David Greene (American football)
| Career information | |
|---|---|
| College: | Georgia |
| NFL draft: | 2005: 3rd round, 85th pick |
| Career history | |
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David Greene (born June 22, 1982) is currently a free agent in the National Football League. He most recently a quarterback with the Seattle Seahawks club. In addition, he was a standout player at the University of Georgia and had the most NCAA wins, in history, as a quarterback.
High school career
While attending South Gwinnett High School in Snellville, Georgia, David Greene was a two-sport standout as a quarterback in football, and as a right fielder in baseball. In football, he led his team to two consecutive playoff appearances and as a senior, he completed 134 passes out of 227 pass attempts (59.0 completion percentage) for 2,102 yards, and 19 touchdowns, and earned USA Today All-USA Honorable Mention honors, Atlanta Journal-Constitution Super 11 honors, Super Southern 100 honors, Top 75 in Georgia honors, Class AAAA All-State honors, Georgia Sports Writers Association AAAA All-State honors, was named the Gwinnett County co-Offensive Player of the Year, Atlanta Touchdown Club Quarterback of the Year, Gwinnett Touchdown Club All-Star quarterback, and Atlanta Club Quarterback of the Year. After his senior season, he participated in the Georgia-Florida All-Star game.
College career
Greene played quarterback at the University of Georgia in college. He is widley considered by locals to be the best quarterback in school history.[citation needed] He began his career as a redshirt freshman in 2001, being named the starter before the season. His most notable freshman game occurred at Tennessee, known as the "hobnail boot" game. This phrase was coined by Georgia's famous play-by-play announcer Larry Munson. After Tennessee took the lead in the fourth quarter on a successful screen pass, Greene led the Bulldogs back down the field with an inspiring series of quick passes. The winning touchdown pass went to fullback Verron Haynes in a now famous play known as "P-44 Haynes" or the "Hobnail Boot" play. Upon Greene's completion to Haynes in the endzone for the winning touchdown, announcer Munson made this fateful call: "We just stepped on their face with a hobnail boot and broke their nose. We just crushed their face!" Greene finished his college career as the winningest quarterback in NCAA Division I history with 42 wins in four years, eclipsing the record previously held by Peyton Manning.
This play marked the beginning of Greene's record-setting career at Georgia, highlighted by guiding the team to a Sugar Bowl victory in 2002. The same season he led the Bulldogs to the SEC championship. He was named SEC Offensive Rookie of the Year after the 2001 season, and was the 2002 Offensive Player of the Year for The Southeastern Conference. Greene also led Georgia to their first win against Florida since 1997 in 2004.
At Georgia, one of Greene's roommates was friend and future Cincinnati Bengals defensive line David Pollack, who was drafted 17th in 2005. The two played football together when they were younger in Snellville, though they went to different high schools.
NFL career
Greene was drafted in the third round, 85th overall, in the 2005 NFL Draft. He spent 2006 #3 on the Seahawks' depth chart, behind Matt Hasselbeck and Seneca Wallace. Despite having a successful collegiate career, he has not played a single regluar-season down in his professional career. He had been expected to compete with Seneca Wallace to be #2 on the Seahawks' depth chart for the 2007 NFL Season, but disappointed with his play during the preseason. At one point, coach Mike Holmgren expressed his unhappiness with Greene's growth as a quarterback. In September, 2007, David was released from the Seattle Seahawks. [1]
Personal life
Greene married his high school sweetheart, Veronica Clark, on July 8, 2006 at Lake Oconee, Georgia. The two are expecting their first son in November 2007. His groomsman was David Pollack, linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals, former roommate and football teammate at the University of Georgia and childhood friend.