Tracking the Pro Career of ANTWAIN SPANN

[NewsCopy]

PRO DAY RESULTS: (As of April 4th):

University of Louisiana senior defensive back/return man ANTWAIN SPANN (#6) has drawn a lot of "Under-the-Radar" attention...

has been timed in the mid-to-high 4.4 range...

very athletic...

played mostly free safety as a senior, but being evaluated mostly as a cornerback...

aggressive...

pretty good tackler for his size...

also shows some explosiveness when given the chance to return kickoffs...

recorded 68 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, four interceptions and nine pass breakups, as a senior...

led the team with four interceptions, also returned one for a touchdown

averaged 22.2 yards on returns of those interceptions...

averaged 27.2 yards per kickoff return in limited chances (four)...

had six interceptions and 15 pass breakups over the past two years...

scored a pair of touchdowns on turnovers...

weighs (5112), 188 pounds...

transferred from Mississippi Gulf Coast CC...

California native

The source of the story

[serensdipity]

Antwain Spann was picked up as a F/A by the New York Giants

[NewsCopy]

The team also signed ... defensive back Antwain Spann, both of whom attended the recent rookie mini-camp on a tryout basis, and waived rookie wide receiver Charles Frederick.

Spann, 6-1 and 185 pounds, played his final two seasons at Louisiana-Lafayette after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. Last season, Spann started all 11 games at cornerback and had 68 tackles (36 solo), a team-high four interceptions, including one he returned 31 yards for a touchdown, 1.5 tackles for losses and nine pass breakups. He also returned four kickoffs for 109 yards, a 27.2-yard average. He was born Feb. 22, 1983.

The source of the story

[NewsCopy]

Louisiana's Ragin' Cajun football program is starting to get a reputation as a breeding ground for professional defensive backs.

Antwain Spann is the latest to earn that tag after signing a free agent contract with the NFL's New York Giants.

Spann impressed Giants coaches enough at a May 6-8 minicamp for them to offer him a deal.

"I felt I had to come up here and compete," Spann said. "I need to learn all the plays and do what they tell me to do.

"I was up here a couple of weeks ago, then went back home for a week. I came back up here on Sunday."

The transfer from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College blossomed in his second year under coach Rickey Bustle, finishing third on the 2004 Cajuns with 68 tackles (36 solo), four interceptions for 89 yards and a touchdown, nine passes broken up and four kickoff returns for 109 yards.

Spann, who showed his versatility by playing both cornerback and safety for UL, had 30 tackles and six pass breakups as a junior in 2003.

"I just played safety last year to help the team out," said Spann, who has been penciled in at right cornerback for New York. "I feel more natural at cornerback.

"We play a lot of man (man-to-man coverage), a lot of zone ... we mix it up. It depends on who gets the job done. It's all on the secondary. If they have confidence in you, we'll play more man."

Spann joins an increasingly long list of defensive backs who have stepped up to the NFL.

The rest of the story

Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[cjr3888]

I had a class with Antwain. He's a really good guy. I hope he has a long career.

[JMV JustMyView]

I hope Antwain makes the team, that will make at least 5 db's in the last few years.

[NewsCopy]

antwain spann

The New England Patriots made a couple of roster moves on Monday, signing two players to the practice squad. CB Antwain Spann or Louisana-Lafayette and OT Brennan Curtin from Notre Dame fill the two vacancies available. The practice squad vacancies were created when the Patriots made changes to the active roster, putting players on IR and moving others up from the practice squad to fill their places. Spann was undrafted and signed with the New York Giants as a rookie free agent May 17, 2005. At 6'-0" Louisiana-Lafayette defensive back is taller than most of the other Patriots defensive backs. He played for Louisiana-Lafayette from 2003-04 and spent time with the New York Giants during their 2005 training camp. The Giants released him August 30, 2005 and he has not been with another team. The source of the story

[NewsCopy]

Antwain Spann of the New England Patriots has been assigned to NFL Europe The source of the blurb

[Cajun1997]

Despite my dislike for New England, I am happy for Spann and certainly hope this works out for him.

[studentfan]

New England has a habit of turning noname players into superstars.

[NewsCopy]

The Patriots' secondary, such a mess a year ago, is far from complete. While another veteran may be added to the mix in the coming weeks, a host of young players are hoping to find a spot on the roster. Antwain Spann is one such underdog. The second-year safety is showing his wares in NFL Europe, where he has three interceptions in eight games for the Rhein Fire. Spann, an undrafted free agent a year ago, joined the Patriots' practice squad at the end of the regular season after being cut by the Giants late in training camp. ''I feel like I was real close to making the squad, I just needed to focus on a couple of areas," Spann said by telephone after a recent practice. ''I've been working on eye location, and it's getting better and better." After playing cornerback at Louisiana-Lafayette, Spann has moved to free safety, where he sees the field from a different perspective. With good speed and size (6 feet, 185 pounds), Spann has been solid in Europe and hopes to be a surprise in training camp. ''It's like every guy that wants to play in this league," Spann said. ''I'll do whatever I can to show I belong and can help the team win games. ''The competition will be intense. I know I'll have to bring it, because everybody else will. I plan to be ready." With two games remaining, the Fire (5-3) are mathematically alive for the World Bowl (May 27). Spann and the other seven Patriots playing in Europe should be back for the team's full-squad minicamp June 13-14. The source of the story

[NewsCopy]

SAN DIEGO — For Antwain Spann, yesterday's game between the New England Patriots and the San Diego Chargers meant more than a chance for a berth in the AFC championship game. It meant an opportunity for the San Diego native to impress friends and family — an opportunity that came in the third quarter. San Diego held a 14-7 lead when the Patriots' Todd Sauerbrun punted to the Chargers' Eric Parker with 5:32 left. But Parker fumbled the ball under pressure from Spann, and the Patriots' David Thomas recovered it 11 seconds later at San Diego's 31-yard line. "I was just running down the field, and I had seen that he dropped it," Spann said of Parker. "I went in head first, I just threw my head at him." After Thomas' recovery, Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 34-yard field goal that narrowed the Patriots' deficit to 14-13 with 2:11 left in the third quarter. Gostkowski's field goal was one of three he made during the Patriots' 24-21 victory. "That was huge, that was really huge, for the team and for me," Spann said of Thomas' fumble recovery. "This is my first time being back since 2000." The play reminded Spann of a game-winning touchdown he scored for El Camino High School against Carlsbad High in 1999 for the championship of the California Interscholastic Federation's top division in the San Diego Section. "It killed Carlsbad back in the day," the 23-year-old Spann said. Spann joined the Patriots' special-teams corps despite being released twice within 16 days in November. The Patriots resigned him from the practice squad on Dec. 9. Though he grew up in suburban San Diego, his favorite team was the Buffalo Bills. The rest of the story Joseph D'Hippolito Standard-Times