No. 76, 73, 66 | |
Born: | Warner Robins, Georgia, U.S. | April 12, 1968
---|---|
Career information | |
CFL status | American |
Position(s) | OT |
Height | 6 ft 7 in (201 cm) |
College | Brigham Young |
High school | Central Union |
NFL draft | 1991 / Round: 6 / Pick: 143 |
Drafted by | Los Angeles Rams |
Career history | |
As player | |
1991 | Los Angeles Rams |
1992 | Atlanta Falcons |
1994–1995 | Baltimore Stallions |
1996–2004 | Montreal Alouettes |
Career highlights and awards | |
CFL All-Star | 1995, 1997 |
CFL East All-Star | 1996, 1997, 2003 |
Neal Fort (born April 12, 1968) is a former professional American football player. In college, he played for Brigham Young University. He was an offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams and the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Baltimore Stallions and Montreal Alouettes for most of his career. [1] He is currently living in The Woodlands, Texas.
Fort attended Central Union High School in El Centro, California. Was a 2-year Letterman in football as an offensive Tackle and defensive End. He played for the late Cal Jones and gives much of his credit to Coach Jones for his belief in the type of player and person he became. Fort was a 1984 California Interscholastic Federation first team selection as an offensive lineman and 1985 first team selection as an offensive lineman and defensive line.
Fort played left tackle for Brigham Young University under College Football Hall of Fame coach LaVell Edwards. He was instrumental in the success of prolific BYU offense in the late 80's and early 1990s. Fort for was one of the key protectors for College Football Hall of Fame Ty Detmer and his record-breaking career. Detmer went on to win the Heisman Trophy for the 1990 football season.
Fort was drafted in the sixth round by the NFL Los Angeles Rams in 1991. [2] He made the teams developmental roster for the entire 1991 season. 1992 off-season He was assigned to the Orlando Thunder of NFL Europa in 1991, but did not play. Fort joined the Baltimore Colts in there inaugural season in 1994. In that season with the Baltimore Colts/Stallions, the team went on to play in the 1994 82nd Grey Cup in Vancouver, British Columbia. They lost to a home town BC Lions team 26-23. He went on to win his first Grey Cup in 1995, the 83rd Grey Cup. The Baltimore Stallions went on to defeat the Calgary Stampeders 37-20, led by Doug Flutie. He would win another Grey Cup in 2002 as a member of the Montreal Alouettes (by this time, the Stallions had moved to Montreal to become the current incarnation of the Alouettes). Fort is currently eligible for the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.
Fort is married to Darla Livingston Fort and has three children: Annie, Jackson and Miles.
The Montreal Alouettes are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and last won the Grey Cup championship in 2010. Their home field is Percival Molson Memorial Stadium for the regular season and as of 2014 also home of their playoff games.
The Baltimore Stallions were a Canadian Football League team based in Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States, which played the 1994 and 1995 seasons. They were the most successful American team in the CFL's generally ill-fated southern expansion effort into the United States, and by at least one account, the most winning expansion team in North American professional sports history at the time. They had winning records in each season, and in both years advanced to the championship game. In 1995, they became the only American franchise to win the Grey Cup.
Uzooma Okeke is a former Canadian Football League tackle for the Montreal Alouettes. He won a Grey Cup with Montreal in 2002. Okeke is currently the Football Operations Assistant/Scout for the Montreal Alouettes.
Michael A. Pringle is an American former professional football player. A running back, he had a successful career in the Canadian Football League (CFL), during which he set or tied almost every significant league records for the position. He played college football for the California State University, Fullerton Titans and was twice signed by National Football League (NFL) teams, though he saw very limited playing time.
The 1996 CFL season is considered to be the 43rd season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 39th Canadian Football League season.
Ben Cahoon is a former professional Canadian football slotback who spent his entire career with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. He won the award for the Most Outstanding Canadian in the CFL two years in a row in 2002 and 2003.
Tracy Ham is an American former professional football quarterback in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played for the Edmonton Eskimos, Toronto Argonauts, Baltimore Stallions, and Montreal Alouettes. He was known for his abilities as a dual-threat quarterback. In his college football career with Georgia Southern he became the first quarterback to rush for 3,000 yards and pass for 5,000 yards in a career. Ham is an inductee of both the College Football Hall of Fame and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.
James Thomas Popp is an American sports executive and coach currently working for the United States Football League (USFL) as the Director of Player Administration. He was previously a running back coach and assistant head coach for the Alabama State Hornets. He worked extensively in the Canadian Football League, and was most recently the general manager of the Toronto Argonauts. Popp spent over two decades as General Manager of the Montreal Alouettes including several stints as Head Coach. Popp has also had roles with the Baltimore Stallions, and the Saskatchewan Roughriders. As a CFL general manager, three separate franchises under Popp have won five Grey Cup championship wins out of 11 appearances.
Joshua Nathan Bourke is a former Canadian football offensive lineman. He spent the majority of his professional career with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He also spent time with the Toronto Argonauts (CFL) and the Green Bay Packers (NFL).
Elfrid Payton Sr. is an American former all-star gridiron football player in the Canadian Football League. Payton graduated from Grambling State University.
Edward Gary George is a former offensive lineman and star player in the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Jerry Wayne Crafts is a former American football offensive lineman in the National Football League for the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles. He also played in the World League of American Football, XFL, Canadian Football League and Arena Football League. He is the only person to have been involved with teams that played in the championship games of each of the aforementioned Leagues. He played college football at the University of Oklahoma for Barry Switzer and the University of Louisville.
Gerald Alan Alphin is a former professional gridiron football wide receiver and slotback who played eight seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL) from 1986 to 1996, mainly for the Ottawa Rough Riders and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Alphin played college football at Kansas State University. Alphin recorded four 1,000-yard receiving seasons, including a period of three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons with the Rough Riders during which he was considered one of the best receivers playing in the CFL. He was named an East all-star in 1988.
Chris Van Zeyl is a professional Canadian football offensive tackle for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He is a two-time Grey Cup champion with the Toronto Argonauts and was named a CFL All-Star three times and CFL East Division All-Star six times. He played CIS Football for the McMaster Marauders as a defensive lineman. Van Zeyl has also been a member of the Montreal Alouettes.
The 1995 Baltimore Stallions season was the second and final season in the history of the Baltimore CFL franchise. The team became the first American-based football team to win the Grey Cup. Despite the Stallions success, attendance dropped. The club only sold 9,000 season tickets. The 1994 and 1995 Stallions radio flagship station was WJFK, 1300AM in Baltimore. Owned by Infinity Broadcasting, Bruce Cunningham of Fox45 TV served as play-by-play announcer, with former NFL Baltimore Colts stars Joe Washington, Bruce Laird, and Tom Matte providing analysis, and Mark Thoner of WLIF-FM as Producer.
The 1996 Montreal Alouettes finished in second place in the East Division with a 12–6 record in the franchise's first full season in the Canadian Football League since 1986. Unlike the lean years from 1981–86, the revived Alouettes were going to be competitive, especially since most of them had won the Grey Cup in the previous season as the Baltimore Stallions. They had some nice talented offensive players from that team, such as Tracy Ham, Mike Pringle, kick returner Chris Wright, slotback Chris Armstrong, and two great defensive players in Irvin Smith, and Elfrid Payton. After a slow start they rebounded to finish strong and after defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, they traveled to Toronto, where they were defeated in the East Final by the eventual Grey Cup champions, the Toronto Argonauts.
Hénoc Muamba is a Congolese-Canadian football player for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was selected first overall by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the 2011 CFL Draft, becoming the first player from St. Francis Xavier University to be chosen first overall in the draft. In 2022, he won the Grey Cup with the Argonauts and was named the game's most valuable player (MVP) and Grey Cup Most Valuable Canadian; the 2nd player in history to ever earn both awards.
Philip Anthony Blake is a professional Canadian football offensive lineman for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Baylor University. He has also been a member of the Denver Broncos, Arizona Cardinals, Montreal Alouettes, and Toronto Argonauts.
David Foucault is a Canadian football offensive lineman for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) football for the Montreal Carabins. He has also played for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL) and the BC Lions and Montreal Alouettes of the CFL.
Jake Olson is an American Canadian football offensive lineman who is currently a free agent. He previously attended USC, where he played college football for the USC Trojans.