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This article is about Super Bowl Champion American football Linebacker. For his father and the hall of fame boxer, see
Ken Norton.
Kenneth Howard Norton, Jr. (born September 29, 1966 in Lincoln, Illinois) is a former American football linebacker who spent 13 years playing in the NFL and the current Linebacker Coach for the University of Southern California Trojans football team.
Norton Jr., a graduate of Westchester High School in California, went on to obtain his bachelor's degree in sociology at UCLA, where he played for the UCLA Bruins as a linebacker from 1984-1987, earning All-American honors in 1987.[1] At only 6'1" he was short for a linebacker, but played at a formidable 254 pounds. In 1988, he was picked in the second round of the NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys where he played between 1988 and 1993, assisting the Cowboys to victory in Super Bowl XXVII and Super Bowl XXVIII. Norton scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XXVII, helping to seal a Dallas victory. He later joined the San Francisco 49ers from 1994 to 2000, becoming the first player to win three consecutive Super Bowls (Super Bowl XXIX). Norton was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1993 and 1995. Norton was also named to the NFL All-Pro Team following the 1995 season.
Norton finished his 13 NFL seasons with 12 sacks and 5 interceptions, which he returned for 127 yards and 2 touchdowns (both in the same game against the Saint Louis Rams in 1995). He also recovered 13 fumbles and returned them for 36 yards. Along with ex-teammate Deion Sanders, Norton won consecutive Super Bowls on different teams.
After retiring from the NFL, Norton Jr. served as a radio and television commentator and analyst and coached football at Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, California.
Since 2004, he has been the linebackers coach for the University of Southern California Trojans; at USC he coached players such as Pro Bowler Lofa Tatupu and Keith Rivers. In January 2008, declined offers by UCLA's new head coach, Rick Neuheisel, to join the Bruins coaching as an assistant head coach.[1]
[edit] Personal
Norton is also the son of former heavyweight boxer Ken Norton. He and his wife, Angela, have 3 children: Brittney, Sabrina, and Ken III.
[edit] Noteworthy Plays
- On September 5, 1994, during a Monday Night Football broadcast when Norton's 49ers were playing the Los Angeles Raiders, Norton tackled Raiders running back Napoleon McCallum at the line of scrimmage. McCallum's cleats became stuck in the turf, and Norton's force of weight resulted in McCallum's knee apparently bending backwards. McCallum suffered from a dislocated knee and nearly died due to a ruptured artery; he never played again.
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