Steve Emtman
Encyclopedia
Steven Charles "Steve" Emtman (born April 16, 1970) is a former professional American football
player. He played defensive end
for the Indianapolis Colts
, the Miami Dolphins
and the Washington Redskins
of the National Football League
(NFL). He played college football
for the University of Washington
Huskies
, and was drafted into the NFL as the first overall selection in the 1992 NFL Draft
.
, grew up in nearby Cheney
, and graduated from Cheney High School in 1988. Lightly recruited, he accepted a football scholarship to the University of Washington
in Seattle
to play for head coach Don James.
for the first time in 9 seasons. He was considered the best overall player on the 1991 Husky
undefeated national championship team. A consensus All-American
, Emtman won the Outland Trophy
, Lombardi Award
, was the Bill Willis Award winner and the UPI Lineman of the Year
. He also was being named the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year
during his impressive junior year of 1991. He finished fourth in the ballot for the Heisman Trophy
.
He was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame
in 2006.
. At 6'4" and 290 lb (131.5 kg)., he was the first overall pick, selected by the Indianapolis Colts
. His most memorable play was the game-sealing 90-yard interception return for a touchdown as time expired in a 31-20 upset win at the Miami Dolphins
in his rookie year.
Emtman's NFL career was marred by injuries. Playing a majority of his games on Astroturf
, he finished each of his three seasons with the Colts
on the injured reserve list. Nine games into his rookie year, he blew out his left knee. The following season, he tore the patellar tendon in his right knee, an injury that no previous NFL player had ever returned from. In October 1994
, he beat the odds and made his comeback at home
against the team he had grown up following, the Seattle Seahawks
. On his first play, he tackled Chris Warren for a 5-yard loss. However, in the second quarter, he ruptured a disc
in his neck in a collision with a teammate. Emtman continued to play, even though after the game, he could not close his fists due to nerve damage from the injury. He managed to play three more weeks until continuing pain forced him to undergo season-ending surgery. He later played for the Miami Dolphins
and Washington Redskins
. His playing career ended following the 1997 season
at the age of 27.
, along with Bruce Smith, Tim Brown, Emmitt Smith
, and John Madden
.
Emtman formerly volunteered as the defensive line coach for the af2
's Spokane Shock
.
Emtman now lives in Spokane Valley, Washington, where he is a successful real estate developer.
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...
player. He played defensive end
Defensive end
Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
for the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
, 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...
and the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
of the National Football League
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...
(NFL). He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
Huskies
Washington Huskies
Washington Huskies is the nickname of the University of Washington's athletic teams. The school is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference. The athletic program is made up of 9 men's sports and 10 women's sports Washington Huskies is the nickname of the University of Washington's athletic teams. The...
, and was drafted into the NFL as the first overall selection in the 1992 NFL Draft
1992 NFL Draft
The 1992 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1992. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft...
.
Early life
Emtman was born in Spokane, WashingtonSpokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
, grew up in nearby Cheney
Cheney, Washington
Cheney is a city in Spokane County, Washington, United States. The full time resident population was 10,590 as of 2010 census. Eastern Washington University is located in Cheney, and its population grows to approximately 17,600 people on a temporary basis when classes at Eastern Washington...
, and graduated from Cheney High School in 1988. Lightly recruited, he accepted a football scholarship to the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
in Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
to play for head coach Don James.
College career
He redshirted in 1988, but soon became a star as a sophomore on a resurgent defense in 1990. Washington went 10-2 and won the Rose BowlRose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
for the first time in 9 seasons. He was considered the best overall player on the 1991 Husky
Washington Huskies
Washington Huskies is the nickname of the University of Washington's athletic teams. The school is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference. The athletic program is made up of 9 men's sports and 10 women's sports Washington Huskies is the nickname of the University of Washington's athletic teams. The...
undefeated national championship team. A consensus All-American
1991 College Football All-America Team
The 1991 College Football All-America Team is composed of the following All-American Teams: Associated Press, United Press International, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Football Writers Association of America, American Football Coaches Association, Walter Camp Foundation, Scripps-Howard, The...
, Emtman won the Outland Trophy
Outland Trophy
The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best United States college football interior lineman by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named All-America at two positions, Outland garnered consensus All-America honors in...
, Lombardi Award
Lombardi Award
The Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...
, was the Bill Willis Award winner and the UPI Lineman of the Year
UPI Lineman of the Year (College)
The United Press International college football lineman of the year award was among the first and most recognized college football awards. With the demise of UPI in 1997 the award was discontinued. Offensive and defensive linemen were eligible, including offensive ends, with one, Howard Twilley,...
. He also was being named the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year
Pacific-10 Conference football awards
Coaches of the Pacific-12 Conference bestow the following awards at the end of each football season. The Pac-10 Conference was renamed to the Pac-12 in 2011.-Players of the Year:...
during his impressive junior year of 1991. He finished fourth in the ballot for the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
.
He was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
in 2006.
Professional career
He decided to forgo his senior year and declared himself eligible for the 1992 NFL Draft1992 NFL Draft
The 1992 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1992. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft...
. At 6'4" and 290 lb (131.5 kg)., he was the first overall pick, selected by the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
. His most memorable play was the game-sealing 90-yard interception return for a touchdown as time expired in a 31-20 upset win at 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...
in his rookie year.
Emtman's NFL career was marred by injuries. Playing a majority of his games on Astroturf
AstroTurf
AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...
, he finished each of his three seasons with the Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
on the injured reserve list. Nine games into his rookie year, he blew out his left knee. The following season, he tore the patellar tendon in his right knee, an injury that no previous NFL player had ever returned from. In October 1994
1994 NFL season
The 1994 NFL season was the 75th regular season of the National Football League. To honor the NFL's 75th season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season...
, he beat the odds and made his comeback at home
RCA Dome
RCA Dome was a domed stadium, located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and the home of the Indianapolis Colts NFL franchise for 24 seasons ....
against the team he had grown up following, 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...
. On his first play, he tackled Chris Warren for a 5-yard loss. However, in the second quarter, he ruptured a disc
Spinal disc herniation
A spinal disc herniation , informally and misleadingly called a "slipped disc", is a medical condition affecting the spine due to trauma, lifting injuries, or idiopathic, in which a tear in the outer, fibrous ring of an intervertebral disc allows the soft, central portion A spinal disc herniation...
in his neck in a collision with a teammate. Emtman continued to play, even though after the game, he could not close his fists due to nerve damage from the injury. He managed to play three more weeks until continuing pain forced him to undergo season-ending surgery. He later played for 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...
and Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
. His playing career ended following the 1997 season
1997 NFL season
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League. The Oilers relocated from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee...
at the age of 27.
Off the field
Emtman had a cameo appearance as himself in the 1994 feature film Little GiantsLittle Giants
Little Giants is a 1994 family comedy film, starring Rick Moranis and Ed O'Neill as brothers in a small Ohio town, coaching rival Pee-Wee Football teams.-Synopsis:...
, along with Bruce Smith, Tim Brown, Emmitt Smith
Emmitt Smith
Emmitt James Smith, III is a retired American football player who was a running back in the National Football League for fifteen seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. Smith played college football for the University of Florida, where he was an All-American; thereafter, he played professionally for...
, and John Madden
John Madden (American football)
John Earl Madden is a former American professional football player in the National Football League, a former Super Bowl-winning head coach with the Oakland Raiders in the American Football League and later the NFL, and a former color commentator for NFL telecasts. In 2006, he was inducted into...
.
Emtman formerly volunteered as the defensive line coach for the af2
Af2
AF2 was the name of the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football rules and style of play. League seasons ran from April through July with the postseason and ArenaCup...
's Spokane Shock
Spokane Shock
The Spokane Shock is a professional arena football team of the Arena Football League from Spokane, Washington, USA. They play their home games at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena...
.
Emtman now lives in Spokane Valley, Washington, where he is a successful real estate developer.
External links
- 1992 NFL Draft - 1st overall pick
- Heisman.com - top defensive finishers