karim
DE 90 Cory Redding 91 Ricardo Mathews 68 James Aiono
NT 99 Antonio Johnson 96 Brandon McKinney 78 Chigbo Anunoby
61 Josh Chapman
DT 95 Fili Moala 94 Drake Nevis 65 Jason Shirley
SLB 98 Robert Mathis 92 Jerry Hughes 58 Tim Fugger
45 Moise Fokou
Mike 53 Kavell Conner 54 Mario Harvey 56 Scott Lutrus
49 Greg Lloyd
Will 51 Pat Angerer 50 Jerrell Freeman 59 Larry Lumpkin
Rush 93 Dwight Freeney 55 Justin Hickman 97 Mario Addison
57 Jerry Brown
LCB 20 Cassius Vaughn 21 Justin King 37 Brandon King
39 Camerson Chism
40 Buddy Jackson
SS 26 Tom Zibkowski 26 Jermale Hines 30 David Caldwell
47 Latarrius Thomas
FS 41 Antoine Bethea 35 Joe Lefeged 38 Mike Newton
27 Matt Merletti
RCB 25 Jerraud Powers 42 Korey Lindsey 23 Terrence Johnson
43 D.J. Johnson
29 Antonio Fenelus
36 Chris Rucker
P 1 Pat McAfee 3 Brian Stahovich
PK 4 Adam Vinatieri 1 Pat McAfee
H 1 Pat McAfee
LS 48 Justin Snow 45 Matt Overton
KR 15 LaVon Brazill 13 T.Y. Hilton 39 Deji Karim
35 Joe Lefeged 26 Mewelde Moore
20 Cassius Vaughn 26 Tom Zibkowski
PR 15 LaVon Brazill 13 T.Y. Hilton 84 Griff Whalen
26 Tom Zibkowski
* Indicates PUP
Colts Pronunciations
James Aiono (Eye-oh-no) Fili Moala (Muh-wa-luh)
Chigbo Anunoby (Ann-u-noby) Mewelde Moore (Muh-WELL-dee)
Antoine Bethea (buh-THAY) Ty Nsekhe (N-sec-ee)
Delone Carter (deh-LON) Drake Nevis (NEVV-iss)
Anontio Fenelus (fuh-NELL-us) Jerraud Powers (juh-ROD)
Moise Fokou (Moses) (FOE-koo) Joe Reitz (Rights)
Tim Fugger (FEW-ger) Samson Satele (saw-tell-EE)
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS UNOFFICIAL DEPTH CHART
BASE OFFENSE
BASE DEFENSE
SPECIALISTS
8/6/2012
QUARTERBACKS (3) DEFENSIVE LINE (10)
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
8 Chandler Harnish QB 6-2 220 R Northern Illinois 68 James Aiono DE 6-3 305 R Utah
12 Andrew Luck QB 6-4 234 R Stanford 78 Chigbo Anunoby DT 6-4 324 R Morehouse
5 Drew Stanton QB 6-3 243 6 Michigan State 61 Josh Chapman NT 6-0 316 R Alabama
99 Antonio Johnson NT 6-3 310 6 Mississippi State
RUNNING BACKS (6) 91 Ricardo Mathews DT 6-3 310 3 Cincinnati
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College 96 Brandon McKinney NT 6-2 345 7 Michigan State
33 Vick Ballard RB 5-10 217 R Mississippi State 95 Fili Moala DE 6-4 310 4 USC
31 Donald Brown RB 5-10 210 4 Connecticut 94 Drake Nevis DT 6-1 310 2 LSU
34 Delone Carter RB 5-9 238 2 Syracuse 90 Cory Redding DE 6-4 315 10 Texas
32 Darren Evans RB 6-0 232 1 Virginia Tech 65 Jason Shirley DT 6-5 329 3 Fresno State
39 Deji Karim RB 5-8 209 3 Southern Illinois
26 Mewelde Moore RB 5-11 209 9 Tulane LINEBACKERS (15)
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
WIDE RECEIVERS (11) 97 Mario Addison OLB 6-3 257 2 Troy
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College 51 Pat Angerer ILB 6-0 236 3 Iowa
7 Kris Adams WR 6-3 194 1 UTEP 57 Jerry Brown OLB 6-4 265 R Illinois
11 Donnie Avery WR 5-11 200 5 Houston 53 Kavell Conner ILB 6-0 243 3 Clemson
15 LaVon Brazill WR 5-11 191 R Ohio 45 Moise Fokou ILB 6-1 236 4 Maryland
17 Austin Collie WR 6-0 204 4 Brigham Young 50 Jerrell Freeman ILB 6-0 234 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor
14 Quan Cosby WR 5-9 195 4 Texas 93 Dwight Freeney OLB 6-1 268 11 Syracuse
16 Jarred Fayson WR 6-0 213 1 Illinois 58 Tim Fugger OLB 6-4 250 R Vanderbilt
13 T.Y. Hilton WR 5-9 183 R Florida International 54 Mario Harvey ILB 6-0 264 1 Marshall
10 Jeremy Ross WR 6-0 215 1 California 55 Justin Hickman OLB 6-2 258 1 UCLA
85 Jabin Sambrano WR 5-11 175 R Montana 92 Jerry Hughes OLB 6-2 254 3 TCU
87 Reggie Wayne WR 6-0 198 12 Miami 49 Greg Lloyd ILB 6-1 247 1 Connecticut
84 Griff Whalen WR 5-11 185 R Stanford 59 Larry Lumpkin ILB 6-0 234 R Carson-Newman
56 Scott Lutrus ILB 6-3 247 1 Connecticut
TIGHT ENDS (5) 98 Robert Mathis OLB 6-2 245 10 Alabama A&M
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
83 Dwayne Allen TE 6-3 255 R Clemson DEFENSIVE BACKS (19)
80 Coby Fleener TE 6-6 252 R Stanford No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
46 Dominique Jones TE 6-3 255 R Shepherd 41 Antoine Bethea S 5-11 196 7 Howard
86 Kyle Miller TE 6-5 260 1 Mount Union 30 David Caldwell S 5-11 212 3 William & Mary
81 Andre Smith TE 6-5 267 2 Virginia Tech 39 Camerson Chism CB 5-10 190 R Maryland
29 Antonio Fenelus CB 5-9 190 R Wisconsin
OFFENSIVE LINE (16) 26 Jermale Hines S 6-1 222 2 Ohio State
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College 40 Buddy Jackson CB 6-1 180 R Pittsburgh
79 Justin Anderson G 6-5 342 R Georgia 43 D.J. Johnson CB 6-1 191 3 Jackson State
78 Steven Baker T 6-8 310 R East Carolina 23 Terrence Johnson CB 5-9 195 2 California (PA)
74 Anthony Castonzo T 6-7 315 2 Boston College 37 Brandon King CB 5-10 185 2 Purdue
66 George Foster T 6-5 338 7 Georgia 21 Justin King CB 5-11 197 5 Penn State
68 Jason Foster G 6-5 305 R Rhode Island 35 Joe Lefeged S 6-0 205 2 Rutgers
61 Hayworth Hicks G 6-3 336 R Iowa State 42 Korey Lindsey CB 5-10 194 1 Southern Illinois
69 Winston Justice T 6-6 317 7 USC 27 Matt Merletti S 5-11 205 R North Carolina
72 Jeff Linkenbach T 6-6 323 3 Cincinnati 38 Mike Newton S 5-10 207 2 Buffalo
75 Mike McGlynn G 6-4 327 5 Pittsburgh 25 Jerraud Powers CB 5-10 187 4 Auburn
65 Ty Nsekhe T 6-8 325 R Texas State 36 Chris Rucker CB 6-1 209 2 Michigan State
73 Seth Olsen G 6-5 305 3 Iowa 47 Latarrius Thomas S 6-1 210 R Eastern Michigan
76 Joe Reitz G 6-7 322 2 W. Michigan 20 Cassius Vaughn CB 5-11 195 3 Mississippi
64 Samson Satele C 6-3 299 6 Hawaii 28 Tom Zbikowski S 5-11 200 5 Notre Dame
62 A.Q. Shipley C 6-1 309 1 Penn State
60 Zane Taylor C 6-2 309 1 Utah
67 Mike Tepper T 6-6 354 2 California
2012 COLTS PLAYERS BY POSITION
SPECIALISTS (5)
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
1 Pat McAfee P 6-1 220 4 West Virginia
45 Matt Overton LS 6-1 254 1 Western Michigan
48 Justin Snow LS 6-3 245 13 Baylor
3 Brian Stahovich P 6-0 190 R San Diego State
4 Adam Vinatieri K 6-0 206 17 S. Dakota State
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Chuck PaganoBruce Arians (Offensive Coordinator), Greg Manusky (Defensive Coordinator), Marwan Maalouf (Special Teams Coordinator),Roy Anderson (Safeties Coach), (James Bettcher (Special Assistant to Head Coach), Brant Boyer (Assistant Special Teams Coach),Clyde Christensen (Quarterbacks Coach), Gary Emanuel (Defensive Line Coach), Jeff FitzGerald (Linebackers Coach),
Joe Gilbert (Assistant Offensive Line Coach), Mike Gillhamer (Secondary Coach), Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach),
Harold Goodwin (Offensive Line Coach), Richard Howell (Assistant Strength & Conditioning), Roger Marandino (Strength & Conditioning),
Alfredo Roberts (Tight Ends Coach), David Walker (Running Backs Coach), Brad White (Defensive Quality Control Coach),
Charlie Williams (Wide Receivers Coach).
8/6/2012
DATE POS. PLAYER TRANSACTION
1/2 Vice Chairman Bill Polian Relieved of duties as Vice Chairman
VP/GM Chris Polian Relieved of duties as Vice President and General Manager
1/4 OT Mike Tepper Signed a reserve/futures contract
DT Ollie Ogbu Signed a reserve/futures contract
OG Matt Murphy Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/5 WR Jeremy Ross Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/7 WR Jarred Fayson Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/11 GM Ryan Grigson Named General Manager
1/17 Jim Caldwell Relieved of duties as Head Coach
RB Darren Evans Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/19 LB Jerrell Freeman Signed a reserve/futures contract
Mike Murphy Retired
Devin Fitzsimmons Relieved of durites as Coaching Assistant
Pete Metzelaars Relieved of duties as Offensive Line Coach
Rod Perry Relieved of durtes as Special Assistant to the Defense
Frank Reich Relieved of duties as Wide Receivers Coach
Bill Teerlinck Relieved of duties as Defensive Assistant
John Teerlinck Relieved of duties as Defensive Line Coach
Jon Torine Relieved of duties as Strength and Conditioning Coach
Ron Turner Relieved of durties as Quarterbacks Coach
1/20 LB Mario Harvey Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/26 Chuck Pagano Named Head Coach
1/28 C A.Q. Shipley Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/31 Bruce Arians Named Offensive Coordinator
Harold Goodwin Named Offensive Line Coach
Ricky Thomas Relieved of duties as Tight Ends Coach
Ron Prince Relieved of dutires as Assistant Offensive Line Coach
2/2 Greg Manusky Named Defensive Coordinator
Marwan Maalouf Named Special Teams Coordinator
Roy Anderson Named Safeties Coach
Roger Marandino Named Strength & Conditioning Coach
2/7 LB Zac Diles Waived
OG Jaimie Thomas Waived
OT James Williams Waived
2/9 CB Mike Newton Signed a reserve/futures contract
DE Justin Hickman Signed a reserve/futures contract
2/13 DE Brandon Peguese Signed a reserve/futures contract
2/14 Brant Boyer Named Assistant Special Teams Coach
Gary Emanuel Named Defensive Line Coach
Jeff FitzGerald Named Linebackers Coach
Joe Gilbert Named Assistant Offensive Line Coach
Mike Gillhamer Named Secondary Coach
Frank Giufre Named Offensive Quality Control Coach
Alfredo Roberts Named Tight Ends Coach
Brad White Named Defensive Quality Control Coach
Charlie Williams Named Wide Receivers Coach
3/5 DE Robert Mathis Signed a contract extension
3/7 QB Peyton Manning Released
3/8 OL Jake Kirkpatrick Signed a reserve/futures contract
QB Trevor Vittatoe Signed a reserve/futures contract
3/9 RB Joseph Addai Released
LB Gary Brackett Released
DB Melvin Bullitt Released
TE Dallas Clark Released
QB Curtis Painter Released
3/14 OT Winston Justice Traded along with a sixth round pick (187 overall) from the Philadelphia
Eagles for a sixth round pick (172 overall)
DE Cory Redding Signed as an unrestricted free agent
WR Reggie Wayne Re-signed
3/16 DB Tom Zbikowski Signed as an unrestricted free agent
3/19 OL Mike McGlynn Signed as an unrestricted free agent
3/21 C Samson Satele Signed as an unrestricted free agent
3/23 OG Ryan Diem Retired
WR Donnie Avery Signed as an unrestricted free agent
QB Drew Stanton Traded along with a seventh round pick (214 overall) from the
New York Jets for a sixth round pick (187 overall)
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS TRANSACTIONS
4/3 LS Matt Overton Signed as a free agent
David Thorton Named Player Development Coordinator
TE Kyle Miller Signed as a free agent
4/5 DT Brandon McKinney Signed as an unrestricted free agent
4/13 WR Blair White Waived
5/3 DE James Aniono Signed as a college free agent
DT Chigbo Anunoby Signed as a college free agent
T Steven Baker Signed as a college free agent
CB Cameron Chism Signed as a college free agent
OLB Kevin Eagan Signed as a college free agent
CB Antonio Fenelus Signed as a college free agent
G Jason Foster Signed as a college free agent
ILB Chris Galippo Signed as a college free agent
G Hayworth Hicks Signed as a college free agent
CB Buddy Jackson Signed as a college free agent
S Matt Merletti Signed as a college free agent
S Micah Pellerin Signed as a college free agent
WR Jabin Sambrano Signed as a college free agent
P Brian Stahovich Signed as a college free agent
WR Griff Whalen Signed as a college free agent
S Latarrius Thomas Signed as a college free agent
TE Dominique Jones Signed as a free agent
RB Deji Karim Claimed off waivers (JAX)
Ahmad Russell Named Area Scout
Dave Razzon Named Area Scout
T.J. McCreight Named Director of College Scouting
Todd Vasvari Promoted to Assistant Director of College Scouting
Andrew Berry Promoted to Pro Scouting Coordinator
5/4 Jon Shaw Promoted to Pro Scout
5/15 TE Andre Smith Claimed off waivers (CHI)
CB Mike Holmes Waived
5/16 RB Vick Ballard Signed with the Colts
WR LaVon Brazill Signed with the Colts
LB Tim Fugger Signed with the Colts
QB Chandler Harnish Signed with the Colts
5/17 TE Brody Eldridge Waived
QB David Legree Signed with the Colts
G Justin Anderson Signed with the Colts
5/18 C Zane Taylor Claimed off waivers (PHI)
G Matt Murphy Waived
5/22 NT Josh Chapman Signed with the Colts
5/23 OLB Brandon Peguese Waived
OLB Jerry Brown Signed as a college free agent
CB Cassius Vaughn Traded from the Denver Broncos for FB Chris Gronkowski
5/29 FB Ryan Mahaffey Waived
T George Foster Signed as a free agent
5/31 S Micah Pellerin Waived
CB Korey Lindsey Claimed off waivers (ARZ)
6/1 WR T.Y. Hilton Signed with the Colts
6/5 OLB Kevin Eagan Waived
WR Kris Adams Signed with the Colts
6/6 C Jake Kirkpatrick Waived
6/8 CB Justin King Signed as an unrestricted free agent
6/19 QB David Legree Released
RB Mewelde Moore Signed as an unrestricted free agent
6/20 QB Trevor Vittatoe Waived
7/10 LB Chris Galippo Waived
7/13 LB Larry Lumpkin Signed as a college free agent
7/19 DT Jason Shirley Signed as a free agent
QB Andrew Luck Signed contract
7/22 CB D.J. Johnson Traded from the Philadelphia Eagles for DT Ollige Ogbu
7/25 TE Dwayne Allen Signed contract
7/27 TE Coby Fleener Signed contract
8/1 G Ben Ijalana Waived/Injured
T Ty Nsekhe Signed as a free agent
8/3 ILB A.J. Edds Waived/Injured
ILB Moise Fokou/Greg Lloyd Traded from the Philadelphia Eagles for CB Kevin Thomas and a
conditional 7th round draft pick
8/3 G Ben Ijalana Placed on Injured Reserve
8/4 ILB A.J. Edds Placed on Injured Reserve
8/6/2012
YEAR DRAFTEES FREE AGENTS TRADES/WAIVERS
2000 Justin Snow
2001 Reggie Wayne (1)
2002 Dwight Freeney (1)
2003 Robert Mathis (5)
2006 Antoine Bethea (6) Adam Vinatieri (UFA-NE)
2008 Antonio Johnson
2009 Donald Brown (1)
Fili Moala (2)
Jerraud Powers (3)
Austin Collie (4)
Pat McAfee (7)
2010 Jerry Hughes (1) David Caldwell
Pat Angerer (2) Jeff Linkenbach
Ricardo Mathews (7) Joe Reitz
Kavell Conner (7)
2011 Anthony Castonzo (1) A.J. Edds* Mario Addison (W-CHI)
Ben Ijalana (2)* Darren Evans Quan Cosby (W_DEN)
Drake Nevis (3) Jarred Fayson Seth Olsen (W-MIN)
Delone Carter (4) Jermale Hines
Chris Rucker (6) Terrence Johnson
Brandon King
Joe Lefeged
Scott Lutrus
Jeremy Ross
Mike Tepper
2012 Andrew Luck (1) Kris Adams Moise Fokou (T-PHI)
Coby Fleener (2) James Aiono D.J. Johnson (T-PHI)
Dwayne Allen (3) Chigbo Anunoby Winston Justice (T-PHI)
T.Y. Hilton (3 Donnie Avery (UFA-TEN) Deji Karim (W-JAX)
Josh Chapman (5) Steven Baker Kory Lindsey (W-ARZ)
Vick Ballard (5) Jerry Brown Greg Lloyd (T-PHI)
LaVon Brazill (6) Cameron Chism Andre Smith (W-CHI)
Justin Anderson (7) Antonio Fenelus Drew Stanton (T-NYJ)
Tim Fugger (7) George Foster Zane Taylor (W-PHI)
Chandler Harnish (7) Jason Foster Cassius Vaughn (T-DEN)
Jerrell Freeman
Mario Harvey
Justin Hickman
Hayworth Hicks
Buddy Jackson
Dominique Jones
Justin King
Larry Lumpkin
Mike McGlynn (UFA-CIN)
Brandon McKinney (UFA-BAL)
Matt Merletti
Kyle Miller
Mewelde Moore
Mike Newton
Ty Nsekhe
Matt Overton
Cory Redding (UFA-BAL)
Jabin Sambrano
Samson Satele (UFA-OAK)
HOW THE 2012 COLTS WERE BUILT
FREE AGENTS CONT…
A.Q. Shipley
Jason Shirley
Brian Stahovich
Latarrius Thomas
Griff Whalen
Tom Zbikowski
^practice squad, *injured reserve, & reserve non-football injury
8/6/2012
NO NAME POS HT WT DOB AGE EXP COLLEGE HOMETOWN HOW ACQ. GP/GS/DNP/IA
7 Adams, Kris WR 6-3 194 9/4/1987 24 1 UTEP Fort Worth, TX FA-1297 Addison, Mario OLB 6-3 257 9/6/1987 24 2 Troy Birmingham, AL W-11 (CHI)68D Aiono, James DE 6-3 305 1/23/1989 23 R Utah West Valley, UT FA-1283 Allen, Dwayne TE 6-3 255 2/24/1990 22 R Clemson Fayettville, NC D3-1251 Angerer, Pat ILB 6-0 236 1/31/1987 25 3 Iowa Bettendorf, IA D2-1078D Anunoby, Chigbo DT 6-4 324 1/4/1989 23 R Morehouse Jefferson City, MO FA-1211 Avery, Donnie WR 5-11 200 6/12/1984 28 5 Houston Houston, TX UFA-12 (TEN)78O Baker, Steven T 6-8 310 11/24/1988 23 R East Carolina Rocky Mount, NC FA-1233O Ballard, Vick RB 5-10 217 7/16/1990 22 R Mississippi State Pascagoula, MS D5-1241 Bethea, Antoine S 5-11 196 7/27/1984 28 7 Howard Newport News, VA D6-0615 Brazill, LaVon WR 5-11 191 3/15/1989 23 R Ohio Lantana, FL D6-1231 Brown, Donald RB 5-10 210 4/11/1987 25 4 Connecticut Atlantic Highlands, NJ D1-0957 Brown, Jerry OLB 6-4 265 10/20/1987 24 R Illinois St. Louis, MO FA-1230 Caldwell, David S 5-11 212 5/19/1987 25 3 William & Mary Montclair, NJ FA-1034 Carter, Delone RB 5-9 238 6/22/1987 25 2 Syracuse Copley, OH D4-1174 Castonzo, Anthony T 6-7 315 8/9/1988 24 2 Boston College Hawthorn Woods, IL D1-1139D Chism, Cameron CB 5-10 190 12/25/1990 21 R Maryland Washington, DC FA-1217 Collie, Austin WR 6-0 204 11/11/1985 26 4 Brigham Young El Dorado Hills, CA D4-0953 Conner, Kavell ILB 6-0 243 2/23/1987 25 3 Clemson Richmond, VA D7-1014 Cosby, Quan WR 5-9 195 12/23/1982 29 4 Texas Waco, TX W-11 (DEN)32 Evans, Darren RB 6-0 232 11/9/1988 23 1 Virginia Tech Indianapolis, IN FA-1116 Fayson, Jarred WR 6-0 213 10/13/1987 24 1 Illinois Tampa, FL FA-1129D Fenelus, Antonio CB 5-9 190 1/19/1990 22 R Wisconsin Boca Raton, FL FA-1280 Fleener, Coby TE 6-6 252 9/20/1988 23 R Stanford Lemont, IL D2-1245D Fokou, Moise ILB 6-1 236 8/28/1985 26 4 Maryland Cameroon, Africa T-12 (PHI)66 Foster, George T 6-5 338 6/9/1980 32 7 Georgia Macon, GA FA-1268O Foster, Jason G 6-5 305 10/21/1988 23 R Rhode Island East Pittsford, VT FA-1250 Freeman, Jerrell ILB 6-0 234 5/1/1986 26 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor Waco, TX FA-1293 Freeney, Dwight OLB 6-1 268 2/19/1980 32 11 Syracuse Hartford, CT D1-028 Harnish, Chandler QB 6-2 220 7/28/1988 24 R Northern Illinois Bluffton, IN D7-1254 Harvey, Mario ILB 6-0 264 8/10/1987 25 1 Marshall Chatham, VA FA-1255 Hickman, Justin OLB 6-2 258 7/20/1985 27 1 UCLA El Paso, TX FA-1261O Hicks, Hayworth G 6-3 336 10/3/1988 23 R Iowa State Palmdale, CA FA-1213 Hilton, T.Y. WR 5-9 183 11/14/1989 22 R Florida International Miami, FL D3-1226D Hines, Jermale S 6-1 222 11/11/1987 24 2 Ohio State Cleveland, OH FA-1192 Hughes, Jerry OLB 6-2 254 8/13/1988 23 3 TCU Sugar Land, TX D1-1040D Jackson, Buddy CB 6-1 180 3/3/1989 23 R Pittsburgh Plantation, FL FA-1299 Johnson, Antonio NT 6-3 310 12/8/1984 27 6 Mississippi State Leland, MS FA-0843 Johnson, D.J. CB 6-1 191 11/7/1985 26 3 Jackson State Texas City, TX T-12 (PHI)23 Johnson, Terrence CB 5-9 195 7/5/1986 26 2 California (PA) Braddock, PA FA-11460 Jones, Dominique TE 6-3 255 8/15/1987 24 R Shepherd San Diego, CA FA-1269 Justice, Winston T 6-6 317 9/14/1984 27 7 USC Long Beach, CA T-12 (PHI)39O Karim, Deji RB 5-8 209 11/18/1986 25 3 Southern Illinois Oklahoma City, OK W-12 (JAX)37 King, Brandon CB 5-10 185 1/28/1987 25 2 Purdue Warner Robins, GA FA-1121 King, Justin CB 5-11 197 5/11/1987 25 5 Penn State Pittsburgh, PA FA-1235 Lefeged, Joe S 6-0 205 6/2/1988 24 2 Rutgers Germantown, MD FA-1142D Lindsey, Korey CB 5-10 194 2/3/1989 23 1 Southern Illinois Baton Rouge, LA W-12 (ARZ)72 Linkenbach, Jeff T 6-6 323 6/9/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Sandusky, OH FA-1049 Lloyd,Greg ILB 6-1 247 2/10/1989 23 1 Connecticut Clermont, FL T-12 (PHI)12 Luck, Andrew QB 6-4 234 9/12/1989 22 R Stanford Houston, TX D1-1259 Lumpkin, Larry ILB 6-0 234 5/16/1991 21 R Carson-Newman Irvington, AL FA-1256 Lutrus, Scott ILB 6-3 247 4/23/1988 24 1 Connecticut Brookfield, CT FA-1191 Mathews, Ricardo DT 6-3 310 7/30/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Jacksonville, FL D7-1098 Mathis, Robert OLB 6-2 245 2/26/1981 31 10 Alabama A&M Atlanta, GA D5-031 McAfee, Pat P 6-1 220 5/2/1987 25 4 West Virginia Plum, PA D7-0975 McGlynn, Mike G/C 6-4 327 3/8/1985 27 5 Pittsburgh Austintown, OH UFA-12 (CIN)96 McKinney, Brandon NT 6-2 345 8/24/1983 28 7 Michigan State Dayton, OH UFA-12 (BAL)27D Merletti, Matt S 5-11 205 7/18/1988 24 R North Carolina Cleveland, OH FA-1286 Miller, Kyle TE 6-5 260 4/18/1988 24 1 Mount Union Elida, OH FA-1295 Moala, Fili DE 6-4 310 6/23/1985 27 4 USC Buena Park, CA D2-0926O Moore, Mewelde RB 5-11 209 7/24/1982 30 9 Tulane Hammond, LA FA-1294 Nevis, Drake DT 6-1 310 5/8/1989 23 2 LSU Harvey, LA D3-1138 Newton, Mike S 5-10 207 11/11/1987 24 2 Buffalo Pasadena, MD FA-1265 Nsekhe, Ty T 6-8 325 10/27/1985 26 R Texas State Arlington, TX FA-1273 Olsen, Seth G 6-5 305 12/17/1985 26 3 Iowa Omaha, NE W-11 (MIN)45O Overton, Matt LS 6-1 254 7/6/1985 27 1 Western Washington Tracy, CA FA-1225 Powers, Jerraud CB 5-10 187 7/19/1987 25 4 Auburn Decatur, AL D3-0990 Redding, Cory DE 6-4 315 11/15/1980 31 10 Texas Houston, TX UFA-12 (BAL)76 Reitz, Joe G 6-7 322 8/24/1985 26 2 W. Michigan Fishers, IN FA-1010 Ross, Jeremy WR 6-0 215 3/16/1988 24 1 California Sacramento, CA FA-1136 Rucker, Chris CB 6-1 209 10/12/1988 23 2 Michigan State Warren, OH D6-1185 Sambrano, Jabin WR 5-11 175 3/12/1990 22 R Montana Temecula, CA FA-1264 Satele, Samson C 6-3 299 11/29/1984 27 6 Hawaii Kailua, HI UFA-12 (OAK)62 Shipley, A.Q. C 6-1 309 5/22/1986 26 1 Penn State Beaver County, PA FA-1265D Shirley, Jason DT 6-5 329 9/30/1985 26 3 Fresno State Fontana, CA FA-1281 Smith, Andre TE 6-5 267 9/26/1988 23 2 Virginia Tech Germantown, MD W-12 (CHI)48 Snow, Justin LS 6-3 245 12/21/1976 35 13 Baylor Abilene, TX FA-003 Stahovich, Brian P 6-0 190 4/14/1990 22 R San Diego State Solana Beach, CA FA-125 Stanton, Drew QB 6-3 243 5/7/1984 28 6 Michigan State Okemos, MI T-12 (NYJ)60 Taylor, Zane C 6-2 309 4/23/1988 24 1 Utah Moab, UT W-12 (PHI)67 Tepper, Mike T 6-6 354 12/11/1985 26 2 California Cypress, CA FA-1147D Thomas, Latarrius S 6-1 210 3/22/1988 24 R Eastern Michigan New Smyma Beach, FL FA-1220 Vaughn, Cassius CB 5-11 195 11/3/1987 24 3 Mississippi Memphis, TN T-12 (DEN)4 Vinatieri, Adam K 6-0 206 12/28/1972 39 17 S. Dakota State Rapid City, SD UFA-06 (NE)87 Wayne, Reggie WR 6-0 198 11/17/1978 33 12 Miami (FL) New Orleans, LA D1-0184 Whalen, Griff WR 5-11 185 3/1/1990 22 R Stanford Sylvania, OH FA-1228 Zbikowski, Tom S 5-11 200 5/22/1985 27 5 Notre Dame Park Ridge, IL UFA-12 (BAL)
52 Edds, A.J. ILB 6-4 256 9/18/1987 24 3 Iowa Greenwood, IN FA-1171 Ijalana, Ben G 6-4 337 8/6/1989 22 2 Villanova Hainesport, NJ D2-11
79O Anderson, Justin G 6-5 342 4/15/1988 24 R Georgia Ocilla, GA D7-1258D Fugger, Tim OLB 6-4 250 7/1/1989 23 R Vanderbilt Oak Brook, IL D7-12
61D Chapman, Josh NT 6-0 316 6/10/1990 22 R Alabama Hoover, AL D5-12
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Chuck PaganoBruce Arians (Offensive Coordinator), Greg Manusky (Defensive Coordinator), Marwan Maalouf (Special Teams Coordinator), Roy Anderson (Safeties Coach),
James Bettcher (Special Assistant to Head Coach), Brant Boyer (Assistant Special Teams Coach), Clyde Christensen (Quarterbacks Coach),
Gary Emanuel (Defensive Line Coach), Jeff FitzGerald (Linebackers Coach), Joe Gilbert (Assistant Offensive Line Coach); Mike Gillhamer (Secondary Coach),
Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach), Harold Goodwin (Offensive Line Coach), Richard Howell (Assistant Strength & Conditioning), Roger Marandino (Strength & Conditioning), Alfredo Roberts (Tight Ends Coach), David Walker (Running Backs Coach), Brad White (Defensive Quality Control Coach), Charlie Williams (Wide Receivers Coach).
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ALPHABETICAL ROSTER
ACTIVE, PHYSICALLY UNABLE TO PERFORM
NON-FOOTBALL INJURY
RESERVE/INJURED
8/6/2012
NO NAME POS HT WT DOB AGE EXP COLLEGE HOMETOWN HOW ACQ. GP/GS/DNP/IA
1 Pat McAfee P 6-1 220 5/2/1987 25 4 West Virginia Plum, PA D7-093 Brian Stahovich P 6-0 190 4/14/1990 22 R San Diego State Solana Beach, CA FA-124 Adam Vinatieri K 6-0 206 12/28/1972 39 17 South Dakota State Rapid City, SD UFA-06 (NE)5 Drew Stanton QB 6-3 243 5/7/1984 28 6 Michigan State Okemos, MI T-12 (NYJ)7 Kris Adams WR 6-3 194 9/4/1987 24 1 UTEP Fort Worth, TX FA-128 Chandler Harnish QB 6-2 220 7/28/1988 24 R Northern Illinois Bluffton, IN D7-1210 Jeremy Ross WR 6-0 215 3/16/1988 24 1 California Sacramento, CA FA-1111 Donnie Avery WR 5-11 200 6/12/1984 28 5 Houston Houston, TX UFA-12 (TEN)12 Andrew Luck QB 6-4 234 9/12/1989 22 R Stanford Houston, TX D1-1213 T.Y. Hilton WR 5-9 183 11/14/1989 22 R Florida International Miami, FL D3-1214 Quan Cosby WR 5-9 195 12/23/1982 29 4 Texas Waco, TX W-11 (DEN)15 LaVon Brazill WR 5-11 191 3/15/1989 23 R Ohio Lantana, FL D6-1216 Jarred Fayson WR 6-0 213 10/13/1987 24 1 Illinois Tampa, FL FA-1117 Austin Collie WR 6-0 204 11/11/1985 26 4 Brigham Young El Dorado Hills, CA D4-0920 Cassius Vaughn CB 5-11 195 11/3/1987 24 3 Mississippi Memphis, TN T-12 (DEN)21 Justin King CB 5-11 197 5/11/1987 25 5 Penn State Pittsburgh, PA FA-1223 Terrence Johnson CB 5-9 195 7/5/1986 26 2 California (PA) Braddock, PA FA-1125 Jerraud Powers CB 5-10 187 7/19/1987 25 4 Auburn Decatur, AL D3-0926D Jermale Hines S 6-1 222 11/11/1987 24 2 Ohio State Cleveland, OH FA-1126O Mewelde Moore RB 5-11 209 7/24/1982 30 9 Tulane Hammond, LA FA-1227D Matt Merletti S 5-11 205 7/18/1988 24 R North Carolina Cleveland, OH FA-1228 Tom Zbikowski S 5-11 200 5/22/1985 27 5 Notre Dame Park Ridge, IL UFA-12 (BAL)29D Antonio Fenelus CB 5-9 190 1/19/1990 22 R Wisconsin Boca Raton, FL FA-1230 David Caldwell S 5-11 212 5/19/1987 25 3 William & Mary Montclair, NJ FA-1031 Donald Brown RB 5-10 210 4/11/1987 25 4 Connecticut Atlantic Highlands, NJ D1-0932 Darren Evans RB 6-0 232 11/9/1988 23 1 Virginia Tech Indianapolis, IN FA-1133O Vick Ballard RB 5-10 217 7/16/1990 22 R Mississippi State Pascagoula, MS D5-1234 Delone Carter RB 5-9 238 6/22/1987 25 2 Syracuse Copley, OH D4-1135 Joe Lefeged S 6-0 205 6/2/1988 24 2 Rutgers Germantown, MD FA-1136 Chris Rucker CB 6-1 209 10/12/1988 23 2 Michigan State Warren, OH D6-1137 Brandon King CB 5-10 185 1/28/1987 25 2 Purdue Warner Robins, GA FA-1138 Mike Newton S 5-10 207 11/11/1987 24 2 Buffalo Pasadena, MD FA-1239D Cameron Chism CB 5-10 190 12/25/1990 21 R Maryland Washington, DC FA-1239O Deji Karim RB 5-8 209 11/18/1986 25 3 Southern Illinois Oklahoma City, OK W-12 (JAX)40D Buddy Jackson CB 6-1 180 3/3/1989 23 R Pittsburgh Plantation, FL FA-1241 Antoine Bethea S 5-11 196 7/27/1984 28 7 Howard Newport News, VA D6-0642D Korey Lindsey CB 5-10 194 2/3/1989 23 1 Southern Illinois Baton Rouge, LA W-12 (ARZ)43 D.J. Johnson CB 6-1 191 11/7/1985 26 3 Jackson State Texas City, TX T-12 (PHI)45D Moise Fokou ILB 6-1 236 8/28/1985 26 4 Maryland Cameroon, Africa T-12 (PHI)45O Matt Overton LS 6-1 254 7/6/1985 27 1 Western Washington Tracy, CA FA-12460 Dominique Jones TE 6-3 255 8/15/1987 24 R Shepherd San Diego, CA FA-1247D Latarrius Thomas S 6-1 210 3/22/1988 24 R Eastern Michigan New Smyma Beach, FL FA-1248 Justin Snow LS 6-3 245 12/21/1976 35 13 Baylor Abilene, TX FA-0049 Greg Lloyd ILB 6-1 247 2/10/1989 23 1 Connecticut Clermont, FL T-12 (PHI)50 Jerrell Freeman ILB 6-0 234 5/1/1986 26 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor Waco, TX FA-1251 Pat Angerer ILB 6-0 236 1/31/1987 25 3 Iowa Bettendorf, IA D2-1053 Kavell Conner ILB 6-0 243 2/23/1987 25 3 Clemson Richmond, VA D7-1054 Mario Harvey ILB 6-0 264 8/10/1987 25 1 Marshall Chatham, VA FA-1255 Justin Hickman OLB 6-2 258 7/20/1985 27 1 UCLA El Paso, TX FA-1256 Scott Lutrus ILB 6-3 247 4/23/1988 24 1 Connecticut Brookfield, CT FA-1157 Jerry Brown OLB 6-4 265 10/20/1987 24 R Illinois St. Louis, MO FA-1259 Larry Lumpkin ILB 6-0 234 5/16/1991 21 R Carson-Newman Irvington, AL FA-1260 Zane Taylor C 6-2 309 4/23/1988 24 1 Utah Moab, UT W-12 (PHI)61O Hayworth Hicks G 6-3 336 10/3/1988 23 R Iowa State Palmdale, CA FA-1262 A.Q. Shipley C 6-1 309 5/22/1986 26 1 Penn State Beaver County, PA FA-1264 Samson Satele C 6-3 299 11/29/1984 27 6 Hawaii Kailua, HI UFA-12 (OAK)65O Ty Nsekhe T 6-8 325 10/27/1985 26 R Texas State Arlington, TX FA-1265D Jason Shirley DT 6-5 329 9/30/1985 26 3 Fresno State Fontana, CA FA-1266 George Foster T 6-5 338 6/9/1980 32 7 Georgia Macon, GA FA-1267 Mike Tepper T 6-6 354 12/11/1985 26 2 California Cypress, CA FA-1168D James Aiono DE 6-3 305 1/23/1989 23 R Utah West Valley, UT FA-1268O Jason Foster G 6-5 305 10/21/1988 23 R Rhode Island East Pittsford, VT FA-1269 Winston Justice T 6-6 317 9/14/1984 27 7 USC Long Beach, CA T-12 (PHI)72 Jeff Linkenbach T 6-6 323 6/9/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Sandusky, OH FA-1073 Seth Olsen G 6-5 305 12/17/1985 26 3 Iowa Omaha, NE W-11 (MIN)74 Anthony Castonzo T 6-7 315 8/9/1988 24 2 Boston College Hawthorn Woods, IL D1-1175 Mike McGlynn G/C 6-4 327 3/8/1985 27 5 Pittsburgh Austintown, OH UFA-12 (CIN)76 Joe Reitz G 6-7 322 8/24/1985 26 2 Western Michigan Fishers, IN FA-1078D Chigbo Anunoby DT 6-4 324 1/4/1989 23 R Morehouse Jefferson City, MO FA-1278O Steven Baker T 6-8 310 11/24/1988 23 R East Carolina Rocky Mount, NC FA-1280 Coby Fleener TE 6-6 252 9/20/1988 23 R Stanford Lemont, IL D2-1281 Andre Smith TE 6-5 267 9/26/1988 23 2 Virginia Tech Germantown, MD W-12 (CHI)83 Dwayne Allen TE 6-3 255 2/24/1990 22 R Clemson Fayettville, NC D3-1284 Griff Whalen WR 5-11 185 3/1/1990 22 R Stanford Sylvania, OH FA-1285 Jabin Sambrano WR 5-11 175 3/12/1990 22 R Montana Temecula, CA FA-1286 Kyle Miller TE 6-5 260 4/18/1988 24 1 Mount Union Elida, OH FA-1287 Reggie Wayne WR 6-0 198 11/17/1978 33 12 Miami (FL) New Orleans, LA D1-0190 Cory Redding DE 6-4 315 11/15/1980 31 10 Texas Houston, TX UFA-12 (BAL)91 Ricardo Mathews DT 6-3 310 7/30/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Jacksonville, FL D7-1092 Jerry Hughes OLB 6-2 254 8/13/1988 23 3 TCU Sugar Land, TX D1-1093 Dwight Freeney OLB 6-1 268 2/19/1980 32 11 Syracuse Hartford, CT D1-0294 Drake Nevis DT 6-1 310 5/8/1989 23 2 LSU Harvey, LA D3-1195 Fili Moala DE 6-4 310 6/23/1985 27 4 USC Buena Park, CA D2-0996 Brandon McKinney NT 6-2 345 8/24/1983 28 7 Michigan State Dayton, OH UFA-12 (BAL)97 Mario Addison OLB 6-3 257 9/6/1987 24 2 Troy Birmingham, AL W-11 (CHI)98 Robert Mathis OLB 6-2 245 2/26/1981 31 10 Alabama A&M Atlanta, GA D5-0399 Antonio Johnson NT 6-3 310 12/8/1984 27 6 Mississippi State Leland, MS FA-08
52 A.J. Edds ILB 6-4 256 9/18/1987 24 3 Iowa Greenwood, IN FA-1171 Ben Ijalana G 6-4 337 8/6/1989 22 2 Villanova Hainesport, NJ D2-11
58D Tim Fugger OLB 6-4 250 7/1/1989 23 R Vanderbilt Oak Brook, IL D7-1279O Justin Anderson G 6-5 342 4/15/1988 24 R Georgia Ocilla, GA D7-12
61D Josh Chapman NT 6-0 316 6/10/1990 22 R Alabama Hoover, AL D5-12
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Chuck PaganoBruce Arians (Offensive Coordinator), Greg Manusky (Defensive Coordinator), Marwan Maalouf (Special Teams Coordinator), Roy Anderson (Safeties Coach),
James Bettcher (Special Assistant to Head Coach), Brant Boyer (Assistant Special Teams Coach), Clyde Christensen (Quarterbacks Coach),
Gary Emanuel (Defensive Line Coach), Jeff FitzGerald (Linebackers Coach), Joe Gilbert (Assistant Offensive Line Coach); Mike Gillhamer (Secondary Coach),
Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach), Harold Goodwin (Offensive Line Coach), Richard Howell (Assistant Strength & Conditioning), Roger Marandino (Strength & Conditioning), Alfredo Roberts (Tight Ends Coach), David Walker (Running Backs Coach), Brad White (Defensive Quality Control Coach), Charlie Williams (Wide Receivers Coach).
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS NUMERICAL ROSTER
ACTIVE, PHYSICALLY UNABLE TO PERFORM
NON-FOOTBALL INJURY
RESERVE/INJURED
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
1
Moise Fokou #45 Inside Linebacker 6-1, 236 pounds Maryland TR – 2012 (Philadelphia) 1st Year with Colts/4th Year in NFL Born: August 28, 1985
Career Transactions:
• Acquired by the Colts in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles along with linebacker Greg Lloyd in exchange for cornerback Kevin Thomas and a conditional seventh round selection in the 2013 NFL Draft.
• Originally selected by Philadelphia in the seventh round (230th overall) in the 2009 NFL Draft.
2011 (EAGLES):
• Competed in 11 games (seven starts) and totaled 27 tackles (15 solo) and one pass defensed.
• Ranked second on the team with 10 special teams tackles before being placed on Injured Reserve on November 29.
• Set a season-high seven tackles in the season opener at St. Louis (9/11).
2010 (EAGLES):
• Saw action in all 16 contests (11 starts) and posted 41 tackles (33 solo), one sack, one pass defensed and two forced fumbles.
• Led the team with 19 special teams tackles.
• Started at linebacker and notched his first career forced fumble at San Francisco (10/10).
• Registered his first career sack at the New York Giants (12/19) and contributed with a season-best seven tackles and a team-leading four special teams stops.
• Finished with six tackles in the team’s Wild Card Playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers (1/9). 2009 (EAGLES):
• In his rookie season, played in all 16 games (four starts) and contributed with 30 tackles (18 solo) and one pass defensed.
• Tied for first on the team in special teams tackles (20) and recovered two fumbles on special teams.
• Recovered a fumble on a kickoff return by Domenik Hixon against the New York Giants (11/1), which led to a field goal.
• Started his first NFL game against Dallas (11/8) and recorded four tackles.
• Set a career-high with nine tackles at San Diego (11/15).
• Finished with three tackles in the team’s Wild Card Playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys (1/9). College:
• Registered 182 tackles in 39 career games at Maryland.
• Was an All-ACC selection as a senior SAM linebacker in 2008 and totaled 77 tackles, a career-best 12 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks.
• His 5.0 sacks in 2008 were the most by a Maryland linebacker since Shawne Merriman had a team-best 8.5 in 2004.
• Was the only player in the ACC in 2008 to finish with 75 or more tackles and at least 5.0 sacks.
• Tallied 84 tackles, three forced fumbles and a team-high 17 special teams stops in 2007.
• Was selected to play in the 2009 Under Armour Senior Bowl.
• Started his collegiate career at Division III Frostburg State and registered 70 tackles in 10 games.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
2
• Graduated Maryland with a degree in criminology and criminal justice.
Personal:
• Attended Bullis (Maryland) High School in Potomac, Md.
• Was an All-IAC and second-team All-Met selection as a senior running back and linebacker. Also garnered team MVP honors that year.
• Founded The Root 53 Foundation, which assists urban youth.
• Pronounced: Moses (FOE-koo).
• Immigrated to the United States in 1990 from Cameroon in central Africa. Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 PHI 11/7 15 12 27 0.0 2 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2010 PHI 16/11 33 8 41 1.0 1 2 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2009 PHI 16/4 18 12 30 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 43/22 66 32 98 1.0 4 2 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Career Playoff Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2010 PHI 1/1 3 3 6 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2009 PHI 1/1 2 1 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 2/2 5 4 9 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Special Teams Tackles: 49 (2011 – 10, 2010 – 19, 2009 - 20) Additional Statistics: Special teams fumble recoveries: 2 (1 at NYG (12/13/09), 1 vs. NYG (11/1/09))
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
3
Greg Lloyd #49
Inside Linebacker 6-1, 247 pounds Connecticut TR – 2012 (Philadelphia) 1st Year with Colts/1st Year in NFL Born: February 10, 1989
Career Transactions:
• Acquired by the Colts in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles along with linebacker Moise Fokou in exchange for cornerback Kevin Thomas and a conditional seventh round selection in the 2013 NFL Draft.
• Originally selected by Philadelphia in the seventh round (237th overall) in the 2011 NFL Draft.
2011 (EAGLES):
• Spent the first 12 weeks of the season on the Philadelphia practice squad.
• Was elevated to the 53-man roster on November 29 and was inactive for the last five contests of the season.
College:
• Over his four-year career at UConn, started 23-of-34 games at middle linebacker and registered 177 tackles, 3.0 sacks and one interception.
• Earned All-Big East Conference second-team honors following the 2009 season after starting 10 games and finishing second on the squad with a career-high 91 tackles and one sack.
Personal:
• Attended East Ridge (Florida) High School.
• Earned All-Central Florida honors from The Orlando Sentinel.
• Also played center on the basketball team in high school.
• Son of Rhonda Nelson and former Steelers linebacker Greg Lloyd.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
4
Larry Lumpkin #59 Inside Linebacker 6-0, 234 pounds Carson-Newman Free Agent - 2012 1st Year with Colts/1st Year in NFL Born: May 16, 1991
Career Transactions:
• Signed by the Colts as an undrafted free agent on July 13, 2012. College:
• Transferred to Carson-Newman in 2011 and led the team with 94 tackles (62 solo) and added 10.0 tackles for loss.
• Earned All-South Atlantic Conference first-team honors.
• Competed at Alabama A&M prior to transferring to Carson-Newman and compiled 82 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, 4.0 sacks, two passes defensed, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Personal:
• Attended Alma Bryant High School in Irvington, Ala.
• In his junior season (2007), broke the school record for tackles with 105 while contributing with four fumbles and two interceptions.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
5
D.J. Johnson #43 Cornerback 6-1, 191 pounds Jackson State Free Agent – TR – 2012 (Philadelphia) 1st Year with Colts/1st Year in NFL Born: May 16, 1991
Career Transactions:
• Acquired by the Colts in a trade with Philadelphia in exchange for defensive tackle Ollie Ogbu on July 22, 2012.
• Re-signed by the Philadelphia Eagles on January 2, 2012.
• Signed to the Eagles practice squad on December 2, 2011.
• Released by the Washington Redskins on November 29, 2011.
• Signed by the Redskins off the Minnesota Vikings practice squad on November 8, 2011.
• Signed to the Vikings practice squad on September 7, 2011.
• Released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 5, 2011.
• Signed to the Buccaneers practice squad on November 24, 2010 prior to being elevated to the active roster on December 8, 2010.
• Released by the New York Giants on November 20, 2010.
• Re-signed by the Giants on April 16, 2010.
• Signed by the Giants off the Denver Broncos practice squad on November 11, 2009.
• Released by the Broncos and signed to the practice squad on September 6, 2009.
• Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Denver Broncos on April 27, 2009. 2011 (VIKINGS/REDSKINS/EAGLES):
• Began the season on the Vikings practice squad before being signed to the Redskins active roster on November 8, 2011.
• Released by the Redskins and was signed to the Eagles practice squad on December 2, 2011 where he remained for the rest of the regular season.
2010 (GIANTS/BUCCANEERS):
• Saw action in seven games with the Giants and contributed on special teams.
• Was signed to the Buccaneers practice squad on November 24, 2010 prior to being elevated to the active roster on December 8, 2010 where he remained for the rest of the regular season.
2009 (BRONCOS/GIANTS):
• Started the season on the Broncos practice squad before being signed to the Giants active roster on November 11, 2009.
• Competed in three games with the Giants at cornerback and on special teams and totaled three tackles.
• Made his NFL debut at Washington (12/21). College:
• Played in 24 career games in two seasons at Jackson State after beginning his collegiate career at the University of Missouri.
• Totaled 66 tackles and 10 interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns.
• Added 27 passes defensed, one forced fumble, one blocked kick and returned five kickoffs for 120 yards.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
6
• Was named a second-team All-America selection by The Associated Press and was a first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference choice as a senior.
• Was selected as the defensive MVP of the 2007 SWAC Championship Game during his junior season in which he started 12 games and had a team-high five interceptions.
Personal:
• Attended LaMarque (Texas) High School and competed in football, basketball and track.
• A native of Texas City, Texas. Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2010 NYG/TB 7/0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2009 NYG 3/0 2 1 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 10/0 2 1 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
7
Ty Nsekhe #65
Offensive Tackle 6-8, 325 pounds Texas State Free Agent - 2012 1st Year with Colts/1st Year in NFL Born: October 25, 1985
Career Transactions:
• Selected by the Colts as a free agent on August 1, 2012.
• Signed by the San Antonio Talons of the Arena Football League on April 26, 2012.
• Signed by the Philadelphia Soul of the Arena Football League on March 1, 2011.
• Signed by the Dallas Vigilantes of the Arena Football League in 2010.
• Signed by the Corpus Christi Sharks of the af2 in 2009. 2012:
• Was signed by the San Antonio Talons of the AFL and competed in three games.
• Contributed with three receptions for 24 yards (8.0 avg.). 2011:
• Saw action in eight games with the Philadelphia Soul of the AFL.
• Totaled eight receptions for 91 yards (11.4 avg.) and three touchdowns. 2010:
• Competed in one game for the Dallas Vigilantes of the AFL. 2009:
• Started his post college football career with the Corpus Christi Sharks of the af2. College:
• Attended college at Texas State.
Personal:
• Attended Arlington (Texas) Bowie high school.
• Pronounced: N-sec-ee
• A native of Arlington, Texas.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
8
Jason Shirley #65 Defensive Tackle 6-5, 329 pounds Fresno State Free Agent - 2012 1st Year with Colts/3rd Year in NFL Born: September 30, 1985
Career Transactions:
• Signed by the Colts as a free agent on July 19, 2012.
• Released by the Carolina Panthers on May 21, 2012.
• Signed to the Panthers active roster on December 6, 2011.
• Signed to the Carolina practice squad on November 8, 2011.
• Released by the Seattle Seahawks on October 22, 2011.
• Signed as a free agent by Seattle on October 17, 2011.
• Released from the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad on October 7, 2011.
• Released by Cincinnati on September 3, 2011 and signed to the practice squad the following day.
• Placed on the reserve/non football injury list on July 21, 2010.
• Signed to a reserve/future contract by the Bengals on January 11, 2010.
• Released by Cincinnati on September 5, 2009 and signed to the Bengals practice squad the following day.
• Originally selected by Cincinnati in the fifth round (145th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft.
2011 (BENGALS/SEAHAWKS/PANTHERS):
• Spent time on the practice squads of the Cincinnati Bengals, Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers.
• Was signed to the Panthers active roster on December 6, 2011 and competed in four games while totaling four tackles, 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble.
• Totaled his first career sack and forced fumble against Atlanta (12/11).
• Added one sack at Houston (12/18) and contributed with a half sack versus Tampa Bay (12/24). 2010 (BENGALS):
• Was placed on the reserve/non football injury list on July 21, 2010. 2009 (BENGALS):
• Spent the entire season on the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad. 2008 (BENGALS):
• Saw action in three games during his rookie campaign and compiled four tackles.
• Made his NFL debut against Baltimore (11/30) and recorded three stops. College:
• Competed in 35 games (13 starts) at Fresno State.
• Produced 57 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 5.0 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one pass defensed and three blocked kicks during his collegiate career.
Personal:
• Attended Kaiser (Calif.) High School and helped his team produce a 13-0-1 record and the Division III state title.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
9
Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 CAR 4/0 2 2 4 2.5 0 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2008 CIN 3/0 2 2 4 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 7/0 4 4 8 2.5 0 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0
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Associated Press
Mlive.com
August 4, 2012
ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) — Colts coach Chuck Pagano is just trying to be himself.
He's resisting the urge to flip his baseball hat backward and sneak over to the defensive position drills as he's done for more than two decades.
This year he's handing off duties to assistant coaches, spending more time with the offense and the media, less at positional drills and tugging at the bill of his cap over his forehead. It's a big change for the 51-year-old who is finally running his own team.
"The hardest part is administrative. You're delegating, you're trying to get guys in practice in the right spots, make sure everything is working from an organizational standpoint," Pagano said. "At the same time, you want to get hands on. That's the biggest thing is you got to stay involved, and you want to stay close to coaching and teaching as best you can."
Of course, there will be times Pagano can get back to those basics.
On Friday, when safeties coach Roy Anderson left training camp at Anderson University because of a death in the family, it was Pagano who filled in as the position coach.
The Colorado native knows that cannot be the norm if he's going to make a successful transition from longtime assistant to first-time head coach. Some have made the jump seamlessly, and others excelled when given enough time. But the league is littered with assistants who have failed to make that jump, especially on their first attempt.
Pagano may wind up being one of the lucky ones.
Team owner Jim Irsay has spent much of the offseason pleading with fans for patience after presiding over the franchise's biggest housecleaning project in more than a decade. Besides hiring Pagano, Irsay brought in a first-time general manager (Ryan Grigson), oversaw the release of Peyton Manning, the hiring of new offensive and defensive coordinators, adding a new franchise quarterback and changing at least seven offensive starters.
That's the predicament Pagano walked into in Indy.
The longtime defensive guru is already attempting to put his stamp on the Colts (No. 32 in the AP Pro32) by bringing more balance to the offense and more aggressiveness to the defense.
Tony Dungy, who turned Tampa Bay from one of the league's worst franchises into a Super Bowl contender, believes Pagano is on the right path because he's sticking to his principles.
"(The key) really is probably just being resolute more than anything else," Dungy said after visiting Colts camp last weekend at Irsay's invitation. "You think it's going to go well, you believe you've got the answers, you really believe in what you're doing. I thought that too, and we started out 1-8 (at Tampa Bay). So whether you start out 8-1, or 1-8, you know what you want to get done. I just sense that from Coach Pagano; that he has a plan and he's not going to deviate from it."
Pagano understands.
His father, Sam, won 164 career games and three state titles as the head football coach at Fairview High School in Colorado. His brother, John, is now the San Diego Chargers defensive coordinator.
And growing up in a coaching family came with some hard lessons.
"It was a special deal, kind of like me when I was growing up watching him run the show for so long and all the things you learned along the way," Pagano said after his father watched Saturday's afternoon practice. "I had an opportunity, growing up, around what I think is the greatest team sport in the world."
Dad's advice: "Don't mess it up."
By all accounts, Chuck Pagano is a player's coach.
Defensive lineman Cory Redding said when he and Pagano were in Baltimore, Pagano listened to the players' concerns and addressed any of them. It was one of the reasons Redding, defensive tackle Brandon McKinney and safety Tom Zbikowski left one of the league's top defenses to help rebuild the Colts.
So far, they've seen the same, old guy.
"I've seen him step back and let the coaches do their jobs," Redding said. "Every once in a while, you'll see him grab a ball, roll up his sleeves, put his hat on backwards and run some drills."
Those with longer ties to Pagano have detected a difference.
When receiver Reggie Wayne arrived at the University of Miami in the late 1990s, Pagano, the secondary and special teams coach, was loud, direct and demanding. While those traits still exist, Wayne said Pagano has a found a way to send messages a little less vocally to pro players.
"He's toned down totally. This is a different Chuck Pagano than the college days. At the same time he's still fun, he still loves the game, still loves to teach, still gets a kick out of guys improving and getting better each day," Wayne said. "That's always good. As long as he keeps that edge I'll take any Chuck Pagano any day."
Pagano's unassuming personality and folksy comments seem to be a perfect fit in Indy, too.
Irsay likes something else — player reaction.
Defensive players have embraced Pagano's motivational techniques and earthy approach to the game. Offensive players like seeing all those defensive looks, which is giving rookies such as Andrew Luck an opportunity to learn the ropes of NFL defenses before next weekend's preseason opener.
Irsay knows it's a combination that can work.
"I think that our players were always with Tony. Their great respect for him automatically gave him a lot of capital and a lot of credibility when he addressed things with them," Irsay said. "It's the same thing with Chuck. You talk to those guys in Baltimore, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed and those guys, the trust and the admiration that they have in Chuck was tremendous. That's something that they both have and bring into the room when they get with the players because a leader is followed a lot of the times from the heart and from the deep belief."
Pagano insists that part and his desire to win won't change.
What will? How he runs the team.
"I try to get around and show my presence, have my presence at all the individual drills," he said. "I'm going to gravitate to the defensive side just naturally. I've got to watch myself in that regard because that's my background, that's what I've done my whole life, my whole coaching career."
Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri takes ‘big game’ literally
By Mike Chappell
Indianapolis Star Tribune
August 4, 2012
In the den of his home in Carmel, Adam Vinatieri is surrounded by antelope, a musk ox and a menacing grizzly bear on its haunches.
A warthog's head pokes out of a wall. The rugs? They came from a black bear and zebra.
To the Indianapolis Colts kicker, "big game" isn't just what happens on a football field. It relates to his passion: hunting, often in exotic global destinations, always with family and friends.
Vinatieri has hunted in Alaska, Africa, Argentina, Costa Rica, Canada's Northwest Territory and the Arctic tundra, not to mention prime sites in this country.
The animals that fill his den are taxidermal trophies, sure. But they're also memories, snapshots of a family tradition instilled in him as a child in South Dakota.
Most came from hunting trips Vinatieri took with his father Paul, brothers Chad and Beau, and brother-in-law Tony Erickson.
"Every one of them has a story or an experience behind it,'' Vinatieri said. "I remember who I was with, where I was. ... Each one of them has a special memory. It's kind of cool."
Vinatieri, 39, is entering his 17th NFL season, his seventh with the Colts. To football fans, he's known for his Super Bowl-winning field goals with the New England Patriots and as an instrumental part of the Colts' 2006 Super Bowl championship season.
But seeing Vinatieri in his den, it's clear how much he values his non-football trophies -- the African gazelle, the bison, the animals with less unfamiliar names: klipspringer, springbok, nilgai. One animal in particular carries special significance. It is a bushbuck, an African antelope, and Vinatieri can't even count it as one of his own kills. His cousin, Tony, bagged it along with four others several years ago.
But before the five animals arrived in the United States, Tony Vinatieri and his wife died in a plane crash. He and his family took one bushbuck each.
"When I look at mine," Vinatieri said, "I'm reminded of (Tony)."
Nilgai steaks
Vinatieri understands there are those who turn an angry eye at his collection and attraction to big-game hunting.
"I know there are people that think it's rude or crude or whatever,'' he said, slowly nodding his head. "But anything I can bring back, we eat."
Whenever the Vinatieris cook on the grill, including when neighbors visit, it's not your normal backyard menu.
"We've learned to like venison a lot -- one of our favorites,'' said Valerie, Adam's wife. "He just brought home nilgai."
That's an antelope indigenous to India that also can be found in Texas.
"We grilled up four nice nilgai steaks the other night,'' Adam said. "They were awesome."
Valerie agreed, but has her limits.
"I'll try anything once,'' she said, "but I'm a little skeptical of some of the stuff."
When it's not possible for Vinatieri to bring the meat home, it's given to the local base camps in southern Africa, Argentina or wherever that offseason's hunting took him.
He notes that big-game hunting boosts local economies. Kolobe Safaris services South Africa, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe and offers packages that range from $2,050 (blesbuck, impala and warthog) to $75,700 (male lion, female lion, buffalo bull, hippo bull and sable).
"Everything has a price tag and a lot of people don't understand how that money goes right back into the economy there," Vinatieri said. "And we don't take the meat home ... it goes right back to the villagers. Nothing is wasted.
"I know people say, 'Oh, how can you (kill big-game animals)?' It's much more humane than stockyards and places like that. It's all organic and free-range stuff, and damn good eating."
It's also the Vinatieri way.
Paul introduced Adam, Chad and Beau to hunting, as his father had done with him. Paul once told The Indianapolis Star, "As soon as they were out of diapers, they were going hunting with my father and me."
"I'm a South Dakota kid," said Adam, born in Yankton. "I was born with a shotgun in my hand, chasing pheasant through the cornfields. My dad probably started taking me out when I was 4, 5 or 6 years old.
"I remember being so covered up with clothing, sitting in a duck blind, trying not to freeze my butt off. But I was out there with my dad. It doesn't get any better than that, trust me."
Family tradition
Now it's Adam's turn to pass along the love of the outdoors and hunting.
Nine-year-old son A.J. already has four or five trophies, ones he shot, in his bedroom. On a recent father-son trip to Lake Okeechobee in south Florida, A.J. used a crossbow to kill an 11-foot alligator.
"I had never done that,'' Adam said, shaking his head.
The gator is being processed and soon will find its final resting place on a floor in the Vinatieri household.
"That's an experience I'll remember all of my life and A.J. and I will talk about all of our lives,'' Adam said. "I can't wait till my youngest is old enough to go with us."
Gabriel, 2, is running around the house using a stick as a gun.
"Pow, pow, pow!'' Adam said, mimicking Gabriel. "He's getting the hang of it."
Six-year old daughter Allison recently recorded her first kill.
"She's not in love with hunting,'' Valerie said. "She likes the idea of wanting to be, but she's just a girlie girl."
Of herself, Valerie said, "I'm not a hunter. I didn't grow up in a family of hunters."
But she embraces Adam's need to be outdoors as much as his NFL career allows. Every big-game hunter has a "bucket list'' that consists of a big five: elephant, rhinoceros, buffalo, lion and leopard.
"I know I'm going to shoot a buffalo," Adam said. "I know I'm going to shoot a leopard."
He also wants to add to his collection a Lord Derby eland, the world's largest antelope, which roams the plains of central Africa.
"Eighty percent of the reason I love hunting is I get to spend time with the people I love,'' Adam said. "It's not so much, 'Hey, that's a pretty animal on the wall.' It's that it brings me back to a memory of a fun time I had with family and friends.
"It's a 3D postcard."
Redding brings ‘big’ leadership to Colts
By Reggie Hayes
Ft. Wayne News Sentinel
August 3, 2012
ANDERSON – Indianapolis Colts coach Chuck Pagano got right to the point with free agent Cory Redding.
“Cory,” Pagano said, “I need you.”
Simple words. Straightforward. Redding, who had spent two seasons playing for then defensive-coordinator Pagano with the Baltimore Ravens, recalls those words clearly many weeks later. It wasn't just the phrase, but the tone in Pagano's voice.
“When I heard that voice coming from him, and the sincerity in his voice, that made me (say), 'Forget all the others, I'm going with you Chuck,” Redding said Thursday. “I know how important it is to you, and it's important to me and I want to be part of that change.”
There's a good chance those words – “Cory, I need you” – might have been the most important ones uttered by Pagano during the offseason.
Redding could be the most important player on the Colts' defense, and perhaps in the locker room, during training camp at Anderson University and into the 2012 season.
When Pagano called Redding, he not only hired a defensive end/tackle, he hired a man who understands the 3-4 defense and who exudes leadership in all facets of the game.
Redding would not fit the category of quiet leader.
His persona is one of volume, and the perfect fit for a Colts defense, and team, seeking to crank up the intensity.
“Guys know who are the leaders in this league,” Redding said. “When I walked in the locker room, it was understood. It wasn't like I was walking in, cracking a whip and saying this is who I am. They accepted me because of who I am.
“People can fake it to a certain point, but after that, they can't do it,” Redding continued. “This is me all day, uncut, raw, I'm never going to change. Accept who I am or get behind me.”
Pagano helped recruit Redding, along with safety Tom Zbikowski and defensive tackle Brandon McKinney, because he needed an experience, confident leader for his defense.
Pagano knew he was inheriting some valuable defensive players in pass rushers Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, linebacker Pat Angerer and defensive backs Antoine Bethea and Jerraud Powers. But the transition from a 4-3 scheme with the “Cover-2” emphasis to a 3-4 with more man-to-man secondary responsibilities will be a transition.
Redding is a big man up front (6-foot-4, 315 pounds), and has the potential to be a huge influence in the locker room.
“He's just an individual, a big man that's playing a big game,” Colts defensive coordinator Greg Manusky said. “And he's a big leader amongst the guys on the defense because he's been in the system, he knows what it is and he's pulling them all together.”
Redding is loud and “on” all the time. He contributed some heavy vocals during 11-on-11 situations in full pads Thursday, and the intensity kicked up a notch. There were even two slight fights. Redding wasn't directly involved, but he's bringing some Ravens style defensive swagger.
“I'm all about team and that's what this thing is all about,” Redding said. “That's what I'm preaching about Chuck to these guys. It's all about team. No one person is biger than the other.”
Asked what the defense might end up looking like, Redding rattled off the answer with what one reporter thought was an evangelist's fervor.
“What you see out there every day – running around, flying to the rock, hitting guys, challenging every ball in the air, not letting the offense get a blade in the grass,” Redding said. “That's our mindset.
“…The canvas is not complete,” he said. “There's still a lot of room to grow. We're painting that brush every day.”
Redding said he can't stress enough the importance of being a good run defense first, then adding that pass rush to the mix.
“Pudding is pudding,” he said. “You can mix it up and put everything else in there – vanilla wafers, banana pudding – but it is what it is. It's stil pudding. That's the basis of this defense. You can't do anything unless you stop the run.”
If the Colts are going to grow into a defensive-oriented team, quite a swing from the past, then Pagano made a good call: Redding might be just what they needed.
Longevity doesn't make Colts long-snapper Justin Snow a legend By Mike Chappell
Indianapolis Star Tribune
July 31, 2012
ANDERSON, Ind. -- The list includes two of the greatest players in NFL history -- Peyton Manning and John Unitas -- and familiar names such as Jeff Saturday and Marvin Harrison.
And then there's a name that isn't so familiar.
Justin Snow.
He's the Colts' long-snapper. He's also a peer of Manning and Unitas for longevity in the history of the franchise in Indianapolis and Baltimore.
Manning set the club record by appearing in 208 consecutive games, all starts, until his streak ended last season. Snow is second at 192. He's entering his 13th season. Only two players have had longer tenures with the Colts: Unitas (17 seasons) and Manning (14).
"It's something you never take for granted,'' Snow said. "I'm here for as long as they'll have me. I could be gone tomorrow.
"You just try to work hard each and every day and show them what you have, and hopefully at the end you'll be on the roster.''
Snow has been on the roster since signing as an undrafted rookie out of Baylor in April 2000. He caught the eye of former vice chairman Bill Polian as an accomplished defensive end who had dabbled in long-snapping in college.
Snow's durability cannot be explained by saying he's "just'' a specialist. After snapping on punts, he is often one of the first downfield to help with the tackle in coverage.
And, as veteran outside linebacker Dwight Freeney noted, sticking around as long as Snow isn't easy at any position. Teams always are trying to get younger, find less expensive talent. Snow, who will be a free agent at the end of this season, makes a base salary of $925,000. The rookie minimum is $390,000.
"I'd like to be able to do anything for 13 years,'' Freeney said. "He deserves it. He's done an amazing job. He's a model of consistency.
"Not only does he snap, he goes down and makes some real tough tackles. People don't see that.''
What they see is Snow trotting out with the punt team or for field goals and extra points. He anchors the middle of the line, bends over and almost always delivers a tight spiral to punter and holder Pat McAfee.
Snow had whipped 1,631 consecutive long snaps through his legs before sitting out the final two last season. Late in a loss to Jacksonville, Snow suffered a concussion. He considered keeping it to himself until he looked up at the fans in the stands.
"Everything was blurry to me,'' Snow said. "I thought it was best not to go back in.''
He stayed on the sideline, replaced by Jacob Tamme.
During this training camp, Snow's competition is Matt Overton, who is 27 and has never played in an NFL game. Throughout his long career, Snow has made it difficult for the Colts to replace him.
He plays a position where every mistake is magnified, and he has made very few.
"I've had two,'' Snow offered.
The first was egregious. In the 2003 AFC Championship Game at New England, he snapped the ball high over punter Hunter Smith's head. It resulted in a safety. The other was a poor snap last year at Tampa Bay.
It was "wobbly and not where it was supposed to be,'' Snow said. "I'm a perfectionist at what I do. Am I going to make mistakes? Sure I am. But I've got Pat and had Hunter in the past. Maybe they've covered that up occasionally.''
Long-snapping is Snow's vocation, but it's not what he set out to do.
"Growing up, the long-snapper isn't a very recognizable position," he said. "It's one you really don't want to do.''
But Snow snapped his final two years at Abilene (Texas) Cooper High School, then as a junior at Baylor University. It was while he was helping the kickers warm up before a game during his senior year at Baylor that he caught Polian's eye as a defensive end with a knack for long-snapping.
The Colts were on their bye week and Polian was scouting and visiting son Brian, who was a graduate assistant coach at the school.
"That's how I was discovered,'' Snow said. "I had a good game on defense and . . . here I am today.'
Colts rookie QB Chandler Harnish anything but irrelevant to hometown
Phil Richards
IndyStar.com
July 28, 2012
BLUFFTON, Ind. -- So how did your Indianapolis Colts rookie quarterback spend his final summer evenings before reporting to training camp?
In an Indiana cornfield with his girlfriend and family, picking 300 dozen ears of sweet corn in the steamy dark to earn a few extra bucks to see him through.
"My dad taught me everything I know," Chandler Harnish said, "especially hard work."
Harnish is the "other" quarterback. The Colts took Andrew Luck with the first pick of the draft. They harvested Harnish with the last; he's No. 253, "Mr. Irrelevant."
He's as Hoosier as they come.
"Harnish Homestead, 1868" proclaims the sign on the big white barn behind the family home. The barn's concrete floor has a glassy finish, the better to complement the basketball goal that hangs above it.
The Harnish's mailing address is Bluffton, pop. 9,929, but the family more closely identifies with Markle, Ossian, Craigville and the country folk scattered across the vast, flat farm fields southeast of Fort Wayne. That's how it is with outliers.
Harnish sits on the deck out back. A .22 caliber pump rifle rests at ready on the table before him. Cornfields wall in the homestead on three sides, and the Harnishes don't suffer varmints in them gladly.
Harnish had just returned from the 37th annual "Irrelevant Week," an exercise in lighthearted irreverence in Newport Beach, Calif. He was showered with gifts and honored with a parade, a visit to Disneyland and a banquet at which he was roasted and awarded the Lowsman Trophy, a clear play at contrast with the Heisman Trophy.
The Lowsman is a bronze football player fumbling a football.
The event got extensive coverage in the Bluffton News-Banner. Residents are still beaming. That was evident at the Wells County Courthouse, whose tall stone clock tower dominates downtown Bluffton.
"I think he'll probably give Luck a run for his money," gushed Geof Gilbert, a visitor to the courthouse who plays pickup basketball with Harnish's older brother, Mitch, 26, at the city gym down the street.
It was evident in a parking lot a mile up Main Street, where Harnish's sister, Carlee, 17, sold the sweet corn picked by the family the night before out of the back of a pickup truck.
"I'll be watching this fall," Ronda Thornton said as she handed Carlee $4 for a dozen ears. "I just know he's a great player."
Harnish is fully confident and fiercely competitive, but he has no illusions. He knows Luck is the man. Harnish wore No. 12 through high school and college. So who's going to get the number with the Colts, the first draft pick or the 253rd? Luck, of course.
Harnish is working to make the Colts' 53-man roster, to make Luck better. The eight-man practice squad is not an unlikely destination for him. Still, he is enjoying the ride.
"That's probably been the best part of the whole thing so far," he said, "the community excitement, family and friends kind of growing closer, being so close to home and being able to spend some time at home.
"It's a smaller community. It's tightknit. Everybody knows everybody. I'm so proud to represent these people every day I put the uniform on."
When the Colts drafted Peyton Manning in 1998, Harnish was 10. He had to look no farther for a hero. He painted his bedroom walls Colts colors and papered them with Manning posters. While Manning was quarterbacking the Colts to the world championship during the 2006 season, Harnish was quarterbacking the Norwell High School Knights to a Class 3A state runner-up finish.
Harnish always has been underestimated. Ball State didn't recruit him. Indiana and Purdue looked but didn't offer. Harnish signed with Northern Illinois. He took the Huskies to four bowl games and as a senior last season was triggerman on their first Mid-American Conference title team in 28 years.
Only eight players exceeded Harnish's 328.2-yard total offense average in 2011. No quarterback topped his 106.3-yard rushing average and he was a 61.7 percent passer with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions.
Harnish earned his business degree with a 3.68 grade-point average and as a fifth-year senior completed half of his MBA requirements. He was one of 16 honored as National Football Foundation scholars and he won the foundation's mental toughness award.
The Colts know. Coach Chuck Pagano pronounced Harnish out for two to three weeks after he suffered a knee injury during organized team activities. Harnish missed a single practice.
"That shows his toughness, his perseverance, his resiliency," Pagano said. "He's a really tough kid."
He was a hungry 23-year-old kid as he sat alongside Tanya Rachan, his girlfriend of 3 1/2 years, at a table in The Corner Depot, a Bluffton eatery, one day last week, waiting for lunch.
"We struggled for a while with our relationship because Chandler didn't know what to put first: football, school or family," said Rachan, from Lowell, Ind., a four-year varsity gymnast at NIU who will start dental school at Southern Illinois this fall.
Rachan grinned at Harnish.
"It's roses now," he said, smiling back.
How else to explain a Sunday night date in a dark cornfield? Rachan drove the Bobcat. Chandler, Carlee, younger brother Piercen, 16, and their dad, Ron, a former Little All-American defensive tackle at Manchester College, heaped the Bobcat's front-end bucket full of sweet corn.
Back at The Corner Depot, lunch was served. Harnish inhaled a couple of chicken breasts. He finished Tanya's salad. He pushed away his plate. Time to go.
Carlee was down the street, still selling corn out of the pickup, now in blazing afternoon heat. It was Chandler's turn; time to relieve her.
Bob Kravitz gets Andrew Luck to open up on the beard, his Go phone and what he thinks of Indy
By Bob Kravitz
Indy Star
June 26, 2012
So far, Andrew Luck has answered all the normal, boring questions:
How long will it take you to perfect your knowledge of the playbook?
How does it feel to be stepping into the shoes of Peyton Manning?
How much pressure do you feel as the No. 1 overall pick? Blah blah blah. Truth is, we don’t know much about Luck beyond the fact he was a model student athlete and a heck of a football player and wore a regrettable neck beard for stretches of his college career. I’m here to rectify that. With help from my Twitter followers, who helped produce questions they’ve always wanted to ask Luck, I sat down with the Colts’ new franchise quarterback and peppered him with all kinds of nonsensical questions whose answers might help you get to know him a bit better:
OK, what’s the deal with the beard, which has grown back since the Stanford commencement in all its straggly, unkempt splendor? “I realize it’s not a good look,’’ he said, laughing. “I know it’s not. It’s just laziness. People tell me to shave it all the time. A lot. Which is their right. I don’t mind. I’m actually going to shave the whole thing (Monday night), totally unrelated to this.’’ Will he have it when the season begins? “Everything is subject to change, but I think I’ll have a couple of days’ growth before the first game,’’ he said. “You know, chafing, razor burn.’’
What was going on in the Stanford graduation photo? Based on what you were wearing under the gown – a sleeveless orange shirt – you looked like you were on your way to a NASCAR race. At least you shaved. "I should give you a snippet on that,’’ he said. “We have a tradition at Stanford called the Wacky Walk where we dress up in costumes under our gown, so I had that shirt on with no sleeves. It was pretty tame compared to other costumes out there. I hope nobody got the impression I was disrespecting commencement. Then we get dressed up for graduation in our programs."
Now about that flip phone ... You realize everybody’s got a Smart Phone now. What’s an upwardly mobile person with Silicon
Valley roots doing with a Samsung flip phone? Before answering, he showed it to me. It’s a beauty. “I paid $10 for it,’’ he said. “I had a history growing up of sort of breaking them or losing them, so in my mind it was logical not to get a nice phone because I’d break it or spill water on it. If you really want to go deep, I think subconsciously it’s a way of getting away from the internet, social media and email. It’s a `go’ phone. You pay as you go, but I have a plan. I’m sophisticated enough to do that having been around Silicon Valley.’’
You don’t tweet. You don’t do anything with your Facebook page. Didn’t you go to school in the epicenter of social media? “I’ve never really gotten into it,’’ he said. “I don’t know why. I wouldn’t call myself a Luddite; going to school there, I have a deep appreciation for technology, but I just choose to have a regular phone.’’ (A brief aside: It took 30 years in the business before I heard an athlete not only use the term “Luddite,’’ but use it correctly). “I do have an iPad, though,’’ he said. “It’s the best travel companion you can have besides a person.’’
What’s on the iPad, besides the Colts playbook?
“The Kindle app, that’s my favorite,’’ he said. “Flipboard, that’s how I’ve started to consume my news. I have `Risk,’ the old board game. The usual banking apps so I can see my accounts. I have the MLS soccer app because my dad (Oliver) used to work for them. That’s one of the best sports apps I’ve come across.’’
What’s the quality you admire most in a person? Very interesting question. Honesty. Definitely honesty.
And the one you most dislike, dishonesty? I’d say that’s true.
What would you do if you could do anything for a free weekend? "I couldn’t because the flight’s so long, but I’d love to go to Germany and watch a soccer game,’’ he said. “I haven’t been there for a long time (Luck spent some of his formative years in Germany). Or I’d go see my folks in Morgantown, West Virginia."
You’ve only been here a few weeks, but you’ve spent a lot of time with the other rookies learning the city. Any first
impressions? "Incredibly friendly people," he said. "Just sort of that Midwestern culture of friendliness. The city is clean, beautiful, and it’s easy to get around, which I appreciate after living in the Bay Area. Downtown is nice, lots of nice neighborhoods. I’m excited to learn more about it." (An aside: He’s found a place he wants to live, but chose not to share that information – which is understandable).
A lot was written about your old Honda Accord you shared with your sister at Stanford. I know you haven’t signed a contract
yet, but have you upgraded? "I’m close. Maybe in the next few days. Either a Ford or a Chevy. I’m thinking a small SUV."
What’s on your iPod? “Music,’’ he said. Funny guy. "Classic rock," he said. "(Bruce) Springsteen is my favorite. The Boss is number one in my mind. The Stones, U2, I’ve gotten into some alternative rock. Some country, some hip hop, but they’re not in my top 25 of most-played songs. I do have a lot of Springsteen."
You must answer this question correctly -- best Springsteen album. “Well, I like 'Nebraska' because I like the song “Johnny 99,’" he said. "I think your generation, you grew up buying and listening to entire albums. Mine, we grew up with iTunes, so we like individual songs." (For the record, the answer is "Darkness On The Edge of Town." I will not listen to any arguments to the contrary. I will also be buying Luck the CD so he knows what an epic album sounds like. Kids these days.) Favorite books? “I loved 'Papillon,' reading that when I was growing up,’’ Luck said. “I just read Steve Jobs biography; that was really interesting. I’d say historical fiction is my favorite genre. Bernard Cornwell, he’s written several books about King Arthur and the Holy Grail, the Saxons, the Viking invasion, the Napoleonic Wars. They’re about real events with made-up protagonists. Right now, though, I don’t have much time for reading.’’
What’s the best piece of life advice you’ve received? The best was from my dad, to respect people and more often than not, they’ll return it in some form of fashion.
How comfortable are you with fame? At Stanford, you stood out, but that’s a school of high achievers where a football player isn’t that big a deal. How do you handle it now?
“It’s like a lot of things in life, you have to learn how to handle it, how your personality handles it. It’s something I struggled with my first few years at Stanford, and it wasn’t like a Big 12-, Big 10-, SEC- type of atmosphere. But the last few years I got a fair amount of it. I’ve come to realize it’s part of the game. And I wouldn’t trade my situation for anything. I won’t complain about it at all. If you can make a fan’s day, especially a child’s day, by signing something, that’s a good thing.’’
Who’s your favorite architect? "A Japanese guy named Tadaeo Ando. (He used a) lot of concrete, simple lines, but very powerful. But I find myself drawn to stadium and arena architecture."
Have you thought about the mark you want to make philanthropically? "I don’t think that’s something that’s an overnight thing, but I’ve always loved doing camps for kids,’’ he said. “And architecture. Habit for Humanity, Architecture for Humanity. Those are the things that immediately come to mind."
Can you act? "No," he said with a laugh.
So we’ll never see you on 'Saturday Night Live'? I would never say never, but I know I wouln’t be as good as Peyton and Eli.
What’s your most annoying personal habit? "I’ve been told that sitting in car or in a lecture hall I like to spread my legs very wide and move them around, that seems to annoy people."
That’s the worst you can come up with? "No," he said, smiling, "there are worse, but that’s the one I’m going to go with."
Favorite movies... Again, I like historical fiction. 'Saving Private Ryan,' 'Gladiator,' great sort of war dramas. I just got around to seeing 'Legends of the Fall'; that was excellent. And I enjoy the comedies -- 'The Hangover', 'Animal House.'" Favorite actors... Russell Crowe and Tom Hanks. Especially Tom Hanks. He can do everything.
Favorite chick flick... "You know what’s really good?" he said without hesitation. "'Love Actually.' I liked that a lot."
You’ve spent the last week or so exploring the city. Where have you been? “We went to St. Elmo’s,’’ he said. “The shrimp cocktail is spicy, but they said it was kind of mild. The day we went, they said at this time of year, the radishes get mild. I’ve driven through downtown, walked around. Mostly, I’ve gotten to know West 56th Street.’’
Can you walk around downtown without being besieged? “Yeah, I can,’’ he said. “It depends. Sometimes I can go a whole day and nobody will come up to me and other days, people will say hello. But they do it very discreetly, tell me `good luck,’ or, sort of under their breath, `You better live up to the hype. You have big shoes to fill.’” He laughed. “People have actually been very nice, very cool. They say it half jokingly; of course, there’s some truth behind it. But they’ve been very receptive, very kind. They’ve given me a lot of space to go around and discover the city on my own.’’ So there you have it, in all its disjointed and nonsensical glory. Stuff you now know about Andrew Luck. We’ll learn more these next 15 years or so. Frankly, he had me at Springsteen.
Andrew Luck fits perfectly into Colts’ new team-first culture
By Albert Breer
NFL.com
June 15, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS -- Hundreds of fans, many already wearing the No. 12 jerseys that hit stores in late April, were waiting for autographs about 20 feet away. High above were the video boards that had shown his every move through a 150-minute practice. Near that hung the banners from two Super Bowl trips directed by the man Luck's succeeding, Peyton Manning.
You can't be a bigger star without taking a snap than Andrew Luck is right now.
The scrutiny couldn't be more intense. The spotlight couldn't be brighter. The stakes couldn't be higher.
And yet, easy as it can be to forget, Luck is a rookie. And if you think that's lost on him, ask him how he feels about being the most famous guy on the Indianapolis Colts roster, even though he doesn't turn 23 until September.
"We've still got Dwight Freeney and Reggie Wayne -- those are some pretty high-profile players," Luck said, carefully navigating a loaded question on carrying the team's highest profile. "I realize there's a certain notoriety that comes with playing the quarterback position, but that's all for naught if you can't produce on the field. So I approach every day like I'm fighting for a job, trying to get better and hopefully it all takes care of itself that way."
If they had a test for these things, Luck aced it with that answer, as if he was going through a checklist:
• Pay homage to teammates.
• Chalk fame up to outside forces.
• Emphasize how it doesn't matter if you don't perform.
And now you get an idea why GM Ryan Grigson and coach Chuck Pagano feel so comfortable putting their professional futures on the broad shoulders of the ex-Stanford star.
Ultimately, replacing Manning will boil down to just how good a player Luck becomes. Everyone knows that. But how he gets there will involve his ability to handle all the ancillary elements that go with being considered the best quarterback prospect in a generation, replacing the last guy to carry that tag (and one who delivered on all that promise), and serving as front man for a major organizational overhaul.
Nothing tangible has been accomplished in Indianapolis yet. But one thing Grigson does feel like he and Pagano have done is instill what the GM calls a "Team -- Small Me" culture that emphasizes the group over individual. And though it had been a fait accompli that Luck would wind up being the first overall pick, the Colts brass saw it as a pretty nice bonus that the obvious pick just so happened to embody their new ideals.
"Let's just say this: He is the genuine article," Grigson told NFL.com. "He's strong when he needs to be strong. He listens when he needs to listen. He's just a natural. Nothing's forced with him. He's not afraid to take charge of the huddle. But also, if a college free agent from who-knows-where asks him a question, I believe he'll take the time with that guy to explain it to him in a non-demeaning or condescending way, because he's Andrew Luck. He epitomizes the word 'team' to me."
That also means Luck knows his place now. On Tuesday, in his first full day with the vets, his new No. 1 receiver, Reggie Wayne, stared down the assembled media en route to practice and belted out, "Everybody's here to see my new quarterback!" Moments later, massive defensive lineman Cory Redding pointed at the press and yelled across the field to Luck, "Hey 12, they're all here, homes!"
But when work started, the laughter quieted. Luck can already make adjustments and checks at the line, and he spent considerable time attached to Wayne's hip on both days. He's well aware he's got a ways to go. Pro-ready as he is, as much as any quarterback has been since Manning, offensive coordinator Bruce Arians speaks a different football language than Luck did at Stanford. Terminology will be key, as will learning hot reads and sight adjustments, which he and rookie receiver Griff Whalen emphasized at Stanford the past five weeks, as both finished their degrees.
"I know it's terribly cliché, but (I have to improve) everywhere," Luck told NFL.com. "I always try to get better in all aspects and then just learning the offense and getting reps. Getting reps is so important and trying to get as many game-speed reps is sort of my main focus."
Luck has time. He'll be with the other rookies at the Colts facility the next two weeks, playing catch-up after missing all but six days of the offseason program. He did get to see counterpart Robert Griffin III on TV, working with the Washington Redskins while he was unable to do the same with Colts.
"I'm happy for him that he got to be there," Luck said of Griffin. "It was frustrating in general not to be with the team. But I wasn't looking at it, 'Oh, this guy gets to be here and that guy gets to be there, why don't I get to be there?' I knew the situation I was in."
Opening Day is still almost three months away. And yet the Colts can already see the return on their investment coming. The fresh, proletariat ethos on 56th Street in Indianapolis has its standard-bearer. Because much as he might be anything but just another rookie, Luck certainly is doing his best to play the part of one.
"He fits like a glove because he is not a 'me' guy," Grigson said. "He is all about the team. You can go back to Stanford, his early days just starting and being a young guy there. You're not going to see a difference here. That's who he is. He's not trying to be someone he's not. He's out here to win and to improve every day. He has things to learn, he hasn't seen a different color jersey yet. But he understands it as well. He knows Rome wasn't built in a day."
After Wednesday's practice at the stadium, Freeney, now the third-most tenured Colt, laughed when it was posed to him that the quarterback wouldn't be getting special treatment from the vets when the time comes for rookies to stand on tables and sing songs. "Exactly," Freeney said. "It'll be me doing it to him."
But there's another, more serious message Freeney will send his new teammate, too, after spending the past decade as part of Indianapolis' Manning Show.
"You know what? We're gonna let him know, he doesn't have to do anything extra," Freeney said. "It's going to be hard, because everybody has all these expectations for him. As long as you go out there and do your job and control the huddle, that's all that you can do. And if things happen to progress and take off from there, so be it. But it has to start somewhere. 'Don't feel like you have to take on the world.' "
It's easy to see that Luck's employing that approach already. Ready to take on the world? Maybe not. But judging by his early days in Indy, Luck's uniquely prepared for just about anything it throws at him.
Colts general manager Ryan Grigson keeps digging for talent
By Phil Richards
Indy Star
June 12, 2012
General manager Ryan Grigson faced a daunting challenge this offseason. Nearly one-third of the Indianapolis Colts salary cap is tied up in "dead" money, prorated bonuses not yet counted against the cap but paid to players such as Peyton Manning, Dallas Clark, Gary Brackett and Joseph Addai who are no longer with the team. Grigson couldn't go about rebuilding the Colts by spending. He had to go about it by digging. "I feel like digging is one of my strong suits, digging and not caring what anybody else thinks or what the perception is," said Grigson, whose team this morning begins a three-day minicamp in which quarterback Andrew Luck will participate, whether or not he is signed. Grigson desperately needed a right tackle, a cheap one. He dug up Winston Justice, a Philadelphia Eagles spare part, but one Grigson knew; as the Eagles' director of college scouting, he drafted Justice in 2006. Grigson operates with what he calls "eye confidence." He believes he knows what he's looking at and he trusts what he sees. Videotape is truth. He stuck in tape of the lone game Justice started last season, against Washington. "From the very first pass set, for what's out there, for what I had to spend, for what I'm going to actually get, I see a big, long, monstrous guy that has rare athletic ability and he's busting his butt," Grigson said. Grigson got Justice (6-6, 317), a 47-game starter, along with the Eagles' pick in the sixth round of the draft, for the Colts' No. 2 selection in the same round. A few days later, Denver traded quarterback Tim Tebow to the New York Jets. That made Drew Stanton, the Jets backup, expendable. Grigson was watching. He needed a backup. He got Stanton and the Jets' seventh-round pick for the sixth-round pick the Colts had received from the Eagles. The Colts didn't even have to pay Stanton the $500,000 signing bonus his contract dictated. The Jets paid it for them. By trading down 30 spots from their original sixth-round position, the Colts had acquired a starting right tackle, a veteran backup quarterback and kept their draft pick. Grigson used it on draft day to grab Tim Fugger, an outside linebacker who backs up Dwight Freeney. If you want an early take on Grigson, 40, and a first-time GM, it's this: He doesn't sit still, and he has a feel for a deal. When he's not digging, he's not idling. "You troll," he said. "It's like casting a thousand times. Finally, you get a little bite and you set the hook." The Colts are desperately in need of help at cornerback. Grigson knew the Denver Broncos were awash in them because it's his job to know. The Broncos had Champ Bailey and signed free agents Tracy Porter and Drayton Florence. They also had Cassius Vaughn, Chris Harris, Syd'Quan Thompson and draftee Omar Bolden. So Grigson baited up and trolled. The Broncos bit. They got Chris Gronkowski, a tough, competent fullback the Colts didn't need. The position doesn't figure in Bruce Arians' offense; Ryan Mahaffey, the only other fullback on the roster, was cut a few days later. The Colts got Vaughn for nothing. He figures to be in the mix at corner, on special teams and in the return game. No wonder owner Jim Irsay tweeted: "GM Grigs still tweaking roster, he's a deal maker who looks 4 hidden gems." They have yet to prove gem-quality, but Grigson also snatched a pair of inexpensive free agents. Wide receiver Donnie Avery has been one of the bright spots of the Colts' offseason program and organized team activities. He brings exceptional speed. Guard Mike McGlynn has moved into the right guard slot in the lineup and into the leadership void left by the departure of free agent center Jeff Saturday in the O-line meeting room.
Both Avery and McGlynn will make veterans minimum this season. They represent little risk and the potential for considerable reward. "I figured I'd just grind and grind and grind and out-scout people," Grigson shrugged. "That's what you have to do when you're strapped." There's another area in which Grigson has made a quick impact on the cheap. They say speed kills. What they mean in the NFL is speed wins. Avery is a flyer. So are receivers T.Y. Hilton and LaVon Brazill, Colts picks in the third and sixth rounds. Second-round pick Coby Fleener has elite tight end speed. Vaughn and free agent signee Justin King, another cornerback, are bullet fast. "Speed is an extreme priority," Grigson said. "You either have it or you don't and the guys that don't usually wash out unless they do something exceptionally well. . . . "At the end of the day you want people to be fast but also to play fast, and those guys play fast." The Colts are rebuilding. They're coming off a 2-14 season burdened by the oppressive heft of all that dead money. No matter; the guy in charge isn't sitting still. It will be interesting to see what he does next year, when ESPN projects he will have some real wherewithal, $43 million in cap space,
the most in the NFL. Unearthing players Primary Colts player acquisitions and re-signings under general manager Ryan Grigson (Does not include unsigned draft picks, QB Andrew Luck, first round; TE Coby Fleener, second round; TE Dwayne Allen, third round. UFA=unrestricted free agent): June 8: CB Justin King signed/UFA, undisclosed contract. May 31: WR T.Y. Hilton signed/third-round draft choice, four years. May 23: CB Cassius Vaughn trade for FB Chris Gronkowski, signed, one year. May 22: NT Josh Chapman signed/fifth-round draft choice, four years. May 19: T Justin Anderson signed/seventh-round draft choice, four years. May 16: QB Chandler Harnish signed/seventh-round draft choice, four years; LB Tim Fugger signed/seventh-round draft choice, four years; WR LaVon Brazill signed/sixth-round draft choice, four years; RB Vick Ballard signed/fifth-round draft choice, four years. April 4: NT Brandon McKinney signed/UFA, two years. March 23: QB Drew Stanton trade with sixth-round pick in 2012 for seventh-round pick in 2012, signed, two years; WR Donnie Avery signed/UFA, one year. March 21: C Samson Satele signed/UFA, three years. March 19: G/C Mike McGlynn signed/UFA, two years March 17: S Tom Zbikowski signed/UFA, three years. March 14: T Winston Justice trade for 6th-round pick in 2012, signed, one year; DE Cory Redding signed/UFA, three years. March 13: WR Reggie Wayne re-signed/UFA, three years. March 5: LB Robert Mathis (LB) designated franchise player; Mathis re-signed, four-year extension.
Freeney all-in despite uncertain future
By Alex Marvez
FoxSports.com
May 6, 2012
Indianapolis Colts outside linebacker Dwight Freeney says he’s more Magic Johnson than LeBron James.
But whether one of the NFL’s top all-time pass rushers gets to finish his football career with the same team that drafted him is hardly a slam dunk.
After 10 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, Freeney has no interest in taking his athletic talents elsewhere, as James did when he bolted the Cleveland Cavaliers to sign with the Miami Heat. Freeney, though, knows his days in Indianapolis may be numbered.
The Colts are adopting a new defensive system, and Freeney’s lucrative contract expires at the end of the 2012 season. This raises the possibility of a trade, even though team management has stuck with Freeney during the early stages of retooling the roster.
Asked about his Colts future during a Tuesday night interview with me and co-host Bill Polian on Sirius XM NFL Radio, Freeney said: “I’m kind of old-school when it comes to that thought. I’m not LeBron trying to leave the team. I’m more like the era of Magic and (New York Giants linebacker) Lawrence Taylor, who stayed with that same team for their entire careers win, lose or draw. They were married to the city they were drafted in. You go through the tough times and great times with them, and that’s it. That’s what I’m looking forward to.
“You don’t know what’s going to happen. I can get traded. They may want to go in a different direction. Maybe I can’t handle the (defensive) scheme. You have all those possibilities. But, personally, I would love to stay.”
The Colts’ decision to keep Freeney is somewhat surprising considering the change in defense and how many other veterans the club released this offseason. The bloodletting included plenty of Freeney’s contemporaries, including quarterback Peyton Manning. The 32-year-old Freeney also is due to collect a $14 million base salary in the final year of his contract.
Freeney said he still hasn’t adjusted to all the new faces the Colts have added.
“I feel like I’m in a whole other dimension,” a laughing Freeney said. “I’m used to walking in the locker room and there’s Peyton’s locker to the right and all these other guys who were there. Now, it’s like everything has shifted around.
“I got lost in the locker room today. They built a locker right where I always walk to get my laundry clothes. I almost walked into the locker. It’s completely different. But I do understand what this game is. Things have to change eventually. It’s never the same team (annually), regardless of whether it’s four or five guys or 20. That’s the nature of the beast, especially when you don’t win.”
A 2-14 record in 2011 was the impetus for a massive Colts overhaul that included the firing of Polian as team president and Jim Caldwell as head coach. Caldwell’s replacement, Chuck Pagano, is installing the same style of 3-4 scheme that he ran last season as the Baltimore Ravens' defensive coordinator. Freeney and Robert Mathis will shift from being traditional 4-3 defensive ends to outside linebackers aligned in various spots, with occasional coverage responsibilities.
Freeney is in the early stages of that transition with the Colts having opened their offseason program last month.
“For me, it’s just getting familiar with all those nuances,” said Freeney, whose 102.5 career sacks rank behind only Atlanta’s John Abraham (112) and Minnesota’s Jared Allen (105) among active players. “My line of sight, walking around (pre-snap), dropping into coverage — I’m doing those things. It’s going to take a little time at the beginning to get used to and as comfortable as I have been having my hand in the ground (at end) and being in one position.”
Freeney hopes those efforts ultimately pay dividends by making it more difficult for opposing offenses to game plan against him. Polian said Freeney and Mathis were recipients of double-teams on 83 percent of the Colts’ offensive snaps over the past couple of seasons.
“This is probably going to benefit me because I’m not in a ‘blackboard position’ where (offenses) know exactly where I am and what we’re going to do,” said Freeney, who was selected by Polian as a 2002 first-round draft choice because he fit the profile of an ideal speed rusher in a “Tampa-two” defense.
“We’re going to be coming with various blitzes from different sides. I’ll be moving around, so I’ll be harder to find.”
Freeney won’t be stealth when it comes to helping the Colts compensate for the leadership lost when Manning was released. Pagano
told FOXSports.com in March that he considers Freeney, Mathis and 12-year wide receiver Reggie Wayne the “three pillars” of the team’s locker room.
“It’s, obviously, very tough to fill in all the things that Peyton did,” Freeney said. “We all know the on-the-field, but there was a lot of leadership stuff off the field. Just making sure everybody was on the same page and being a presence in the offseason to make sure you’re around and the younger guys see that you’re working hard and it’s OK to do that.
“Those are the intangibles that people don’t know that Peyton was great at. Those were some of the things we loved him for. Obviously, with him leaving, it creates that void. It’s really going to take all of us (veterans) to fill that void and try to groom these young guys so they understand what Colt ball is all about.”
Helping the Colts get back on track is another one of Freeney’s biggest goals — even if he might not still be there by the time that foundation is done being laid.
“Yeah, we lost a lot of guys, but we’re not laying down for anybody,” he said. “Everybody likes to throw around this ‘rebuilding.’ For us, we’re going out like it’s 2005, ’06, ’07 and ’08. We’re going to give everybody our best. That’s what we do.”
Antoine Bethea returns to where it all started at Denbigh
By Norm Wood
Daily Press
May 6, 2012
NEWPORT NEWS – Nothing seemed out of place to Antoine Bethea as he walked the same halls at Denbigh High he used to cruise a decade ago, and ran around on the same practice field he and his teammates used to refer to as "the pit."
He's now a two-time Pro Bowl safety in the National Football League with the Indianapolis Colts, and the owner of a Super Bowl ring, but on Saturday, Bethea had the opportunity to give a little of his time to about 215 kids at his second annual football camp at Denbigh.
"I was walking around the school reminiscing a little bit," said Bethea, who during his rookie season in 2006 was a member of the Super Bowl-winning Colts, and who made it to the Pro Bowl in the '07 and '09 seasons. "It's all fun, but it just makes me think about how I was a lot like these kids back then."
Bethea worked with the 8-to-14-year-old kids on fundamentals and drills, and spoke to them about the importance of getting an education. He was joined by several camp counselors that included Darryl Blackstock, a former Heritage High standout and Virginia linebacker who now plays for the Oakland Raiders.
"The kids and even the parents will walk away from this camp with smiles on their faces," Bethea said. "Maybe they won't remember the camp, but hopefully the ones that do remember the camp will remember…what I talked about – hard work and dedication. I know they'll get something out of it."
Though he signed a four-year contract extension in '10 with the Colts worth $27 million, Bethea isn't the kind to take it for granted. Perhaps his attitude has something to do with the unlikely path he took to the NFL.
"I'm trying to conserve that money as much as possible," Bethea said. "Life after football is going to be a lot longer than the time I'm playing in the league."
Coming out of Denbigh, he wasn't an elite recruit, spurning opportunities to play at Norfolk State, Christopher Newport or Randolph-Macon to accept a football scholarship to Howard.
He was good enough at Howard to draw attention from some NFL teams, but again, he wasn't seen as a hot commodity.
Indianapolis drafted him in the sixth round. It didn't take him long to make an impression. He started 14 games as a rookie, and has been a regular starter every since, collecting 595 career tackles and 12 interceptions.
"I still think I have a lot to prove," Bethea said. "I still consider myself the underdog. When people talk about the best safeties, I want them to mention my name. All the time, that doesn't happen, so that still means I have some learning to do, some growing to do."
When he gets back on the field this season with Indianapolis, which tied for the worst record in NFL last season at 2-14, it'll be with a much different team that will be led by first-year coach Chuck Pagano. The most obvious change will be at quarterback without No. 18.
After 13 years as Indianapolis' starter, including 11 Pro Bowl seasons, neck surgery kept Peyton Manning off the field last season. He was released in March and signed with the Denver Broncos. Now, Indianapolis heads into this fall with No. 1 overall draft pick Andrew Luck as its quarterback.
"It's going to be different (without Manning)," Bethea said. "It's a change I don't think anybody expected at the start of last season. Then again, it just goes to show you the business side of it. Sometimes change is good. We've yet to see that, but I believe with the new regime we have around the facility, there's a very good spirit.
"I'm not going to say it's refreshing, because a lot of the people that brought me in are gone. It's not a good thing to see, and a lot of my boys are gone, but we have new coaches that are going to teach us new things. That's going to make me a better player."
Andrew Luck – like father, like son
By Elizabeth Merrill
ESPN.com
April 26, 2012
WHEELING, W.Va. -- On the last Interstate 70 stop before West Virginia mountains give way to Ohio green, a tall man with perfectly swept hair works the White Palace ballroom. He is charming, almost presidential, which is good because this is a heavy-hitter crowd. The governor of the great state of West Virginia is here, as well as a roomful of bankers, lawyers and schmoozers. A prayer is said before their supper of sautéed chicken and green beans, and cocktails are poured in plastic cups. They have gathered on this late-April night to see Oliver Luck, a man whose bio in the Wheeling Chamber of Commerce dinner program fills an entire single-spaced page. Luck is all over the West Virginia map these days, dining with Boy Scouts and rubbing elbows with Rotarians, because this is what the athletic director for West Virginia University does in the springtime. He does not rattle off his résumé, which sounds as if it could be a "world's most interesting man" script. Former NFL quarterback. Rhodes Scholar finalist. World traveler. Former president and CEO of NFL Europe. Ran a Major League Soccer team that won a couple of championships. Oh, and he has a law degree, which he picked up taking night classes while in the NFL. But Luck taught his kids to be humble, which is why you'll hear very little about any of this tonight.
He steps to the center of the stage to give his speech about West Virginia athletics, and breaks code a bit, probably to break the ice. "You know," Luck says as he grabs the microphone, "there's a whole page here dedicated to my bio. And if you go on Wikipedia right now, what you'll see under my name is simply, 'Andrew's dad.'" The crowd laughs. "That's who I've become, and I'm very proud of it." On Thursday night in New York City, in one of the most anticlimactic starts to an NFL draft, the Indianapolis Colts will select Andrew Luck as the No. 1 pick. And the professional career of the most hyped quarterback since Peyton Manning will begin. What can you say about this 22-year-old? That Oliver Luck's oldest boy has seemingly zero flaws, that he is so polished he would've been No. 1 in the 2011 draft, that he is so good his arrival has jolted the quarterback landscape in three NFL cities? Oliver can wax on about the Big 12, coal mining and West Virginia's economy, but generally, he holds off on saying much about his son. Hyperbole is not the Lucks' thing. He will recognize that this is a big deal. The Lucks are about to become just the seventh known father-son quarterback combination in the NFL, following a distinguished group that includes the Manning family. For years, analysts have broken down the genetic success of Archie, Peyton and Eli, comparing arms, speed and size. But most of the time, a father's influence goes way deeper than any kind of metrics. Oliver Luck's influence is somewhat intangible. It's there in the huddle where, no matter the situation, Andrew is seemingly unflappable. It's the reason Oliver's son, an All-American at Stanford who is about to get his degree in architectural design, is so well-prepared and grounded. The elder Luck, of course, wants nothing to do with any chip-off-the-old-block conversations. Talk to his mother, Luck says, because Kathy plays just as big of a role in the making of Andrew Luck. A few days after the grip-and-grin in Wheeling, as Oliver is driving to Charleston, W.Va., he says he's talked to Kathy -- and sorry, she has politely declined to be interviewed. She likes being in the background. "Have you ever heard of the book 'Freakonomics'?" Oliver says. "So there's these two economics professors, and they're really interesting guys, and they wrote these books. And it's really all about sort of false thinking. They try to go in and look at a number of different phenomenon. Does A really cause B? You know, causation. "They wrote a chapter in the book about major league baseball players. What characteristics at what age would be an indicator that the kid is really going to make it to the major leagues? Is it when they were born? … Is it size?" At the end of the chapter, he says, the authors tell the reader that none of these factors comes close to the only important one, which is having a father who also played major league baseball. So maybe it's just in the genes. Luck is a voracious reader, by the way. He has no problem talking about that. Oliver is currently tackling a book on the history of Spain. He's read it before. In the hundreds of interviews Andrew has done since arriving at Stanford, he is occasionally asked about his favorite thing to do besides football. His answer is usually the same.
Reading, he says. The origins of Andrew
Andrew Austen Luck was born Sept. 12, 1989, in Washington D.C., the first of many addresses for a son born to two lawyers. There was a "Monday Night Football" game on the night father, mother and soon-to-be son were in the hospital, and Oliver recalls at some point looking up to catch the score. He says he's fairly certain that former West Virginia quarterback Jeff Hostetler was playing that night, but you'd have to check to make sure. Of course he's right. The couple went on to have four kids -- their daughter, Mary Ellen, plays volleyball for Stanford -- so it's fuzzy as to who first put a football in Andrew's hands. It didn't really matter. "My wife and I didn't raise our kids to be anything except what each one ultimately wants to do," Oliver says. "I can't imagine raising a child with a goal of that child being a baseball player or a lawyer or whatever. Odds are, they'll be something else. In this world, there are a lot of opportunities." Oliver Luck did not possess the physical gifts of his 6-foot-4, 234-pound son. He was a tall and skinny quarterback from St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland who went to West Virginia because he fell in love with the school and community. The scouting report on Luck went something like this: smart, talented, good arm, not-so-good runner. But tough. If Luck threw an interception -- he didn't throw many -- he didn't float backward and get out of the way. He went after the guy running with the ball. His first two years with the Mountaineers yielded back-to-back losing seasons. It wasn't for lack of effort. Luck stayed in Morgantown every summer, training with his teammates while working eight hours a day doing odd jobs at a coal mine. In 1980, the Mountaineers' fortunes changed when Don Nehlen took over as head coach. Nehlen was not overwhelmed with confidence when he met Ollie Luck. "When I first looked at him," Nehlen says, "he had that big Adam's apple and that big nose and skinny shoulders. And I'm saying, 'Oh my gosh.' I told my wife, 'Don't unpack.' "But Ollie had it all. He gave us the ability to be a pretty good football team. Believe it or not, we won six games that first year and nine the second. If we don't have Oliver Luck, we don't win. He's one of those guys the kids really rally around. He made the other 10 better than they really were. And all the great quarterbacks do that." Oliver Luck's draft day was far less heralded than his son's. He was selected in the second round by the Houston Oilers, after Art Schlichter and Jim McMahon. He did not play his rookie year, then was inserted as a starter during a disastrous 2-14 campaign in 1983. Luck threw eight touchdowns and 13 interceptions that year. And the following season, the Oilers signed Warren Moon from the Canadian Football League. Luck spent the better part of the next three seasons carrying a clipboard behind a future Hall of Famer. But Luck was still competitive while helping Moon in whatever way he could. "He always had a smile on his face," Moon says. "He was one of the smarter guys that I've been around at quarterback. He was so well-rounded. He knew different languages. Some guys come off as smug because they're intelligent and think they're more intelligent than everybody else. But he was never that way. The guy had such an easygoing personality that you would never know that side of him unless you really got into an in-depth conversation with him." After his fifth season, Luck sized up his situation, realized he wasn't going to play much, and decided to call it quits. He was 26 years old. It was different back then, he says. The desire to hang on wasn't necessarily there. Luck could walk into a law firm and make nearly as much as he did as an NFL backup. Most important, he could still walk. Asked if he regrets leaving the game so early, he says "no" three times in rapid-fire succession. His kids wouldn't get the chance to see him play, but that didn't matter. Luck had a lot to do. The cultural influence There was the failed bid for Congress in 1990, when Andrew was just a baby, and a job in Germany as general manager of the Frankfurt Galaxy in the fledgling World League of American Football. Luck dabbled in just about everything, and he spent more than a decade overseas running football teams and eventually becoming president and CEO of NFL Europe. The jobs were nice, but the Lucks loved the opportunity to pile their kids in a car and take them from Frankfurt to the Eiffel Tower in five hours. They'd ride on the autobahn and be fluent in German, English and whatever else they wanted.
"There's a whole body of literature on the culture of kids," Luck says, "kids who grew up outside of their home culture. I don't want to necessarily summarize all the literature, but ultimately, I think [those] kids are a little bit more tolerant because they can see there are different ways of living. "I think they're a little more inquisitive. And they get exposure to some things that make them think a little more about different places, different cultures and different languages." The exposure has helped Andrew Luck in many ways. For starters, he played soccer as a boy, which no doubt helped his footwork. He saw beautiful stadiums and wanted to become an architect. When the world became smaller for young Andrew, nothing seemed too big. "He walked on campus different," says David Shaw, his college coach at Stanford. "A lot of times, even our best players and our best students still have a transitional period. And there was never a transitional period for Andrew. "Being as well-traveled as he is, he doesn't just have his immediate surroundings as his only context to life. He doesn't approach the world with blinders on. He doesn't get fazed. He's seen a lot, and he's been through a lot." Learning the game
Oliver Luck jokes that his long list of titles just means that he was never able to hold on to a job for very long. The family moved back to the U.S. in 2001, when he was named CEO of the Houston Sports Authority. It was a chance to get back to Texas, and an opportunity for his son to test his chops in the biggest football state in the country. Much like his dad, young Andrew did not wow anyone at first sight. "He was a 14-year-old kid," says Stratford High coach Eliot Allen. "He wasn't the guy you see now. But I think you saw then the kind of person he was." The younger Luck was smart and polite and made 10 guys look better. His father did not show up at practice, Allen says. He didn't talk X's and O's with his son. He wanted him to learn and grow from his coaches. So Andrew did, and threw for 7,139 yards and 53 touchdowns at Stratford. He was co-valedictorian for the Class of '08. Oliver taught Andrew about leadership and being mentally strong, Allen says. "And don't forget his mother," Allen says. "She's pretty influential, too. We'll never hear about her because she's behind the scenes. But she has her law degree." Kathy, according to John Hardesty, one of Oliver's close friends, is a quiet, strong and smart woman. She holds the family together. When Oliver took the West Virginia athletic director job in 2010, he was living in a small condo in Morgantown while his family finished business in Houston. He'd catch red-eye flights to Houston and Stanford to watch Andrew play. They made sacrifices but have rarely had regrets. One Saturday last year, when West Virginia had a late game and Andrew was playing on the West Coast, Oliver sat in his office, in the dark, trying to find the game on the Internet. "Here's a guy, his son's the Heisman Trophy candidate, and he and I are watching the game, 11:30 at night on the computer in his office," says John Garcia, an old college teammate of Oliver's. "Here we are watching it in the dark because he can't get to the game. "People don't know the commitment that he's made. I think that says something about him." The expectations
There is significance to Oliver Luck's stop in Wheeling the week before the draft. Because it is right off the interstate, on the way to Indianapolis, he'll be driving by it a lot. He tells the crowd that he plans to buzz by here during the fall for the next 15 years. He believes his kid could have that kind of staying power. Colts owner Jim Irsay must believe it, too. Andrew will shrug and say that it does not put any extra pressure on him, and pops will reaffirm that. Every player on an NFL roster is under pressure, Oliver says. He can probably substantiate that with the help of some book he's read. So no, Oliver Luck is not worried about his son living up to these rare expectations. He will celebrate with him in New York, then go back to work in West Virginia. He knows Andrew will be fine, and that his football dream will last longer than his dad's. In the offseason, in sort of a full circle moment, Warren Moon worked with Andrew. "The kid doesn't have any weaknesses," Moon said. It reminded Moon, in many ways, of Oliver.
Maturity, background will help Luck
By Bob Glauber
New York Daily News
April 23, 2012
Living up to the legacy of Peyton Manning would be difficult enough for most quarterbacks, but Andrew Luck just might be different. After all, he already has emerged from the shadow of a big-time quarterback: his own father.
Growing up as the son of former West Virginia star and Oilers backup Oliver Luck presented its own set of challenges, but Andrew had no problem developing into a star in his own right. His background surely will come in handy now that he's ready to handle an even more daunting task: replacing future Hall of Famer Manning, who was released last month to set the stage for Luck's arrival.
"Peyton was my hero growing up. He was my football hero," said Luck, who is expected to be taken by the Colts with the first overall pick in Thursday's draft. "That's who I modeled myself after in high school, middle school, whatever it was. You never truly replace a guy like that."
Maybe not, but Colts fans will surely expect a lot from their next quarterback. Especially after Manning delivered so many memorable moments during a 14-year run in Indianapolis that ended after last season because of continued neck problems. The Colts parted ways with Manning in early March, and he signed with the Broncos.
Not to worry, says Luck.
"I set fairly high expectations for myself," said Luck, the Heisman Trophy runner-up the last two seasons. "I don't really get involved in what other people set for me, aside from my parents, family, people I truly care about."
But if there was ever a quarterback made to weather the difficulties that lie ahead in a city used to quarterback brilliance, it's Luck. Growing up in a family in which football was always a primary pursuit, Luck has flourished at every level by maintaining his focus, carefully building the skills required for excellence, and transforming himself into an elite quarterback who appears ready for greatness in the NFL.
"[Luck] is a great player," said Colts general manager Ryan Grigson, who said last week that the team has settled on its pick, although he declined to say Luck was the choice. "The last guy in the last row of any stadium can tell you that he's a heck of a quarterback, a heck of a person, intelligent kid. He's got a lot to offer."
This will not be an easy transformation, though. Just as Manning had to mature during his rookie season, when the Colts went 3-13, Luck will have his work cut out. He joins a team that not long ago was of championship caliber but has been taken apart piece by piece by injuries and salary-cap concerns. Two days after the Colts announced Manning's release, they said goodbye to four other longtime stars: tight end Dallas Clark, running back Joseph Addai, linebacker Gary Brackett and safety Melvin Bullitt.
But growing up in Oliver Luck's house and playing for former NFL quarterback Jim Harbaugh at Stanford should go a long way toward helping Luck lead the Colts back to the playoffs before long.
"He's got all the qualities, mentally and physically," said Harbaugh, the 49ers' coach. "He's as prepared as anybody that you're going to find. He's really good. He's got a lot of talent."
Harbaugh thinks Luck is uniquely suited to face the comparisons to Manning.
"Fair or unfair, it's the nature of the business," Harbaugh said. "But he's very equipped to deal with it. He's one of the finest football players I've ever been around and an even better person."
And perhaps the greatest compliment of all from Harbaugh: "I'm not going to like playing against him. I'm not looking forward to that."
At least the 49ers don't have to face him this season. Then again, by the time Luck does face his former coach, he'll be that much more comfortable in his new uniform, the one he'll put on Thursday.
New Colts coach Chuck Pagano seemed destined for the job, his family says
By Phillip B. Wilson
Indy Star
January 27, 2012
In one of the proudest moments of his life, Sam Pagano had a flashback from four decades ago, when his 9-year-old son, Chuck, scurried around a football sideline and squirted water in the faces of the Fairview High School Knights.
The father, who coached teams in Boulder, Colo., to three state titles, knew then his son's destiny.
"He is football. He loves it," Pagano said via phone about Chuck, now 51 and introduced Thursday as the new Indianapolis Colts head coach in a news conference at the team's Northwestside complex.
Chuck Pagano stood at the lectern and conceded almost immediately that this opportunity was a dream job come true.
"Now I'm at the top of the pinnacle," he said. "I've spent 28 years of my life in coaching waiting for this opportunity."
It's been quite the January for the Pagano family. Sam's younger son, John, became the San Diego Chargers' defensive coordinator Jan. 5.
"We've had so much good news this month," said Sam, 73, who is retired from coaching. "God, we're so excited for Chuck. He's worked so hard for this."
The passion was to be expected from the sons. They saw football take their father around the world. In the 1990s, Sam coached in France, Italy and Germany. Even now, the sons come home each summer to help out at the father's Mile High Football Camp.
John, 42, also grew up idolizing his brother. He had a premonition Chuck would land the Colts job if given an interview. He told family and friends the Baltimore Ravens soon would be losing a defensive coordinator.
John was scouting a Senior Bowl practice in Mobile, Ala., when his older brother called with the good news. "I wanted to start crying," John said.
The Paganos are more about toughness than tears -- Chuck was once a hard-hitting safety who played college ball at Wyoming. But there is humility, too. And a lot of emotion.
Pagano's wife, Tina, and two of their three daughters made the trip for the announcement. The girls confided afterward that their dad has a softer side.
"He's tough, and that shows through his coaching," said Taylor, 21. "He gets up there (at the lectern) and does that like it's a breeze. But he's not like that at home.
"I think him being around us girls, there's a lot of estrogen in the house. It's worn off on him. He's emotional -- that's just how he is. We all are."
Tori, 17, described him as "a loving father."
Chuck Pagano's players learn from his old-school discipline and demanding nature. Imagine what these big, strong NFL guys would think if they saw how their coach interacts with his girls.
"He's not afraid to braid their hair," Tina said. "He does more braids than I do. When they were little, he braided their hair a lot."
His family taught Pagano the importance of building relationships. Sam said Chuck's work ethic came from his mother, Diana, and the coaching from him.
It's the same with John. If the Pagano name sounds familiar to Colts fans, it should. John was on Jim Mora's Colts staff as a defensive assistant from 1998 to 2001. Mora met the Paganos while coaching at the University of Colorado.
"It's a great family," Mora said. "I've known them for a long time. It's a fabulous opportunity, and they got themselves a good man. That football background, that's good training for a guy. I think Chuck will do a great job. He's 100 percent football."
If there's one thing that gets John going, it's talking with Chuck about the game.
"He's been my number one guy, my number one best friend," John said. "There's only one person I truly talk X's and O's with, and that's him. Our relationship is so special. You guys have got yourself a winner there."
Colts guard Joe Reitz, who spent 2008-09 on the Ravens practice squad, is excited about the hiring.
"He would always go out of his way to say hello to me even though I was a lowly guy on the practice squad," said Reitz, a local fan favorite from his days as a Hamilton Southeastern High basketball star.
"He really cares about all of his players. A couple of my best friends in Baltimore, they're defensive backs, they would rave about him, how they loved to play for him."
Pagano was the Ravens' secondary coach for three years before being named defensive coordinator in 2011.
"I know the guys in Baltimore would talk about how he would instill confidence in them, how they could just go out and play with that confidence," Reitz said. "The guys love playing for a guy like that."
When reviewing Pagano's resume, one might question the Colts hiring a man who has never been a head coach and had only one year as an NFL defensive coordinator.
"He's got a lot of work to do, but I'm sure he'll do it with vigor, enthusiasm and great spirit," Sam Pagano said. "People may look at that (lack of head coaching experience), but believe me, he's ready."
Those closest to Chuck Pagano know the former water boy has worked an entire life to earn this opportunity.
"It's what he was born to do," Tina said.
New intensity: Colts get their man
By Mike Chappell
Indy Star
January 26, 2012
Reggie Wayne is no stranger to Chuck Pagano, named Wednesday the 11th head or interim head coach in the Colts' Indianapolis era.
"Great dude," Wayne said. "Great dude."
Wayne developed into a standout receiver at the University of Miami from 1997-2000 during which time Pagano handled the Hurricanes' secondary and special teams.
"Chuck's an intense guy, loves the game of football," Wayne said.
Don't take his word for it.
"(Ravens safety) Ed Reed says (Pagano) is ready," Wayne said, "and that's good enough for me. He's a great hire and I believe he'll bring excitement to the team."
Pagano, 51, is the latest cornerstone set in place in the Colts' major restoration project. He replaces Jim Caldwell, fired Jan. 17, three weeks after the team closed the 2011 season with a 2-14 record.
A news conference is scheduled for 3 p.m. today.
"It's difficult to leave the Ravens, but I couldn't pass up on this great opportunity,'' Pagano said in a statement released by the Ravens. "I'm just thrilled and so excited."
Owner Jim Irsay and general manager Ryan Grigson settled on Pagano following a search that was extensive but spanned only nine days.
Irsay's enthusiasm was evident on his Twitter account: "Indy,we got one hell of a football coach with fire in his eyes! When I said,coach,r u ready 2b The Colts head coach,he said, 'Let's hunt.' "
The Colts' gain is the Ravens' loss. Pagano had been with Baltimore the past four seasons, and in 2011 was the coordinator of an aggressive defense that ranked No. 3 in the NFL in fewest yards and points allowed and was tied for third with 48 sacks.
"They're getting a great coach and we're losing one," Ravens veteran outside linebacker Jarret Johnson said. "That sucks for us, but good for them.
"I don't have enough good things to say about Chuck. From a personality standpoint, the guys over there are going to love him. He's got a fiery personality, but he's really funny. He can be defined as a players' coach, but he knows football."
Safety Chris Carr played for Pagano at Oakland before joining him in Baltimore in 2009. Like Johnson, he hates that he's losing his coach but glad Pagano is taking that next step.
"Great football IQ," Carr said. "(The Colts) are getting a coach who's 51 years old, but he seems a lot younger. He's a guy who can relate to players with different personalities.
"This isn't an older guy who is out of touch with the world."
Pagano is the fourth former Ravens defensive coordinator to be named an NFL head coach, joining Marvin Lewis (Cincinnati Bengals), Mike Nolan (San Francisco 49ers) and Rex Ryan (New York Jets).
The Ravens' foundation is an aggressive, disruptive defense. They're a 3-4 bunch -- three down linemen, four linebackers -- that's always in attack mode.
The Colts, meanwhile, have been an offense-driven team behind quarterback Peyton Manning and have followed a more passive defensive scheme. The defense ranked No. 25 in the league during an injury-ravaged 2011 and has ranked among the top 10 only twice since 2002.
Pagano's hiring was embraced by a few Colts defenders.
"I like it," perennial Pro Bowl end Robert Mathis wrote on his Twitter account.
And this tweet from safety Antoine Bethea: "New Head Coach in town!! Hope he brings that Raven style of defense with him!!"
That remains to be seen. In Baltimore, Pagano leaned on a Pro Bowl-saturated lineup that included Reed, linebackers Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs and Johnson, and tackle Haloti Ngata.
Bethea is a former Pro Bowler, but the Colts' only true difference-makers on defense are Mathis and end Dwight Freeney. It's debatable if they have the required talent in the front seven to play a 3-4.
"What Chuck's going to do is look at the players in the room and fit the defense he runs around the talent he has," Johnson said.
"People say we were a straight 3-4, but we really were a hybrid. We play a little bit of everything."
Pagano inherits a team coming off its worst season in two decades and must help Irsay decide whether Manning is part of the comprehensive rebuilding that's taking place. Manning still is rehabilitating from Sept. 8 neck surgery that forced him to miss the 2011 season. He is due a $28 million option bonus by March 8 that, if unpaid, makes him an unrestricted free agent.
Also, the Colts hold the first overall pick in the April draft that likely will deliver Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck. Other significant personnel decisions loom.
Speculation in Baltimore has Pagano perhaps bringing with him defensive line coach Clarence Brooks and linebackers coach Dean Pees from the Ravens staff, although Pees might be in position to succeed Pagano as coordinator. He also might consider Butch Davis, with whom he has a long relationship.
Rookie offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo is taking a wait-and-see approach, with a caveat.
"My first reaction, I know he's an Italian guy," Castonzo said. "His last name ends with an 'o,' and my last name ends with an 'o.' Beyond that, I don't know anything about him."
