Grant Wistrom
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Joplin, Missouri, U.S.
| No. 98, 96 | |||||||||||||||
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| Position | Defensive end | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | July 3, 1976 Joplin, Missouri, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 272 lb (123 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Webb City (Webb City, Missouri) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Nebraska | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1998: 1st round, 6th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Grant Alden Wistrom (born July 3, 1976) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons. Wistrom played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and was a two-time All-American. He was selected in the first round of the 1998 NFL draft, and played in the NFL for the St. Louis Rams and Seattle Seahawks.
Wistrom was born in Joplin, Missouri to Ron and Kathy Wistrom.[1] For a short period of time, he went to Forest City Elementary School and Teague Middle School in Altamonte Springs, Florida.[2][3] He began his football career in Webb City, Missouri, where he played for the Webb City High School football team, the Cardinals, as a defensive end and tight end. As a defensive end, he compiled 122 tackles, eight sacks, six fumble recoveries, nine forced fumbles and a blocked punt; as a tight end, he caught 30 passes for 527 yards and five touchdowns and rushed 11 times for 115 yards and three touchdowns. Wistrom led his team to two Class 4A state championships. He was chosen as a first-team high school All-America selection by Super Prep, Blue Chip and USA Today, and earned Top 100 Honors from Scholastic Coach magazine. Wistrom also played basketball and competed in track and field.
College career
Wistrom attended the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where he helped anchor the defensive line for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team from 1994 to 1997. During his four-year college career, the Huskers compiled a 49–2 record, winning three national championships in that span (1994, 1995, and 1997). A two-time consensus first-team All-American, Wistrom became Nebraska's fourth Lombardi Award winner as the nation's top lineman following the 1997 season.
As a senior captain, the 6–5, 255-pound Wistrom finished with 51 tackles, including 8.5 sacks and 17 tackles for loss, leading the Blackshirts in both categories on his way to earning Big 12 Defensive Player-of-the-Year honors. A finalist for the Bronko Nagurski Defensive Player-of-the-Year award, Wistrom helped the Huskers rank fifth nationally in total defense and second nationally against the run. He led Nebraska to a perfect 13–0 season record. He was also a consensus All-American.
In 1996, Wistrom was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, helping NU to top-10 rankings in all four major defensive categories. A first-team All-American and finalist for the Nagurski Award. Wistrom finished third on the team in tackles with 75. while leading the Huskers in both sacks (9.5-48 yards lost) and tackles for loss (20–74).
A third-team All-American as a sophomore. Wistrom recorded 44 stops, including a team-leading 15 tackles for loss, as Nebraska went 12-0 and repeated as national champions. He also had four sacks, earning first-team All-Big Eight honors as NU ranked second nationally against the rush, fourth in points allowed and 13th in total defense. During his freshman campaign, Wistrom made his presence known, earning Big Eight Newcomer-of-the-Year honors in helping the Huskers to their first national title since 1971. He played in all 13 games, recording 36 stops and 4.5 sacks, as one of only two true Husker freshmen to see playing time.
Wistrom holds the school record for tackles for loss with 58.5 for 260 yards and ranks second with 26.5 sacks, had his No. 98 jersey retired during the 1998 season. His career totals include 206 total tackles, 26.5 sacks for 178 yards, one interception, four forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Wistrom was a two-time first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American and became the 13th Husker to win the NCAA's highest honor, the NCAA Top Eight Award, in 1997. He also earned the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame Postgraduate Scholarship following his senior campaign and was the Big 12 Male Athlete of the Year for the 1997–98 season. He graduated with a 3.43 GPA.[1] Honors include:
- College Football Hall of Fame member (2009)
- Voted as DE on the All-Time Cornhusker team
- Recipient of the Lombardi Award, given to nation's top collegiate lineman (1997)
- Recipient of the Bill Willis Trophy, given to nations top defensive lineman (1996)
- Consensus All-America 1996, 1997
- All-Big 12 Conference First-team (1996, 1997)
- Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year (1996, 1997)
- Consensus Academic All-America (1996, 1997)
- Academic All-Big 12 honors (1996, 1997)
- Earned third-team All-America honors by Associated Press and first-team All-Big Eight Conference honors sophomore season (1995)
- Selected as Newcomer of the Year by Big Eight conference freshman season (1994)
Collegiate statistics
| Season | Team | Class | GP | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmb | Solo | Ast | TfL | Sck | Int | Yds | Lng | TD | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||||
| 1994 | Nebraska | Fr | 13 | 39 | 16 | 23 | 6.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1995 | Nebraska | So | 12 | 49 | 24 | 25 | 16 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | Nebraska | Jr | 13 | 80 | 33 | 47 | 21 | 9.5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 31 | 1 |
| 1997 | Nebraska | Sr | 13 | 53 | 30 | 23 | 18 | 8.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 51 | 221 | 103 | 118 | 61.5 | 27.5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
Notes - Statistics include bowl game performances.