| File:Ahmad Rashad.jpg Ahmad Rashād | |
| No. 28, 27 | |
| Wide receiver | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: November 19, 1949 | |
| Place of birth: Portland, Oregon, U.S. | |
| Career information | |
| College: Oregon | |
| NFL Draft: 1972 / Round: 1 / Pick: 4 | |
| Debuted in 1972 for the St. Louis Cardinals for the [[{{{debutteam}}}]] | |
| Last played in 1982 for the Minnesota Vikings for the [[{{{finalteam}}}]] | |
| Career history | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Receptions | 495 |
| Receiving yards | 6,831 |
| Touchdowns | 44 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| College Football Hall of Fame | |
| Ahmad Rashād | |
| Born | Robert Earl Moore Jr. November 19, 1949 Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Years active | 1984-present |
| Spouse(s) | Deidre Waters (m. 1969 – 1971) Matilda Johnson (m. 1976 – 1979) Phylicia Rashād (m. 1985 – 2001) Sale Johnson (m. 2007 – 2013) |
Ahmad Rashād (born Robert Earl Moore on November 19, 1949) is an American sportscaster (mostly with NBC Sports) and former professional football player. An All-American running back and wide receiver from Oregon known as Bobby Moore, Rashad was the fourth overall pick in the 1972 NFL Draft, drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals. He was the first skill-position player taken, following three linemen.
Rashād was converted back to wide receiver while with the Cardinals, where he played for two seasons. He then played for the Buffalo Bills (1974), and most notably, the Minnesota Vikings (1976–1982), where he earned four Pro Bowl selections from 1978 to 1981.
Early life[]
Born Robert Earl Moore in Portland, Oregon, he graduated from Mount Tahoma High School in Tacoma, Washington, in 1967 and accepted a football scholarship to the University of Oregon. He is a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.
Football career[]
Rashād graduated from the University of Oregon, where he played wide receiver as a sophomore in 1969; then was moved to running back where he was an All-American in 1971—playing with quarterback Dan Fouts. Rashād was named to the College Football Hall of Fame on May 9, 2007.[1]
During his pro football career, Rashād caught 495 passes for 6,831 yards and 44 touchdowns, while also rushing for 52 yards. The standout catch of his career came in a December 1980 game against the Cleveland Browns. Vikings quarterback Tommy Kramer threw a Hail Mary pass to Rashād that resulted in a come-from-behind 28-23 victory and a Central Division title for the Vikings. This became known as the Miracle Catch. Rashād also has the distinction of the longest play from scrimmage that didn't score a touchdown: 98 yards in a 1972 game against the Rams.
Rashād replaced the same receiver, John Gilliam, in both St. Louis and Minnesota.
Conversion to Islam[]
In 1972, Moore converted to Islam, and changed his name to Ahmad Rashād, which means "Admirable One Led To Truth" in Arabic. His last name comes from his mentor in St. Louis, Rashad Khalifa.[2]
Broadcasting and television career[]
After his football career, he covered NFL and NBA televised contests as a studio anchor and game reporter for NBC and ABC, as well as hosting NBA Inside Stuff. He also has hosted the video-clip show Real TV in 2000, the reality show Celebrity Mole, the game show Caesars Challenge along with co-host Dan Doherty, and NBA Access with Ahmad Rashad on the ABC network. He starred in an episode of Monsters. Rashād has also guest starred on several TV shows, mainly ones that starred his then wife Phylicia. He used to interview long-time friend Michael Jordan frequently while he was at NBC. Rashad worked on the NFL on NBC with O.J. Simpson. In early 2013, he became a member of panel on the daily talk-show Morning Drive on the Golf Channel. Hosted Ripleys believe it or not.
Personal life[]
Rashād has been married and divorced four times. In 1969, he married his first wife Deidre Waters. They had a daughter, Keva, born in 1970. In addition he has a son, Sean, born out of wedlock in 1970. In 1976, he married his second wife, Matilda Johnson. They had two children, daughter Maiyisha (born in 1976) and son Ahmad Jr. (born in 1978). They divorced in 1979.
In 1985, Rashād married Cosby Show actress Phylicia Ayers-Allen, to whom he proposed on national television during the pregame show of NBC's broadcast of the Thanksgiving Day football game between the Detroit Lions and the New York Jets.[3] It was the third marriage for both. Unlike many actresses, she adopted her husband's surname (shortly after the wedding), and used it as her professional name ("Phylicia Rashād") ever since. Out of this marriage, he gained a stepson Billy Bowles (born 1973). After a year of marriage, Ahmad and Phylicia had a daughter, Condola Phylea Rashād (named after his mother). After nearly sixteen years of marriage, Ahmad and Phylicia divorced in 2001.
In 2007, Rashād wed his fourth wife, Sale Johnson (ex-wife of Johnson & Johnson billionaire heir, and New York Jets owner, Woody Johnson). He gained three step-daughters from this marriage. They had a daughter, then divorced in 2013.[4]
- Casey Johnson (1979–2010)
- Jamie Johnson (b. 1982)[5]
- Daisy Johnson (b. 1987)
References[]
- ↑ College Football Hall of Fame[dead link]
- ↑ Paul Brownfield, Briefly a Rising Star, Forever a Mourning Son, The New York Times, Accessed February 17, 2013
- ↑ Moses, Gavin (December 16, 1985). "Sportscaster Ahmad Rashad Scores with a Televised Proposal to Cosby's Phylicia Ayers-Allen". People. http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20092471,00.html. Retrieved November 18, 2008.
- ↑ "Ahmad Rashad Divorcing Sale Johnson". People. February 11, 2013. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20672818,00.html?icid=maing-grid7. Retrieved 2013-03-04.
- ↑ Vanity Fair, September 2006
External links[]
- Ahmad Rashād at the Internet Movie Database
- Ahmad Rashad, Executive Producer, NBA Inside Stuff
- College Football Hall of Fame - 2007 - Ahmad Rashad - (Bobby Moore)
- 1972 NFL Draft - from the Pro Football Hall of Fame
- TV acres.com - 1985 marriage
- NFL Stats - Career NFL Statistics
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