Garry Cobb

Garry Wilbert Cobb (born March 16, 1957 in Carthage, North Carolina) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League and current radio personality on WTEL in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was the Republican nominee for Congress in the House election for New Jersey's 1st congressional district.

Early years

Cobb often tells amusing stories on the radio about how it was while his father and mother raised him and the other kids and growing up together with his siblings in North Carolina and Connecticut.

A 1975 graduate of Stamford High School in Stamford, Connecticut, he was a standout for the Black Knights and a two-sport All-American in baseball and football. He also lettered in basketball.

College career

Cobb practiced football and baseball (two years) at the University of Southern California. He played on two Rose Bowl Championship teams and one National Championship team.

Although he played as an outside linebacker in his first three years, he was moved to defensive end as a senior and earned Honorable-Mention All-Pac-10 in 1978. He graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology. After graduation, Cobb was offered contracts by the California Angels and Chicago Cubs baseball teams, but opted to play in the National Football League instead.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys (first stint)

Cobb was selected in the ninth round (247th overall) of the 1979 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. He was waived on August 21.^[1]

Detroit Lions

He signed as a free agent with the Detroit Lions on October 24, 1979.^[2] He played mainly on the special teams units during his first two years, until becoming a full-time starter at strongside linebacker in 1981, while recording 127 tackles (second on the team), 3 interceptions , 2.5 sacks and 2 fumble recoveries.

In 1982, he missed three games with a knee injury and finished with 26 tackles, 2 interceptions and four passes defensed. The next year he registered 109 tackles (fourth on the team), 4 interceptions (tied for second on the team), 2 fumble recoveries, 3 forced fumbles and one sack.

Cobb was a three-time defensive captain and also helped the Lions reach the playoffs in 1982 and 1983.

After holding out during the 1985 offseason, the Lions started discussing trading him to the Miami Dolphins for the rights to Anthony Carter.^[3] After the deal fell through,^[4] he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for the Eagles then all-time leading rusher Wilbert Montgomery, who was also in the middle of a contract dispute.^[5]

Philadelphia Eagles

While with the Philadelphia Eagles, he started 39 of 44 games mostly at weakside linebacker. He was a teammate of quarterback Randall Cunningham and played in one of coach Buddy Ryan's most dominant defensive units which included Jerome Brown, Clyde Simmons, Seth Joyner and Hall of Famer Reggie White.

In 1986, he was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week. While playing against the Atlanta Falcons in week five, he registered 9 tackles, 4 sacks (team record), a pass defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in a shutout win (16-0).^[6] He held the franchise single game sack record, until Clyde Simmons surpassed it with a 4.5 sack effort in 1991. He was released on August 22, 1988.^[7]

Dallas Cowboys (second stint)

On August 25, 1988, he signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent, because they were experiencing several injuries at the linebacker position to players that included Jeff Rohrer, Mike Hegman, Ken Norton Jr., Jesse Penn and Jeff Hurd.^[8] That season he started 14 games at weakside linebacker and tied with Danny Noonan for the team lead with 7.5 sacks. After experiencing problems with his left knee and missing most of the season, he was cut on December 18, 1989.^[9]

Radio and TV career

After his retirement from football, Cobb transitioned to being a television and radio personality in the Philadelphia area. He has earned the nickname "G Cobb".^[10] His trademark radio show expression has become "G Cobb in the House!" In 1997 he became a sports reporter with CBS 3’s Eyewitness News Team and remained for several years. He continues to host his own weekend radio program on 610 WTEL. In July 2007, Cobb began writing Eagles columns for The Bulletin, a daily newspaper in Philadelphia.

Website publishing

Cobb is now the principal operator of a Philadelphia Eagles news and rumors website known as GCobb.com. The popular site now claims that 100,000 fans visit and read from the website monthly. In a notable scoop, it was two hours prior to the official start of the 2008 NFL free agency period when Cobb's site reported accurately that cornerback Asante Samuel had already reached a deal with the Eagles.^[11]

Run for Congress

Cobb is running for the Republican nomination for New Jersey's 1st congressional district.^[12] Cobb was initially recruited to potentially succeed another Republican and former Eagle, Jon Runyan.^[13] Cobb won the Republican nomination and will face Democrat Donald Norcross in November.^[10]

Personal life

Cobb resides in Cherry Hill, New Jersey with his wife Gwendolyn whom he met while in college. They have three adult children together - two daughters, and a son, Garry Cobb II, who played cornerback at Stanford University (1998–2002).^[14] He is known for his interest in urban youth and was honored in 2002 by then President George W. Bush for his work as a mentor to troubled youngsters. He is a member of the Board of the Caring People Alliance of Philadelphia, which oversees a number of city community center and the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Philadelphia.

He is the author of a book entitled Don't Be Clueless: 7 Keys to Life in the Real World, which is targeted to the challenges of urban youth.

References

External links

• Official Website
• Garry's Message: Respect Yourself The Cobbs: A Success Story X 7