Curtis Lofton

Curtis Lofton

Lofton with the Falcons in 2009
No. 50     Atlanta Falcons
Inside Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth: June 2, 1986 (1986-06-02) (age 25)
Place of birth: Kingfisher, Oklahoma
Height: 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	Weight: 242 lb (110 kg)
Career information
College: Oklahoma
NFL Draft: 2008 / Round: 2 / Pick: 37
Debuted in 2008 for the Atlanta Falcons
Career history
Atlanta Falcons (2008–present)
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
2007 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2010
Tackles	265
Sacks	3.0
Interceptions	1
Forced Fumbles	6
Stats at NFL.com

Curtis Tremayne Lofton (born June 2, 1986 in Kingfisher, Oklahoma) is a linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. He played collegiately for the Oklahoma Sooners. In 2007 he was named Big 12 defensive player of the year and an All-America selection. Lofton opted out of his senior season and declared himself eligible for the 2008 NFL Draft. He was considered the top middle linebacker in the draft.^[1]

High school

Three-year letterman and starter, he also played fullback. He led team in tackles with 168 his senior year and 505 over his career, his team won the 3A state championship in 2003 and advanced to semifinals in 2004 . He rushed for 12 touchdowns as a senior. Was ranked No. 8 inside LB in the nation (ESPN.com), No. 2 in the Midlands (SuperPrep and Scout.com), No. 9 linebacker in the nation (Scout.com), No. 2 player in Oklahoma (Scout.com), No. 4 inside LB in the nation (Rivals.com) and No. 62 player in the nation (Rivals.com).

Lofton was a Parade first team All-American (2004), The Oklahoman All-State (2004), first team Coaches All-State 2004 and also nominated for the March of Dimes Oklahoma Headliners Banquet as one of the top scholar-athletes in the state of Oklahoma competed on the basketball and track teams. He was an honors student and was coached during his final season by Jeff Myers.

In high school and earlier years, Curtis readily identified himself as either "Black 40" or "Big Dino."^[2]

College career

2005

He went to Oklahoma to play college football with the Oklahoma Sooners. He was lettered as a true freshman starting in every game and finishing with 103 tackles and 7 tackle for loss .

2006

Lofton totaled five tackles and one tackle for loss in the 2006 Big 12 Championship Game against Nebraska . He closed out the year with four solo tackles and a 14-yard kickoff return against Boise State in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl he also recovered a fumble and was ranked second on the team in special teams tackles with 10. He finished the season with 14 games played and recorded 37 tackles (20 solo), 4.5 tackles for loss, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble.

2007

Lofton earned first-team All-American honors from The NFL Draft Report, Football Writers Association of America, Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News adding second-team accolades from the Associated Press.^[3] He totaled 157 tackles, which ranked third in the nation, three interceptions, 10 tackles for loss and one sack while compiling eight games of at least 10 tackles, and added first-team All-Big 12 Conference recognition from the league coaches and was selected as the Associated Press Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.^[4] His 11.2 tackles per game ranked seventh nationally and second in the conference.

Was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week by his performance against Utah State after recording 12 tackles and one interception which was returned 45 yards for a touchdown and also credited for 16 tackles and one pass defensed at Colorado . In the 2007 Big 12 Championship Game, Lofton picked off a Chase Daniel pass and returned it 26 yards to the Tiger 7-yard line. The Sooner offense cashed in the takeaway with a touchdown to expand OU lead to 28-14. The play tipped the momentum and Oklahoma cruised in with a 38-17 triumph.

Sean Weatherspoon nicknamed him "the police" because of his number 5-0.^{[citation needed]}

Professional career

Lofton became a starter in his rookie 2008 season and ranked fourth on the team with 94 tackles (67 solo).

Regular season

				Tackles								Interceptions
Season	Team	League		GP	GS	Comb	Total	Ast	Sack	FF		PDef	Int	Yds
2008	Falcons	NFL		16	15	94	67	27	1.0	1		3	--	--
2009	Falcons	NFL		16	16	133	105	28	0.0	2		2	--	--
Regular season totals				32	31	227	172	55	1.0	3		5	--	--

References

1. ^ "2008 NFL Draft MLB Rankings". War Room Report, LLC. 2008-03-04. http://warroomreport.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=46&Itemid=64. Retrieved 2008-03-05. 
2. ^ "Curtis Lofton". http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/_/id/11271/curtis-lofton. 
3. ^ All-American: Curtis Lofton
4. ^ Lofton Grabs POY Honors

[1]

External links

• SoonerSports.com: Curtis Lofton player bio
• Curtis Lofton player news
• 2008 NFL Draft Scouting Report
• 2008 NFL Draft Bio
• Curtis Lofton Official Site