Sapp to Be Inducted into Bucs Ring of Honor
TAMPA – Miami Hurricanes legend and 2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Warren Sapp will be enshrined into the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Ring of Honor and have his No. 99 retired at Raymond James Stadium. The organization made the announcement Thursday afternoon.
Sapp will become the fifth Buccaneer to be inducted into the Ring of Honor, joining Lee Roy Selmon, John McKay, Jimmie Giles and Paul Gruber. Selmon is the only other Buccaneer to have their jersey retired. Sapp will be formally inducted at halftime of the team’s game vs. Miami on Nov. 11, 2013.
Sapp spent 13 seasons in the NFL (198 games), playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1995-2003) and the Oakland Raiders (2004-07). A first-round pick (12th overall) by Tampa Bay in the 1995 NFL Draft, Sapp started for the Bucs en route to earning All-Rookie Team honors in 1995. He amassed 96.5 career sacks despite playing on interior of defensive line.
He was named 1999 NFL Defensive Player of the Year after helping lead Tampa Bay to its first division title in 18 years. That season, Sapp registered 12.5 sacks, 54 tackles, three forced fumbles and recovered two fumbles. A year later, he recorded a career-high 16.5 sacks in 2000. He led the Buccaneers to a 48-21 win over Oakland in Super Bowl XXXVII. From 1999-2002, he was a first-team All-Pro four straight seasons and was All-NFC five times.
A second-team All-NFL selection in 1997 and 1998, he was selected to seven Pro Bowls and was named to the NFL’s All-Decade Teams of the 1990s and 2000s. Sapp finished his professional career with 569 tackles, 96.5 sacks, eight forced fumbles and four interceptions.
Sapp’s prolific career with the University of Miami led to his selection by Tampa Bay in the 1995 NFL Draft. A two-time All-BIG EAST selection, Sapp was awarded the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (best defensive player), Rotary Lombardi Award (best lineman or linebacker) and the Bill Willis Award (best defensive lineman) in 1994. He earned BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year honors the same year, finishing the season with 84 tackles, 10.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and three fumble recovers.
Sapp becomes the sixth Miami Hurricane enshrined in Canton, joining Ted Hendricks (Class of 1990), Michael Irvin (2007), Jim Kelly (2002), Cortez Kennedy (2012) and Jim Otto (1980).
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