Randy Moss

Randy Gene Moss (born February 13, 1977 in Rand, West Virginia) is an American football wide receiver for the Oakland Raiders NFL franchise. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 1998, and played the first stage of his career in Minnesota before a trade in 2005 brought him to Oakland. He is 6 ft 4 in. tall and weighs 213 lb.

Family

His parents are Maxine Moss and Randy Pratt, but Moss does not have much contact with his father. He has a sister named Lutisia and a brother Eric, who had a short stint in the NFL as an offensive lineman with the Minnesota Vikings. Moss has 4 children with his girlfriend, Libby Offut (two daughters-Sydney and Senali, and two sons-Thaddeus and Montigo).

High school

As a high school sophomore at DuPont High School, a now-defunct institution in Belle, West Virginia (near Charleston), he helped lead his school to the state AAA football title (West Virginia's highest class), starred in basketball alongside friend and current Miami Heat point guard Jason Williams, and also won the state title in the 100 meter and 200 meter dashes. He played center field in baseball, which some argued was his best sport. He played wide receiver, safety, punter, place kicker, kick returner, and punt returner in football. He finished his high school football career with 109 catches, 2,435 receiving yards, and 44 receiving touchdowns, along with rushing the ball 75 times for 843 yards and nine touchdowns. He ended his basketball career at DuPont with 1,713 points scored. He was named the state's Athlete of the Year once in football and twice in basketball.

Along with his State Athlete of the Year awards, Moss was named to USA Today's All-USA high school football team in 1994, and was named to USA Today's 20th anniversary All-USA high school football team.

College years

Moss' dream was to play for Notre Dame, but he also considered going to Ohio State, where his half-brother, Eric, had played offensive tackle.

According to Lou Holtz, Moss was the greatest high school athlete he had ever seen because "he was just a bigger Deion Sanders."

After originally signing a letter of intent to play college football with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in 1995, Moss took part in a racially-charged fight at his high school that left one person hospitalized. He pled guilty to battery and received probation along with a 30-day suspended jail sentence. Notre Dame revoked his scholarship, but this setback did not stop another high profile college football program from giving him a chance. Notre Dame officials suggested Florida State due to the esteemed reputation of its coach, Bobby Bowden, for handling troubled players. However, because of his signed letter of intent at Notre Dame, the NCAA considered him a transfer student, which made him ineligible to play for the Seminoles in the 1995 football season. He was redshirted in his freshman season. While at Florida State, Moss ran a 4.25 40 yard dash (only Deion Sanders, with a 4.23 40 yard dash, did better).

In 1996, while serving his 30-day jail sentence in a work release program from 1995, Moss tested positive for smoking marijuana, violating his probation, and was let go by Florida State. He served 60 extra days in jail for the probation violation.

Ultimately, Moss transferred to Marshall University, about an hour's drive from his home. Because Marshall was then a Division I-AA school, NCAA rules allowed him to transfer there without losing any further eligibility. In 1996, he set the NCAA Division I-AA records for most games with a touchdown catch in a season (14), most consecutive games with a touchdown catch (13), most touchdown passes caught by a freshman in a season (29), and most receiving yards gained by a freshman in a season (1709 on 78 catches). Those records still stand. Moss was also the leading kickoff returner in Division I-AA on the season, with 484 total yards and a 34.6 yard average. Marshall went undefeated and won the Division I-AA title in its last season before moving to Division I-A.

In the 1997 season, Marshall's first in Division I-A, Moss and current New York Jets quarterback Chad Pennington were the centerpiece of an explosive offense that led the Thundering Herd to the Mid-American Conference title. Moss caught 26 touchdown passes that season, at the time a Division I-A record, and was a first-team All-American. For the season, he had 96 receptions for 1820 yards, and 26 touchdowns. He won the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the nation's leading wide receiver, and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy (finishing fourth in the balloting, behind Ryan Leaf, Peyton Manning, and Charles Woodson, who won the award).

NFL career

During the 1998 NFL Draft, Moss was projected as a high first-round pick because of his physical skills, but most teams were afraid to take him because of his personal history. The Minnesota Vikings finally selected him late in the first round (as the 21st overall pick).

In 1998, Moss helped the Vikings to become the number one ranked offense in the 1998 season while they set a record for total points by a team. They finished with a 15-1 winning record and were poised to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. However, the Atlanta Falcons stunned the Vikings by winning the NFC Championship Game 30-27 in overtime. At the end of the 1998 regular season, Moss was named a Pro Bowl starter and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year for his rookie record 17 touchdown receptions and the third highest receiving yard (1,313) total of 1998.

On September 24, 2002 in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, Moss was driving in his Lexus and was preparing to do an illegal turn. A city worker saw what Moss was trying to do. She stood in front of his car and was ordering him to stop. However, Moss didn't stop his car until she fell on the ground. Moss was originally charged with Suspicion of Assault with a Deadly Weapon which is a felony and a misdemeanor marijuana possession. Moss pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor traffic violation. He was ordered to pay a $1,200 fine and perform 40 hours of community service.

Moss's fortunes took a better turn on the football field during the 2003 regular season, where he became the first wide receiver in history to play more than 12 games (he played 16) while averaging over 100 yards and one touchdown per contest. He finished with 111 receptions for 1,632 yards and 17 touchdowns. All three of the numbers either tied or became a new personal best.

File:Randymossmoon.jpg

Randy Moss' end-zone celebration stirs up controversyTemplate:Unverifiedimage

The Vikings finished the 2004 season with an 8-8 record, and barely made the playoffs. During the last game of the regular season against the Washington Redskins, Moss was caught walking off the field and into the locker room with 2 seconds left on the clock. Critics criticized Moss for quitting on his team. Moss, however, responded to all the criticism. On January 9th, 2005, the Minnesota Vikings traveled to Green Bay to take on the heavily favored division rival Green Bay Packers, in an NFC wildcard playoff game. Moss performed on the field, catching 2 touchdowns, and finished the game with 4 catches for 70 yards. Although the Vikings won 31-17, the game will mostly be remembered for the infamous moon that Moss performed after catching his second touchdown in the 4th quarter. After scoring, Moss trotted to the middle of the endzone and the goalpost. He then pretended to moon the fans at Lambeau Field. Days later, the NFL fined him $10,000 because it found that his end zone celebration was unsportsmanlike during the playoffs. However, Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy, a respected voice of reason in the NFL, explained (if not completely defended) Moss' action by pointing out that Green Bay Packers fans are infamous for mooning the buses of departing opponents.[1] Moss was later caught on video saying, "What's 10 grand to me? Next time I might shake my (expletive)."

On February 23, 2005, Randy's agent, Dante DiTrapano, reported that Moss was going to be traded to the Oakland Raiders from the Minnesota Vikings for linebacker Napoleon Harris, the 7th overall pick and a 7th round pick. Some have speculated that Quarterback Daunte Culpepper wanted him traded. The trade was officially consummated on March 2, 2005.

Randy Moss made the Pro Bowl 5 times in his 7-year career with the Minnesota Vikings (1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, and 2003).

Randy wore number 18 with the Minnesota Vikings in his rookie season's training camp. Dennis Green, then the head coach of the Vikings, told Moss to switch to number 84. He is currently wearing number 18 with the Oakland Raiders because he says he had always wanted to wear it ever since he came into the league. Also, Jerry Porter had number 84.

In August 2005, Moss created a public relations faux pas for himself and the Raiders when he told HBO's Bryant Gumbel that he has smoked marijuana during his NFL career "once a blue moon." [2]

Injuries derailed Moss in his first season with the Raiders. Over the first four games, he was on pace to break the single season NFL receiving yardage record. In week six however, Randy took a shot in mid-air against the San Diego Chargers that resulted in a pulled groin, bruised pelvis, and several other nagging injuries. These injuries, combined with lackluster play by quarterback Kerry Collins (specifically his lack of mobility and inability to throw on the run), and complex playbook of coach Norv Turner [3], led to career lows in every category other than touchdowns, receptions, yards, games, games started, avg. yards per catch, and longest reception.

In May, 2006, Moss fired agent Dante DiTrapano.[4]

Moss will have a new coach in Art Shell for the 2006 season, and a new quarterback to throw him the ball in Aaron Brooks.

NFL records

• Rookie record 17 TD catches
• He is third only to Anquan Boldin and Bill Groman for most rookie receiving yards with 1,313.
• Moss has caught 98 TD passes in 8 seasons, 8th most in NFL history. He trails Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens, Marvin Harrison, Cris Carter, Tim Brown, Steve Largent, and Don Hutson, all of whom have played more seasons than Moss.
• Has caught 13 or more TDs in a season 4 times. He trails only Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice in such seasons.
• Is the only player next to Jerry Rice to catch 17 or more TDs in a season twice (Moss accomplished the feat in 1998 and 2003).
• Moss has had 3 seasons where he averaged at least one receiving TD a game. 1998 (17 TDs in 16 games), 2003 (17 TDs in 16 games), and 2004 (13 TDs in 13 games). It is an NFL record for players.
• He had back to back 100 catch seasons, first in 2002 and then in 2003. He joined Jerry Rice, Marvin Harrison, Cris Carter, Herman Moore, and Rod Smith as the only receivers to do so.
• At the end of the 2005 season, Moss is averaging approximately 12.25 receiving TDs per season, which is an NFL record.
• Holds the record for most 1,000 yard seasons in his first seasons of the league. In his first 6 seasons in the NFL, he had 1,000+ yards in each seasons, setting an NFL record.
• Moss is the only player in NFL history to average 100 yards receiving and a touchdown a game through a 16 NFL game season.

Career notables

• Is second on the Minnesota Vikings all time receiving TD list with 90. Cris Carter holds the record with 110 receiving scores.
• Holds the record for most touchdowns in Minnesota Vikings playoff history(8)
• Has a 16.0 YPC for his career
• Played on the 1998 Vikings team, which set an NFL record in total points scored
• Had a career-high 12 receptions for 204 yards against the Chicago Bears, at Soldier Field, on November 14, 1999 in a 27-24 overtime win.
• Had a Pro Bowl record nine receptions for 212 yards in the 1999 season's Pro Bowl played on February 6, 2000. NFC won in a shootout, 51-31, marking the highest scoring output in Pro Bowl History.
• Caught three touchdowns in five different games:

at Dallas (Nov. 26, 1998), a 46-36 victory; vs. Chicago (Dec. 6, 1998), a 48-22 victory; at Detroit (Oct. 1, 2000), a 31-24 victory; vs New York (November 19, 2001 ) a 28-16 victory. vs. San Francisco (Sep. 28, 2003), a 35-7 victory.

Trivia

• Moss played in the first 103 games of his career before injuring his ankle in 2004, and as a result did not play in 3 games during that season.
• Moss is a big fan of the Miami Heat, and is often present at the team's big playoff games. His favorite player is Shaquille O'Neal. He also went to the same high school (DuPont) as Heat point guard Jason Williams.
• Moss is a member of the board of directors for Inta Juice, a fruit smoothie chain in which he owns a franchise in Charleston, West Virginia.[5]

NFL year by year statistics

Year	Team	G	GS	Rec	Yards	AVG	TD	Lg	Pro Bowl	All-CONF Pro	All-NFL Pro
1998	Min	16	11	69	1313	19.0	17	61t	yes	yes	yes
1999	Min	16	16	80	1413	17.7	11	67t	yes	yes	yes
2000	Min	16	16	77	1437	18.7	15	78t	yes	yes	yes
2001	Min	16	16	82	1233	15.0	10	73t	no	yes	no
2002	Min	16	16	106	1347	12.7	7	60	yes	yes	no
2003	Min	16	16	111	1632	14.7	17	72	yes	yes	yes
2004	Min	13	13	49	767	15.7	13	82t	no	no	no
2005	Oak	16	15	60	1005	16.8	8	79	no	no	no
Totals		125	119	634	10147	16.0	98	82t	5	6	5

External links

• Mosszone.com - Fan Site Since August 24, 1997
• Randy Moss at ESPN.com
• Randy Moss Open-Content Info, News and Views at BlinkBits
• The official website of Randy Moss