George “Ice” Teague

By Gary Lloyd
Love of Sports Correspondent

George Teague played nine seasons in the NFL with three teams – the Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins.

He picked off 15 passes in those nine years, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Teague returned one of those touchdowns 102 yards, a playoff record.

He didn’t have gaudy statistics as a pro, yet he was still a very popular player both in college at Alabama and on the professional level.

Why, you wonder?

Because of two instances – one at Alabama in the 1993 Sugar Bowl and the other in 2000 as a member of the Dallas Cowboys. 

I used the word instances instead of plays because neither showed up in the box score of both games.

In the ’93 Sugar Bowl, Teague ran down Miami wide receiver Lamar Thomas and stripped the ball from him. It was an exceptional run-down, but it did not count due to an offside penalty. You can relive the glory here.

In September 2000, then 49ers wide receiver Terrell Owens caught his second touchdown pass of the game against the Cowboys and ran to celebrate on the star at midfield. Teague was having none of it. Before T.O. could say “Getcha popcorn ready,” Teague laid a hit on Owens that sent him rolling about five yards. Owens was fined a week’s salary and suspended one game for his attempted celebration. 

Despite neither act of athletic supremacy counting, both had a big impact on the psyche of the 1993 Crimson Tide team and 2000 Cowboys squad. Alabama went on to defeat the heavily-favored Miami Hurricanes, 34-13. The Cowboys lost to the 49ers 41-24 that day in 2000, but Teague became the first in a long line of NFL players anc coaches to try and shut Terrell Owens up. That’s a daunting task in itself.

Teague was an animated player and wore his emotions on his sleeve, and for that he gets some OLD SCHOOL LOVE.