Will Poole
Encyclopedia
William Starling Poole (born July 24, 1981 in Beckley, West Virginia
) is an American football
defensive back
who is currently playing for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League
. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins
in the fourth round of the 2004 NFL Draft
. He played college football
at Southern California.
Poole has also been a member of the Kansas City Chiefs
, Toronto Argonauts
and Hamilton Tiger-Cats
.
in New York
and a Parade
All-American his junior year. He also competed on their nationally ranked basketball
team.
graduate whose senior team split the collegiate national championship with Louisiana State University
. He first went to Boston College
, but had to leave for violations. Following that he went to Ventura College
. Best known for his standout performance against Michigan
which included two sacks
in the 2004 Rose Bowl (played on January 1) en route to a USC 28-14 victory.
in 2004. Plagued with knee injuries throughout his career, he played during a promising rookie season and was placed on IR
during the 2005 and 2006 seasons then was waived by Miami on December 19, 2006. He tried out for the New Orleans Saints
on the weekend of May 12–13, 2007.
of the Canadian Football League
and assigned to their practice roster. He was later released by the team on October 10, 2007.
' practice squad, Poole re-joined the Argonauts on September 8, 2008.
.
Beckley, West Virginia
Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States, which was founded on April 4, 1838. The 2008 population was estimated to be 16,832 by the U.S. Census Bureau. Early in its history, the town was known as Beckleyville and Raleigh Court House...
) is 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 back
Defensive back
In American football and Canadian football, defensive backs are the players on the defensive team who take positions somewhat back from the line of scrimmage; they are distinguished from the defensive line players and linebackers, who take positions directly behind or close to the line of...
who is currently playing for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League
United Football League
United Football League may refer to:*United Football League , an association football league in the Philippines.*United Football League , an American football league which operated from 1961 to 1964...
. He was drafted by 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 the fourth round of the 2004 NFL Draft
2004 NFL Draft
The 2004 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 24-25, 2004 at the theater at Madison Square Garden...
. 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 Southern California.
Poole has also been a member of the Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
, Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
and Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
.
Early years
Poole was a top high school player at Christ The King Regional High SchoolChrist The King Regional High School
Christ the King Regional High School is a Catholic high school located in Middle Village, Queens, New York, USA and established in 1962. Often referred to as 'CK' among its students, it is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn.-History:...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and a 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...
All-American his junior year. He also competed on their nationally ranked basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team.
College career
He is a University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
graduate whose senior team split the collegiate national championship with Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
. He first went to Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
, but had to leave for violations. Following that he went to Ventura College
Ventura College
Ventura College is a California-state funded community college located in Ventura, California, USA. Established in 1925, the college has a campus with an enrollment of 14,456 students. The college is part of the Ventura County Community College District....
. Best known for his standout performance against Michigan
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
which included two 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...
in the 2004 Rose Bowl (played on January 1) en route to a USC 28-14 victory.
Awards and honors
- Junior College Athletic Bureau All-American (2002)
- SuperPrep JUCO 100 (2002)
- Western State ConferenceWestern State ConferenceThe Western State Conference is a college athletic conference that is affiliated with the California Community College Athletic Association. The conference was established in 1950, making it the oldest community college conference in California...
Mountain Division Defensive MVP (2002) - Ventura CollegeVentura CollegeVentura College is a California-state funded community college located in Ventura, California, USA. Established in 1925, the college has a campus with an enrollment of 14,456 students. The college is part of the Ventura County Community College District....
Team MVP (2002) - Pac-10Pacific Ten ConferenceThe Pacific-12 Conference is a college athletic conference that operates in the Western United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I; its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision , the higher of two levels of NCAA Division I football competition...
Defensive Player of the Week (November 5, 2003) - First-team All-Pac 10 selection by CollegeFootballNews.comCollege Football NewsCollege Football News is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis includes comparisons between teams, predictions of game outcomes and...
, ESPN.comESPN.comESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...
and Rivals.comRivals.comRivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
(2003) - Second-team All-American by the APAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
and CollegeFootballNews.com - Honorable mention Rivals.com All-American (2003)
- USC Co-Special Teams Player of the Year (2003)
Miami Dolphins
He was drafted in the fourth round by the Miami DolphinsMiami 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 2004. Plagued with knee injuries throughout his career, he played during a promising rookie season and was placed on IR
Injured reserve
The injured reserve list is a list of reserved players who are injured and unable to play for a period of time, used most prominently in the National Hockey League and National Football League . It is used because these leagues have a maximum number of players on the team roster, so placing a...
during the 2005 and 2006 seasons then was waived by Miami on December 19, 2006. He tried out for 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 ....
on the weekend of May 12–13, 2007.
First stint with Chiefs
Poole signed a two-year deal with the Kansas City Chiefs on July 27, 2007. However, he was released by the team on September 1 during final cuts.First stint with Argonauts
On October 4, 2007, Poole was signed by the Toronto ArgonautsToronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
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....
and assigned to their practice roster. He was later released by the team on October 10, 2007.
Second stint with Chiefs
On May 27, 2008, Poole was re-signed by the Chiefs. He was released on August 10.Second stint Argonauts
Less than a year after being signed to the Toronto ArgonautsToronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
' practice squad, Poole re-joined the Argonauts on September 8, 2008.
Sacramento Mountain Lions
On May 25, 2011, Poole signed with the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football LeagueUnited Football League
United Football League may refer to:*United Football League , an association football league in the Philippines.*United Football League , an American football league which operated from 1961 to 1964...
.