Sammy Green

{{Short description|American football player (born 1954)}} {{for|the wide receiver|Sammy Greene}} {{Use American English|date=September 2024}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}} {{Infobox NFL biography | name = Sammy Green | number = 56 | position = Linebacker | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1954|10|12|mf=y}} | birth_place = Bradenton, Florida, U.S. | height_ft = 6 | height_in = 2 | weight_lbs = 228 | high_school = Fort Meade {{nowrap|(Fort Meade, Florida)}} | college = Florida | draftyear = 1976 | draftround = 2 | draftpick = 29 | pastteams = * Seattle Seahawks ({{NFL Year|1976}}–{{NFL Year|1979}}) * Houston Oilers ({{NFL Year|1980}}) | highlights = * Consensus All-American (1975) * First-team All-SEC (1975) Credited with 202 tackles during senior season with Gators; a Florida Gator record * University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame | statlabel1 = Sacks | statvalue1 = 2.0 | statlabel2 = Fumble recoveries | statvalue2 = 2 | statlabel3 = Interceptions | statvalue3 = 3 | pfr = GreeSa20 }}

'''Samuel Lee Green''' (born October 12, 1954) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL) during the 1970s and early 1980s. He played college football for the Florida Gators, receiving consensus All-American honors in 1975. A second-round pick in the 1976 NFL draft, Green in the NFL for the Seattle Seahawks and the Houston Oilers.

== Early life ==

Sammy Green was born in Bradenton, Florida in 1954.<ref name=pfrprofile>Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players, [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/G/GreeSa20.htm Sammy Green]. Retrieved July 8, 2010.</ref> He attended Fort Meade High School in Fort Meade, Florida,<ref name=dbfbprofile>databaseFootball.com, Players, {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20110515041857/http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=GREENSAM01 Sammy Green]}}. Retrieved June 3, 2010.</ref> where he played high school football for the Fort Meade Miners.

== College career ==

Green accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Doug Dickey's Florida Gators football team from 1972 to 1975.<ref name=ufmediaguide>''[http://web.gatorzone.com/football/media/2011/media_guide.pdf 2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402035222/http://web.gatorzone.com/football/media/2011/media_guide.pdf |date=April 2, 2012 }}'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 87, 91, 96, 124, 153, 173, 181 (2011). Retrieved August 29, 2011.</ref> Memorably, as a sophomore in 1973, Green forced a critical fumble by Auburn Tigers tailback Sullivan Walker, which led to a touchdown and the Gators' margin of victory in a 12–8 upset of the Tigers at home—the Gators' first-ever win at Jordan–Hare Stadium. He was a team captain, a first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection, and a consensus first-team All-American in 1975.<ref name=ufmediaguide/><ref>''2012 NCAA Football Records Book'', The 1975 Gator defense yielded a paltry 9.5 points per game during the regular season. [http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2012/Awards.pdf Award Winners], National Collegiate Athletic Association, Indianapolis, Indiana, pp. 8 & 14 (2012). Retrieved September 14, 2012.</ref> Green was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 2003.<ref>F Club, Hall of Fame, [http://www.gatorfclub.org/hall-of-fame/greats Gator Greats]. Retrieved December 14, 2014.</ref><ref>"[http://www.gatorzone.com/story.php?id=5470 Nine Inducted Into UF Hall of Fame]", GatorZone.com (April 11, 2003). Retrieved July 21, 2011.</ref> In one of a series of articles published by ''The Gainesville Sun'' in 2006, the newspaper's sports editors ranked him as the No. 51 all-time greatest Gator among the top 100 players from the first century of the Florida football team.<ref>Robbie Andreu & Pat Dooley, "[http://www.gainesville.com/article/20060714/GATORS70/60713014 No. 51 Sammy Green]", ''The Gainesville Sun'' (July 14, 2006). Retrieved April 5, 2013.</ref>

While a student at Florida, Green was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity (Theta Sigma chapter).

== Professional career ==

The Seattle Seahawks selected Green in the second round (twenty-ninth pick overall) in the 1976 NFL Draft,<ref>Pro Football Hall of Fame, Draft History, [http://www.profootballhof.com/history/story.aspx?story_id=2010 1976 National Football League Draft]. Retrieved May 27, 2010.</ref> and he played for the Seahawks for four seasons from {{NFL Year|1976}} to {{NFL Year|1979}}.<ref name=nflprofile>National Football League, Historical Players, [http://www.nfl.com/players/sammygreen/profile?id=GRE353202 Sammy Green]. Retrieved May 27, 2010.</ref> He had three interceptions during his time with the Seahawks, including one that he returned ninety-one yards for a touchdown in {{NFL Year|1979}},<ref name=nflprofile/> the longest in Seahawks history.<ref>"[http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/release.aspx?release_id=2959 Reed rumbles 108 yards for NFL record; Longest interception returns by team]", Pro Football Hall of Fame (November 24, 2008). Retrieved July 10, 2014.</ref> Green played his final NFL season for the Houston Oilers in {{NFL Year|1980}}.<ref name=nflprofile/> He played in sixty-two NFL games in his five-season career, starting in forty-four of them.<ref name=pfrprofile/> Spent four years in the USFL with Tampa Bay Bandits, Birmingham Stallions, Memphis Showboats and New Jersey Generals.

== Life after football ==

Green completed his Master's Degree at Iowa State University, and as of 2010, is working to complete a Doctorate. He Has now retired from Washington High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.<ref>Gary White, "[http://www.theledger.com/article/20100828/NEWS/8285061?p=3&tc=pg&tc=ar Polk's Former Pros Have No Regrets]", ''The Ledger'' (August 28, 2010). Retrieved August 26, 2011.</ref> He now teaches English and Composition at Skagit Valley College in Washington State as of 2022.

== References ==

{{1975 NCAA Division I FBS College Football Consensus All-Americans}} {{Seahawks1976DraftPicks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Sammy}} Category:1954 births Category:Living people Category:All-American college football players Category:American football linebackers Category:Florida Gators football players Category:Houston Oilers players Category:Iowa State University alumni Category:Players of American football from Bradenton, Florida Category:People from Fort Meade, Florida Category:Players of American football from Polk County, Florida Category:Seattle Seahawks players Category:Fort Meade Middle-Senior High School alumni Category:20th-century American sportsmen