Kwamie Lassiter
Kwamie Lassiter (December 3, 1969 – January 6, 2019) was an American football safety. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 1995. He played college football at Kansas.
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| Position: | Defensive back | ||||||||||||||
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| Born: | December 3, 1969 Hampton, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Died: | January 6, 2019 (aged 49) Chandler, Arizona, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 207 lb (94 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| College: | Kansas | ||||||||||||||
| Undrafted: | 1995 | ||||||||||||||
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Early years
Born in Hampton, Virginia, Lassiter graduated from Menchville High School in Newport News, Virginia in 1989.[1]
College career
Lassiter played his first two years of college football at Butler County Community College in 1989 and 1990 before transferring to the University of Kansas in 1991. He sat out the 1991 season, played at Kansas from 1992 to 1994, and graduated with a degree in communications.[1][2] After Lassiter suffered a broken collarbone by the third game of the 1993 season, the NCAA granted Lassiter a sixth year of eligibility.[2]
Professional career
Lassiter played for the Arizona Cardinals from 1995–2002, San Diego Chargers in 2003 and St. Louis Rams in 2004. He finished his career with 413 tackles, 25 interceptions, and four sacks.[3]
In the Cardinals' final regular season game of the 1998 season, a 16-13 victory over the San Diego Chargers that clinched the Cardinals' first playoff berth in 15 years, Lassiter intercepted Chargers quarterback Craig Whelihan four times.[4]
After the 2001 season, Lassiter was selected as an alternate for the 2002 Pro Bowl after reaching career highs with 112 tackles and 9 interceptions.[1]
Lassiter spent the 2004 preseason with the Chargers and was cut. The St. Louis Rams signed Lassiter on September 21, 2004.[1]
NFL statistics
| Year | Team | Games | Comb. | Tack. | Asst. Tack. | Sacks | FF | FR | FR Yards | INT | INT. Yards | INT. Avg. | Long | TDs | Passes Defended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | ARI | 5 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | ARI | 14 | 18 | 13 | 5 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 0 | 2 |
| 1997 | ARI | 16 | 40 | 24 | 16 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| 1998 | ARI | 16 | 57 | 38 | 19 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 80 | 10 | 29 | 0 | 12 |
| 1999 | ARI | 16 | 104 | 69 | 35 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 110 | 55 | 78 | 1 | 7 |
| 2000 | ARI | 16 | 96 | 62 | 34 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| 2001 | ARI | 16 | 112 | 83 | 29 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 80 | 9 | 25 | 0 | 14 |
| 2002 | ARI | 16 | 95 | 64 | 31 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 9 |
| 2003 | SD | 10 | 58 | 50 | 8 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 1 | 1 |
| 2004 | STL | 4 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 129 | 596 | 416 | 180 | 4.0 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 25 | 356 | 14 | 78 | 2 | 49 |
Post-playing career
From 2006 to 2008, Lassiter was a pregame and postgame host for the Arizona Cardinals Radio Network.[5]
From 2009 until his death, Lassiter hosted Kwamie Lassiter's Sports Talk on the VoiceAmerica Internet radio network.[6]
From 2010 until his death, Lassiter was president of the NFL Alumni chapter in Arizona.[5]
From 2009 to 2010, Lassiter was defensive backs coach at Mesa Community College.[7][8] In 2012, Lassiter became defensive backs coach for the Las Vegas Locomotives of the UFL[5] until his death.
Personal life
Lassiter's son, Kwamie II, currently plays football for the University of Kansas football team.
Lassiter's daughter, Darian, is a professional dancer and has been a part of Phoenix Suns dance team as well as the Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders. As of 2020, she is a member of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders squad and henceforth appeared on season 15 of their reality television show Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team.
Death
On January 6, 2019, Lassiter died at 49 of a heart attack which he suffered while working out.[9]
References
- "Kwamie Lassiter". St. Louis Rams. Archived from the original on 2004-10-23.
- Woodling, Chuck (April 21, 2009). "Lassiter undrafted standout". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
- "Kwamie Lassiter". pro-football-reference. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
- Simers, T.J. (December 28, 1998). "Officials and Jacke Help Raise Arizona". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
- "Kwamie Lassiter". LinkedIn. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-04-24. Retrieved 2013-02-10.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- "Coach Hargrave and Staff Back from Team Camp - Football - Athletics at Mesa Community College". athletics.mesacc.edu.
- "Football Ready To Take On Scottsdale, Broadcast Live On KWSS, 106.7 FM, Saturday, September 4 At 7:00 P.M. - Football - Athletics at Mesa Community College". athletics.mesacc.edu.
- "Former Arizona Cardinal Kwamie Lassiter dies at age 49". Arizona Sports. 2019-01-07. Retrieved 2019-01-07.
External links
- Kwamie Lassiter biography from St. Louis Rams (archived from 2004)