Tom Briggs
Encyclopedia
Tom Briggs is an Arena Football League defensive lineman for the Tampa Bay Storm
. He was originally signed by the Birmingham Barracudas
of the Canadian Football League
. He played college football
at West Virginia
.
Briggs enters the 2009 season ranked third all-time with 50 career sacks
and fifth all-time with 21 career forced fumble
s in AFL history.
. In 1991, Briggs recorded 44 tackles, five sacks, three fumbles recoveries, and one forced fumble. In 1992, he totaled 47 tackles, seven sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
and joined onto the Atlanta Falcons
training camp roster. Following his short stint in the National Football League
, Briggs moved onto the Canadian Football League
with the Birmingham Barracudas
and the Saskatchewan Roughriders
.
to end the season. For the 1998 season
, Briggs rejoined the Forest Dragons and finished the year with 11 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble and two coveries. In Brigg's final season in Portland, 1999
, he finished the year with 12 tackles, two fumble recoveries, an interception, and two forced fumbles.
In 2000
, Briggs moved with Portland as they became the Oklahoma Wranglers
. He finished the year with 16 tackles, four sacks, two fumble recoveries, and a forced fumble. The next season
, his final in Oklahoma
, Briggs finished with nine tackles, five sacks and a forced fumble. During his tenure with the Wranglers, Briggs earned Second Team All-Arena honors in 2000 and was named to the 2001 All-Ironman Team.
In 2002
, Briggs moved to the Dallas Desperados
and became the team's all-time leader of sacks in a season with 10 sacks and became the career leader with 12.5 in his two seasons there. He also totaled 60 tackles and four forced fumbles in his two seasons as a Desperado. In his final season, he earned First-team All-Arena, the Lineman of the Year Award, and was named to the All-Ironman Team.
In 2004
, Briggs returned to the Oklahoma franchise as they became the Austin Wranglers
. In his debut season in Austin, Briggs set the franchise record of 8.5 sacks in a season, along with recording 21 tackles and two fumble recoveries. That season he was named to the First-team All-Arena squad. In 2005
, Briggs recorded 25 tackles, and in his final season he totaled only 5 tackles with a forced fumble.
In 2007
, Briggs joined the Tampa Bay Storm
. Despite playing half of the season with a broken hand, Briggs recorded 28.5 tackles, five sacks, and four forced fumbles.
In 2008
, Briggs finished with 14 tackles, four sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery in his second season in Tampa Bay
. Briggs also had two defensive touchdowns on the season.
Tampa Bay Storm
The Tampa Bay Storm are an Arena Football League team based in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. They play their home games in the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa....
. He was originally signed by the Birmingham Barracudas
Birmingham Barracudas
The Birmingham Barracudas were a Canadian football team that played the 1995 season in the Canadian Football League. The Barracudas were part of a failed attempt to expand the CFL into the United States.-In the beginning:...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
. 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...
at West Virginia
West Virginia Mountaineers football
The West Virginia Mountaineers football team represents West Virginia University in the NCAA FBS division of college football. Dana Holgorsen is the team's 33rd head coach. He has held the position since he was promoted in June 2011 after the resignation of Bill Stewart. The Mountaineers play their...
.
Briggs enters the 2009 season ranked third all-time with 50 career sacks
Quarterback sack
In American football and Canadian football, a sack occurs when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a forward pass, or when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "pocket" and the intent of what he was going to do is unclear...
and fifth all-time with 21 career forced fumble
Fumble
A fumble in American and Canadian football occurs when a player, who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed or scoring. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking or successful handing that results in loss of player possession...
s in AFL history.
Collegiate career
Briggs began his collegiate career in 1990, where he only recorded two tacklesTackle (football move)
Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary purposes of tackling is to disposses an opponent of the ball, to stop the player from gaining ground towards goal or to stop them from carrying out what they intend....
. In 1991, Briggs recorded 44 tackles, five sacks, three fumbles recoveries, and one forced fumble. In 1992, he totaled 47 tackles, seven sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Early career
In 1993, Briggs went undrafted in the NFL DraftNFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
and joined onto the Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
training camp roster. Following his short stint in 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...
, Briggs moved onto the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
with the Birmingham Barracudas
Birmingham Barracudas
The Birmingham Barracudas were a Canadian football team that played the 1995 season in the Canadian Football League. The Barracudas were part of a failed attempt to expand the CFL into the United States.-In the beginning:...
and the Saskatchewan Roughriders
Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a Canadian Football League team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. They were founded in 1910. They play their home games at 2940 10th Avenue in Regina, which has been the team's home base for its entire history, even prior to the construction of Mosaic Stadium at Taylor...
.
Arena Football League
In 1997, Briggs left the CFL for the Arena Football League and the Portland Forest Dragons. That season he recorded only eight tackles before moving to the Anaheim PiranhasAnaheim Piranhas
The Anaheim Piranhas were a professional arena football team that played in the Arena Football League from 1994 - 1997. They played their home games at Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California. The team was originally known as the Las Vegas Sting, prior to moving to Anaheim in 1996. The team was owned...
to end the season. For the 1998 season
1998 Arena Football League season
The 1998 Arena Football League season was the 12th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the Orlando Predators, who defeated the Tampa Bay Storm in ArenaBowl XII.-Standings:* Green indicates clinched playoff berth...
, Briggs rejoined the Forest Dragons and finished the year with 11 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble and two coveries. In Brigg's final season in Portland, 1999
1999 Arena Football League season
The 1999 Arena Football League season was the 13th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the Albany Firebirds, who defeated the Orlando Predators in ArenaBowl XIII.-Standings:* Green indicates clinched playoff berth...
, he finished the year with 12 tackles, two fumble recoveries, an interception, and two forced fumbles.
In 2000
2000 Arena Football League season
The 2000 Arena Football League season was the 14th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the Orlando Predators, who defeated the Nashville Kats in ArenaBowl XIV.-Standings:* Green indicates clinched playoff berth...
, Briggs moved with Portland as they became the Oklahoma Wranglers
Oklahoma Wranglers
The Oklahoma Wranglers was the final name of a team in the Arena Football League that had previously played as the Memphis Pharaohs and Portland Forest Dragons...
. He finished the year with 16 tackles, four sacks, two fumble recoveries, and a forced fumble. The next season
2001 Arena Football League season
The 2001 Arena Football League season was the 15th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the Grand Rapids Rampage, who defeated the Nashville Kats in ArenaBowl XV.-Standings:* Green indicates clinched playoff berth...
, his final in Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, Briggs finished with nine tackles, five sacks and a forced fumble. During his tenure with the Wranglers, Briggs earned Second Team All-Arena honors in 2000 and was named to the 2001 All-Ironman Team.
In 2002
2002 Arena Football League season
The 2002 Arena Football League season was the 16th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the San Jose SaberCats, who defeated the Arizona Rattlers in ArenaBowl XVI...
, Briggs moved to the Dallas Desperados
Dallas Desperados
The Dallas Desperados were a professional Arena Football team. The Desperados played in the Southern Division of the now-defunct Arena Football League from 2002 to 2008....
and became the team's all-time leader of sacks in a season with 10 sacks and became the career leader with 12.5 in his two seasons there. He also totaled 60 tackles and four forced fumbles in his two seasons as a Desperado. In his final season, he earned First-team All-Arena, the Lineman of the Year Award, and was named to the All-Ironman Team.
In 2004
2004 Arena Football League season
The 2004 Arena Football League season was the 18th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the San Jose SaberCats, who defeated the Arizona Rattlers in ArenaBowl XVIII...
, Briggs returned to the Oklahoma franchise as they became the Austin Wranglers
Austin Wranglers
The Austin Wranglers were an arena football team based in Austin, Texas. They played four seasons in the Arena Football League from 2004 to 2007 and spent one season in AF2, the AFL's developmental league, in 2008. They made playoff appearances in the AFL in 2006 and in AF2 in 2008...
. In his debut season in Austin, Briggs set the franchise record of 8.5 sacks in a season, along with recording 21 tackles and two fumble recoveries. That season he was named to the First-team All-Arena squad. In 2005
2005 Arena Football League season
The 2005 Arena Football League season was the 19th season of the Arena Football League. The league champions were the Colorado Crush, who defeated the Georgia Force in ArenaBowl XIX. The AFL changed its playoff format to allow the top four teams per conference to make the playoffs. Previously, the...
, Briggs recorded 25 tackles, and in his final season he totaled only 5 tackles with a forced fumble.
In 2007
2007 Arena Football League season
The 2007 Arena Football League season was the 21st season of the Arena Football League. The regular season began play on March 1, 2007 and concluded on June 25...
, Briggs joined the Tampa Bay Storm
Tampa Bay Storm
The Tampa Bay Storm are an Arena Football League team based in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. They play their home games in the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa....
. Despite playing half of the season with a broken hand, Briggs recorded 28.5 tackles, five sacks, and four forced fumbles.
In 2008
2008 Arena Football League season
The 2008 Arena Football League season was the 22nd season of the Arena Football League and final season before the 2009 cancellation. The regular season began play on February 29, 2008 and concluded on June 22...
, Briggs finished with 14 tackles, four sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery in his second season in Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary along the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay."Tampa Bay" is not the name of any municipality...
. Briggs also had two defensive touchdowns on the season.