Former Sabino High School and Arizona Wildcats standout Brooks Reed will make history today for Tucson when he participates in the Super Bowl for the Atlanta Falcons against the New England Patriots.
Reed, a linebacker for the Falcons, will become the first Tucson-born player to participate in football’s grandest game. The only other player born in Southern Arizona to be on a Super Bowl roster was punter Mitch Hoopes, a Bisbee native who was also a former Arizona standout who played with the Dallas Cowboys in Super X against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A few players raised in Southern Arizona have advanced to the Super Bowl but they were not born in Tucson:
— Cholla graduate Vance Johnson, who played in three Super Bowls with the Denver Broncos, was born in Trenton, N.J.
— Amphi graduate Riki Ellison, who won two Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers, was born in Christchurch, New Zealand.
— Salpointe graduate John Fina, who played in two Super Bowls with the Buffalo Bills, was born in Rochester, Minn.
— Former Sahuaro standout Rodney Peete, a member of the Carolina Panthers’ Super Bowl team in 2004, was born in Mesa.
NFL players born in Southern Arizona
Bold indicates Super Bowl participant
Source: Pro-Football-Reference.com
[table sort=”desc”]
Player,Pos,City,From,To,G
Brooks Reed,LB,Tucson,2011,2016,88
Ka’Deem Carey,RB,Tucson,2014,2016,36
Blake Martinez,ILB,Tucson,2016,2016,13
Michael Smith,RB,Tucson,2012,2012,1
Norm Katnik,C,Tucson,2006,2006,3
Sean Harris,LB,Tucson,1995,2001,83
Rich Griffith,TE,Tucson,1993,2000,90
Mike Scurlock,DB,Tucson,1995,1999,65
Danny Villa,T,Nogales,1987,1998,157
Cole Ford,K,Tucson,1995,1998,38
Ron Hall,TE,Fort Huachuca,1987,1995,119
Eric Thomas,DB,Tucson,1987,1995,111
Steve McLaughlin,K,Tucson,1995,1995,8
Mike Pagel,QB,Douglas,1982,1993,132
Vance Mueller,RB,Tucson,1986,1990,73
Kevin Thomas,C,Tucson,1988,1988,10
Frank Garcia,P,Tucson,1981,1987,77
Sam Merriman,LB,Tucson,1983,1987,71
Jeff Colter,DB,Tucson,1984,1987,17
Jeff Kiewel,G,Tucson,1985,1987,28
David Adams,RB,Tucson,1987,1987,3
George Duarte,DB,Tucson,1987,1987,3
Tim Smith,WR,Tucson,1980,1986,90
Gary Hayes,DB,Tucson,1984,1986,42
Andre Tyler,WR,Tucson,1983,1983,14
Mitch Hoopes,P,Bisbee,1975,1977,25
Paul Robinson,RB,Tucson,1968,1973,79
Sonny Campbell,RB,Marana,1970,1971,25
Mike Kellogg,FB,Tucson,1966,1967,10
Gordie Smith,TE,Douglas,1961,1965,54
Alex Bravo,DB,Tucson,1957,1961,43
Gib Dawson,HB,Bisbee,1953,1953,7
Ed Salem,DB,Tucson,1951,1951,12
Arthur Fletcher,E,Fort Huachuca,1950,1950,1
Ben Chase,G,Bisbee,1947,1947,11
Lee Mulleneaux,C,Safford,1932,1938,53
Gil LeFebvre,B,Douglas,1933,1935,15
[/table]
Arizona Wildcats Super Bowl Players
Bold denotes Super Bowl champion
Source: ArizonaWildcats.com
[table sort=”desc”]
Player,Pos,No.,Years,Teams
Glenn Parker,OL,5,1991-94/2001,Buffalo/New York Giants
Tedy Bruschi,LB,5,1997/2002/2004-05/2008,New England
Rob Gronkowski,TE,3,2012/2015/2017,New England
Vance Johnson,WR,3,1987-88/1990,Denver
Randy Robbins,S,3,1987-88/1990,Denver
John Fina,OL,2,1993-94,Buffalo
Ricky Hunley,LB,2,1987-88,Denver
Mike Freeman,C,2,1987-88,Denver
Theopolis Bell,WR,2,1979-80,Pittsburgh
Jackie Wallace,CB,2,1975/1980,Minnesota/St. Louis
Brooks Reed,LB,1,2017,Atlanta
Mike Bell,RB,1,2010,New Orleans
Michael Johnson,DB,1,2008,New York Giants
Antonio Pierce,LB,1,2008,New York Giants
Lance Briggs,LB,1,2007,Chicago
Joe Tafoya,DE,1,2006,Seattle
Josh Miller,P,1,2005,New England
Frank Middleton,OL,1,2003,Oakland
Trung Canidate,RB,1,2002,St. Louis
Brandon Manumaleuna,TE,1,2002,St. Louis
Edwin Mulitalo,OL,1,2001,Baltimore
Chris McAlister,CB,1,2001,Baltimore
Joe Salave’a,DT,1,2000,Tennessee
Jose Portilla,OL,1,1999,Atlanta
Brad Henke,DT,1,1990,Denver
Mitch Hoopes,P,1,1976,Dallas
Ron Gardin,WR,1,1971,Indianapolis
[/table]
FOLLOW @JAVIERJMORALES ON TWITTER!
ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
Recommended for you
