Blade McCoy
 | |
| No. 21 – Retired | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Linebacker |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | September 21, 2014 (aged 46) Austin, Texas, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Weight: | 255 lb (116 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College: | University of Texas |
| ISFL Draft: | 2038 / Round: 5 / Pick: 51 |
| Career history | |
| Roster status: | Retired |
Blade McCoy (born September 21, 2014) was an American football linebacker for the Dallas Birddogs of the Developmental Simulation Football League (DSFL).
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Early years
A native of Austin, Texas, McCoy attended Regents School of Austin, where he was a star running back and linebacker. McCoy's parents were both Longhorn fans and McCoy grew up to be a Longhorn. In highschool, McCoy was a good student on and off the field. He was a leader for the team and pushed his teammates to greater limits. His leadership lead the team to a state championship where they eventually lost in a close game that ended 13-10.
College career
McCoy accepted a scholarship to attend the University of Texas where he was a four year starter for the program.
Freshman Season
In his debut for the Longhorns, McCoy recorded 5 tackles and 1 sack. It was a solid start to his collegiate career. The Longhorns finished that season 10-3 behind a defense that was lead by the freshman Blade McCoy.
Sophmore Season
After the senior linebackers left for the draft, it was left to McCoy to be the captain of this defense. They started off rough losing game after game due to the poor offensive unit but McCoy still was dominating opposing offenses in the Big 12. McCoy was not happy with his team's performance, finishing the season 5-8 even with his stellar performance on the defense.
Junior Season
Following the disappointing season, the Longhorns still attracted many top athletes which boosted the team's offense. McCoy now had a supporting offense and he still had a very solid defense. The team went on to finish the season with a 10-3 record. McCoy had won the Dick Butkus Award f or his outstanding performance during the season.
Senior Season
Even though there were rumors about McCoy leaving Texas to enter the draft, he stayed because his parents believed in the importance of education and he wanted to make his parents happy by bringing home a degree. The reigning Dick Butkus winner dominated again in the Big 12, this time leading the team to a 12-1 record. For his efforts, McCoy won another Dick Butkus Award.
College career statistics
| Career statistics | Tackles | Sacks | Interceptions | Other | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Games | Reg | TFL | Total | Sack | Int | IntTD | DefTD | FFum | FRec | PD | Safety |
| Freshman | Texas | 13 | 102 | 10 | 112 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Sophmore | Texas | 13 | 123 | 12 | 135 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Junior | Texas | 13 | 125 | 13.5 | 138.5 | 4.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Senior | Texas | 13 | 124 | 15 | 139 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
Professional career
DSFL career
S22
Blade McCoy entered the DSFL as a free agent. After the draft, he was picked up in waivers by the Dallas Birddogs.
After getting picked up by the Dallas Birddogs, Blade McCoy showed his dominance in the first game of the season versus the Minnesota Grey Ducks. McCoy finished the game with 16 tackles, a Tackle for loss, and 2 forced fumbles. This lead the Dallas Birddogs to go on and win their first game of the season with the score of Birddogs 27, Grey Ducks 15. He was announced as the Defensive Player of the Game for his efforts. While the next couple games in the season resulted in losses, McCoy was still performing well, averaging double-digit tackles for multiple games. The Dallas Birddogs season would truly be a rollercoaster ride, with a couple wins here and there followed by multiple losses. McCoy was leading in tackles throughout the entire season until near the end of the season where the Birddogs needed to make a push in order to secure a playoff spot. McCoy had felt like he let his team down. While his performances were by no means abysmal, it was not his usual self. He had not performed as he wanted in Weeks 11-13 where the Birddogs lost all 3 games and where McCoy did not get a single double-digit tackle game. When asked about it in the post-game press conferences he told the media "I'll get them next week." But inside, he was also disappointed in himself for letting the team down.
Blade McCoy was determined to play well versus their Week 14 opponent, the Kansas City Coyotes. He finished the game with another 16 tackles and one pass deflection. While the Dallas Birddogs had succeeded and won the final game of the season, the were short of a playoff spot and were eliminated. Following the end of the season, Blade McCoy announced for the NSFL Draft.
DSFL career statistics
| Career statistics | Tackles | Sacks | Interceptions | Other | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Games | Reg | TFL | Total | Sack | Int | IntTD | DefTD | FFum | FRec | PD | Safety |
| 2037 (S22) | Birddogs | 14 | 144 | 3 | 147 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
NSFL career
Blade McCoy was selected by the Honolulu Hahalua as #51 overall pick in the 5th round of the S23 Draft.
