Norman L. Hand was an American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 defensive tackle in the NFL

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

. He last played with the New York Giants

New York Giants

The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

 in 2004

2004 NFL season

The 2004 NFL season was the 85th regular season of the National Football League.With the New England Patriots as the defending league champions, regular season play was held from September 9, 2004 to January 2, 2005...

. He also played with the Seattle Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...

, the New Orleans Saints

New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....

, the San Diego Chargers

San Diego Chargers

The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 and the Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

. With the Saints, Hand was part of a defensive line nicknamed "The Heavy Lunch Bunch", along with fellow 325-pounders Martin Chase

Martin Chase

Cecil Martin Chase is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League. With the New Orleans Saints he was part of a defensive line nicknamed "The Heavy Lunch Bunch", along with fellow 325-pounders Norman Hand and Grady Jackson. He played college football at the...

 and Grady Jackson

Grady Jackson

Grady O'Neal Jackson is an American football defensive tackle who most recently played for the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the sixth round of the 1997 NFL Draft...

; Hand was noted for his "Big Wiggle" celebration dance, and in 2000

2000 New Orleans Saints season

The 2000 New Orleans Saints season saw the Saints win their first ever playoff game. On February 3, Jim Haslett was named the thirteenth head coach in franchise history.-Staff:-Schedule:-Playoffs:-Rushing: -Receiving: -Sacks: -Interceptions:...

 he was part of the team that won the Saints' first playoff victory.

High school career

At Walterboro High School

Colleton County High School

Colleton County High School is a public high school in Walterboro, South Carolina formerly name Walterboro High School.-Athletics:CCHS offers students the opportunity to participate in wrestling, football, basketball, baseball, softball, golf, track, soccer, and tennis.-Band of Blue:The Colleton...

 in Walterboro

Walterboro, South Carolina

Walterboro is a city in Colleton County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 5,153 at the 2000 census . It is the county seat of Colleton County.-History:...

, South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

, Hand earned three letters in football

High school football

High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....

, and also played baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

. As a senior, he was an honorable mention All-America

All-America

An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...

 selection by Parade

Parade (magazine)

Parade is an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 500 newspapers in the United States. It was founded in 1941 and is owned by Advance Publications. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., Parade has a circulation of 32.2 million and a readership of nearly 70...

and USA Today

USA Today

USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...

, and was the South Carolina High School Defensive Lineman of the Year. As a junior tight end

Tight end

The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...

, he caught 25 passes for 526 yards (21.04 yards per reception average).

College career

Norman Hand was a two-year starter

Starting lineup

A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...

 at the University of Mississippi

University of Mississippi

The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...

, after transferring from Itawamba Junior College in Mississippi. As a senior, he posted 3.5 sacks, 61 tackles (three for losses), one interception, and one fumble recovery, and was a second team All-SEC

Southeastern Conference

The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...

 selection. At Itawamba Junior College, he finished his two-year career with 18 sacks, 135 tackles, with 33 tackles for losses, four forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries.

Death

Hand died May 14, 2010 from hypertensive

Hypertension

Hypertension or high blood pressure is a cardiac chronic medical condition in which the systemic arterial blood pressure is elevated. What that means is that the heart is having to work harder than it should to pump the blood around the body. Blood pressure involves two measurements, systolic and...

 cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular disease

Heart disease or cardiovascular disease are the class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels . While the term technically refers to any disease that affects the cardiovascular system , it is usually used to refer to those related to atherosclerosis...

, after collapsing at his house in Walterboro.