Lynn Swann
No. 88 | |||||||
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Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | Alcoa, Tennessee, U.S. | March 7, 1952||||||
Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 180 lb (82 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Junípero Serra (San Mateo, California) | ||||||
College: | USC (1970–1973) | ||||||
NFL draft: | 1974 / Round: 1 / Pick: 21 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
As a player: | |||||||
As an administrator: | |||||||
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Career highlights and awards | |||||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||||
Lynn Curtis Swann (born March 7, 1952) is an American former
Swann was born in Alcoa, Tennessee. He attended USC and played football as a wide receiver of the
Early life
Swann was born March 7, 1952, in Alcoa, Tennessee, in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains near Knoxville.
The Swann family moved to San Mateo, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area when Lynn was 2.[1] As a youth, Swann was raised in neighboring Foster City and attended Junípero Serra High School, where in addition to playing football, he was a track star, leaping 24 ft 10 in (7.57 m) in the long jump. At the 1970 CIF California State championship meet, Swann won the state title, defeating future Olympic gold medalist Randy Williams.[2]
College career
Swann attended the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, where he was an consensus All-American on the Trojan football team under head coach John McKay, including the undefeated and national champion 1972 team. McKay said of Swann, "He has speed, soft hands, and grace."[3] He completed a Bachelor of Arts Degree in public relations in 1974.
In 1971, Swann had 27 catches for 305 yards and two touchdowns. He led USC in catches and finished second to WR Edesel Garrison in receiving yards. As a junior in 1972, Swann rushed for 117 yards and had 27 catches for 543 yards and three touchdowns. This time, he led USC in receiving yards and finished second to tight end Charle Young in catches. In 1973, Swann rushed for 99 yards while catching 42 passes for 714 yards and six touchdowns.
Professional career
Swann was selected in the first round of the 1974 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 21st overall pick. The Steelers draft class of '74 is considered one of the best in NFL history and includes four Hall of Famers: Swann, Jack Lambert (RD2), John Stallworth (RD4), and Mike Webster (RD5). Undrafted 1974 free agent signee Donnie Shell is also a hall of famer.
Swann spent his entire NFL career with the Steelers and wore the jersey number 88. As a rookie in 1974, he led the NFL with 577 punt-return yards, a franchise record and the fourth-most in NFL history at the time. He went on to win a championship ring with the Steelers in Super Bowl IX, but did not record any receptions in the tough defensive struggle (Pittsburgh quarterback Terry Bradshaw completed only nine passes in the game). However, he returned three punts for 34 yards.
The
Three seasons later, in 1978, the Steelers made it to Super Bowl XIII. In the game, Swann caught seven passes for 124 yards and scored the final touchdown for Pittsburgh in their 35–31 win over Dallas.
The Steelers made it back to the Super Bowl again in the 1979 season, and Swann caught five passes for 79 yards and a touchdown at the Rose Bowl in Pittsburgh's 31–19 win over the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl XIV. Overall, Swann gained 364 receiving yards and 398 all-purpose yards in his four Super Bowls, which were both Super Bowl records at the time.
Swann retired after the
Swann was unique among football players in that he credited his experiences in
Swann was named to the All-Pro team in 1975, 1977, and 1978, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001, a year before his teammate John Stallworth.
NFL statistics
Legend | |
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Won the Super Bowl | |
Super Bowl MVP
| |
Bold | Career high |
Year | Team | GP | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1974 | PIT | 12 | 11 | 208 | 18.9 | 2 |
1975 | PIT | 14 | 49 | 781 | 15.9 | 11 |
1976 | PIT | 12 | 28 | 516 | 18.4 | 3 |
1977 | PIT | 14 | 50 | 789 | 15.8 | 7 |
1978 | PIT | 16 | 61 | 880 | 14.4 | 11 |
1979 | PIT | 13 | 41 | 808 | 19.7 | 5 |
1980 | PIT | 13 | 44 | 710 | 16.1 | 7 |
1981 | PIT | 13 | 34 | 505 | 14.9 | 5 |
1982 | PIT | 9 | 18 | 265 | 14.7 | 0 |
Career[5] | 116 | 336 | 5,462 | 16.3 | 51 |
After football
Swann went on to serve as a director on the boards of
Swann briefly hosted the television
During his time at ABC, Lynn Swann began his broadcasting career in 1976 while still active with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Upon retirement in January 1983, Swann began his career full-time with ABC Sports, which ended after the 2006 Sugar Bowl. Swann has broadcast a variety of events as a host, reporter, and analyst. Included in these events are:
- the 1976 Winter Olympics
- the 1976 Summer Olympics
- the 1980 Winter Olympics
- the 1984 Winter Olympics
- the 1984 Summer Olympics
- the 1988 Winter Olympics
- the Iditarod Trail sled dog race
- International Diving Championships
- USFL
- college football
- Monday Night Football
- the Kentucky Derby
- Preakness Stakes
- Belmont Stakes
- the Irish Derby
- ABC's Wide World of Sports
- Curt Gowdy's The American Sportsman
Swann was the sideline reporter on CBS' "Clash of Champions" bowling telecast that aired on May 10–11, 2008. He teamed with color analyst
In October 2009, Swann joined the Augusta National Golf Club. He is a dues-paying member of the home of the Masters golf tournament, which is held every April.
On August 19, 2010, the
Swann made an appearance, playing himself, in the role of a sideline reporter at the "Bourbon Bowl", in the 1998
On April 13, 2016, Swann was named as the athletic director of the University of Southern California, succeeding retiring Pat Haden. He assumed the position on July 1, 2016.[10] On September 9, 2019, Swann resigned as the USC AD.[11][12]
Political career
Physical Fitness and Sports Council chairman
On June 20, 2002, President
In 2003, President Bush and Chairman Lynn Swann launched presidentschallenge.org at the Lakewest Family YMCA in Dallas, Texas. Within the next year, 300,000 individuals registered on the website. Swann spoke at the National Press Club about the council's programs to help Americans "Be Physically Active Every Day," and introduced the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award.
In 2004, Swann and President Bush declared May as an annual "National Physical Fitness and Sports" month, and created the annual HealthierUS Fitness Festival. They also enacted the Healthier Feds Physical Activity Challenge initiative for federal employees. On July 30, 2005, Lynn Swann retired as council chairman to explore a campaign for governor. He was succeeded by John P. Burke.
2006 candidacy for governor
In December 2004, Swann, who resides in the Pittsburgh suburb of
Swann's opponents for the Republican
Polls in early February showed Swann and Ed Rendell in a statistical tie,[15] though Rendell had the advantage of being the popular incumbent.[16] Swann's campaign focused on reforming Harrisburg by addressing mass transit, property tax, law enforcement, the environment and the growing concern of obesity. He also supported giving the Pittsburgh Penguins Pittsburgh's lone slots license so they could build a new arena, free of taxpayer money.
Swann's momentum did not survive a barrage of advertising from Rendell in early spring, and had trouble keeping up with Rendell's effective fundraising.[17] In the end, Swann lost the election with 40% of the vote to Rendell's 60%. Had Swann won, he would have been the first African American Governor of Pennsylvania and only the third African American elected governor of a state in U.S. history. Of the three Republican African American gubernatorial candidates in 2006, all three of them lost; Kenneth Blackwell lost in Ohio, and Randy Daniels lost in New York.
2008 to present
In 2008, Swann confirmed that he was considering running for the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district against Rep. Jason Altmire.[18] However, Swann did not file for the election and former congresswoman Melissa Hart won the Republican nomination unopposed and then lost to Altmire in the 2008 general election.[19]
In the 2008 presidential election, Swann endorsed and campaigned with Arizona Senator John McCain for the presidency, though Swann had remained neutral through the primaries. In 2012, he did the same for former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, once Romney had become the presumptive Republican nominee.[20]
In 2015, before the primary elections, Swann announced his support of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, while also criticizing Donald Trump.[21]
Personal life
On June 10, 1979, during the summer after winning Super Bowl XIII, Swann married Bernadette Robi, the daughter of singer Paul Robi of The Platters. The pair divorced in 1983.
On June 23, 1991, Swann married Charena (née Shaffer), a psychologist, and they have two sons who played football collegiately.[22]
See also
References
- ^ Worden, Amy (October 29, 2006). "Lynn Swann: With star power and a storied life of successes, he makes first electoral bid". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on January 11, 2007. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
- ^ "CIF State Track and Field Championships 1970". ca.milesplit.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Lynn Swann at the College Football Hall of Fame
- ^ "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Volume 2: Amazon Digital Services LLC". Amazon. Archived from the original on February 18, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ "Lynn Swann Stats". NFL site. NFL Player. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
- ^ "1484: Competition". IMDB. Archived from the original on February 9, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
Mister Rogers visits a dance studio where football great Lynn Swann shows his football uniform and how he dances ballet.
- ^ "The Paper Chase, Season 2, Episode 19: "Billy Pierce" (YouTube)". YouTube. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
- ^ "Arena Football League coming to Pittsburgh". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. August 19, 2010. Archived from the original on August 22, 2010. Retrieved August 19, 2010.
- ^ Ward, Hines (March 2, 2012). "Interview: Lynn Swann, Owner Pittsburgh Power, Steelers Wide Receiver, 1974–1982". Pittsburgh Sports Daily Bulletin. Archived from the original on October 20, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
- ^ "Lynn Swann Named New USC Athletic Director - University of Southern California Official Athletic Site". Usctrojans.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ Bonagura, Kyle (September 9, 2019). "Swann resigns after 3-year stint as Trojans' AD". ESPN. Archived from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
- ^ "USC athletic director Lynn Swann resigns after three seasons with Trojans, effective immediately". CBS News. September 9, 2019. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
- ^ Jet. Johnson Publishing Company. July 22, 2002. p. 46. Retrieved March 18, 2017 – via Internet Archive.
Lynn Swann George Bush.
- ^ "Lynn Swann Announces Pa. Gubernatorial Bid". Fox News. January 5, 2006. Archived from the original on April 14, 2008. Retrieved January 10, 2009.
- ^ "Rendell, Swann in dead heat - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review". Archived from the original on April 8, 2008.
- ^ "50 State Governor 05/06 Sort By State". SurveyUSA. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ Barnes, Tom; Roddy, Dennis B. (November 8, 2006). "Rendell cruises to 2nd term as governor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
- ^ "88 in '08?". old.post-gazette.com. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
- ^ "Voting & Elections". Pennsylvania Department of State. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
- ^ "Lynn Swann endorses Mitt Romney - Olympians and other athletes playing politics - Pictures". CBS News. July 27, 2012. Archived from the original on November 1, 2018. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ "Former NFL player Lynn Swann endorses Jeb Bush for president". CBS News. October 1, 2015. Archived from the original on June 20, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ "Interview With USC Athletics Director Lynn Swann - Football Matters". Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
External links
- Lynn Swann at the Pro Football Hall of Fame
- Lynn Swann at the College Football Hall of Fame
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference
- 2006 Swann for Governor campaign website at the Wayback Machine (archived November 1, 2006)
- [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0841712/ Lyn
Swann] at