Sean Weatherspoon

Weatherspoon attended Jasper High School in Jasper, Texas, where he was a versatile athlete who was an accomplished three-sport star in Texas, including as a linebacker in football. He was the 2006 recipient of the defensive Willie Ray Smith Award. He was named the Texas District 22-3A player of the year as a senior; after making 98 tackles in 2005 for the Jasper Bulldogs. He had 8 tackles for loss in 2005, and added 4 quarterback sacks along with 2 interceptions from his linebacker position as well. His high school football career also included a second-team All-State pick. He also played receiver on offense, and had 27 catches for 428 yards and 7 touchdowns. He was a first-team All-District selection as a junior in 2004 at linebacker, after registering 105 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 2 QB sacks and 3 interceptions. He was named the 22-3A defensive newcomer of the year as a sophomore in 2003; when he amassed 101 stops, 3 tackles for loss, 1 QB sack and 2 interceptions. He was an All-District performer as a guard in basketball.

In track & field, Weatherspoon was an All-State high jumper. At the 2005 District 22-3A Championships, he won the high jump event with a leap of 1.89 meters (6-2), and ran the fourth leg on the Bulldogs 4 × 200 relay, helping them earn a first-place finish with a school-record time of 1:30.62 minutes.[1] He posted personal-best leaps of 1.97 meters (6 ft 5 in) in the high jump and 6.40 meters (20-11) in the long jump. He also competed as a sprinter, running the 200-meter dash in 22.9 seconds,[2] and was also timed at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

Considered only a two-star recruit by Rivals.com, Weatherspoon was not ranked among the best linebacker prospects in the nation.[3] He chose Missouri over Iowa State, Houston, Tulane, and TCU, among others.

One of only four true freshmen to play for the Tigers in 2006, Weatherspoon saw action in all 13 games, primarily on various special teams units, and was named Mizzou's special teams player of the year, as he led the team with 9 tackles on kickoff coverage. Weatherspoon was listed as the backup on the depth chart at middle linebacker to senior co-captain Dedrick Harrington, and had 17 tackles in all for the season.

As a sophomore, Weatherspoon became a starter at weakside linebacker and blossomed into a leader on the field, under the tutoring of coach Dave Steckel.[4] He led the team with 130 tackles, and also broke up 8 passes on the year (second most on the team). Weatherspoon received All-Big 12 First-team honors by the Associated Press, San Antonio Express-News, and Rivals.com in 2007.

In 2008, Weatherspoon finished the season with 155 tackles, which were the 2nd-most in Missouri single-season history, trailing only to Travis McDonald (164 in 1994). He also had 18.5 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions (2 of which he returned for touchdowns), and also broke up 7 passes. In the 2008 Alamo Bowl, Weatherspoon was named the game's defensive MVP after registering 17 tackles. He announced after the game that he had filed for the 2009 NFL Draft, but just to see where he would rank, and that he would return for his senior season.[5]

Sean was born to Develous Weatherspoon and Elwanda Martin Weatherspoon in Greenville, South Carolina in 1987.[15] He has two children, Ava and Franklin Jr., with college girlfriend Christine Weston, whom he married June 10, 2017.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sean Weatherspoon.

• Arizona Cardinals bio
• Missouri Tigers bio
• Pro-Football-Reference.Com