Simeon James Rice (; born February 24, 1974) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals third overall in the 1996 NFL Draft.
In his 12-year NFL career, Rice recorded 122 sacks, forced 25 fumbles, recovered 8, and intercepted 5 passes. His sacks rank 20th all-time in NFL. In his first eight out of 10 seasons in the NFL, Rice recorded at least 10 sacks and in three of those seasons he recorded at least 15 sacks. He earned three Pro Bowl selections and earned a Super Bowl ring with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII, beating the Oakland Raiders. He has also played for the Denver Broncos, Indianapolis Colts and New York Sentinels.
Early years
Rice attended Mount Carmel High School on Chicago's south side, the same school as former NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb and former NBA star Antoine Walker. Simeon Rice was born February 24, 1974, in Chicago, Illinois. He was the second born of five children. His family lived in a 5 bedroom house on Chicago’s south side. His father worked on the assembly line at Ford Motor Company and his mother was a Special Education school teacher who worked with troubled children.
Rice first became interested in football while playing pickup games with his brother in their neighborhood. His father knew that his son had the physical gifts of speed, size and strength to be a great athlete, but he insisted that Simeon understand the importance of hard work. When the time came for Simeon to attend high school, his parents sent him to Mt. Carmel, an all-boys Catholic school about an hour from where the Rice family lived. The school had a history of winning state championships. The school was so successful that the University of Notre Dame was consistently making recruiting visits.
Rice began his career at Mt. Carmel as a running back. The roster was so deep that Coach Frank Lenti moved Simeon to tight end and defensive end before his junior season. Simeon fought the move, purposely dropping passes and missing tackles in practice. He still did not see much action in games. Before his senior season, Coach Lenti had a talk with Simeon and told him there was still time to be great at football, but he had to accept that he was better suited for defense. His senior season, he got better with every game, starting with the first game of the season against Joliet Catholic and their star running back, Mike Alstott. In the state championship game, with Mt. Carmel trailing, Simeon had a sack that caused a turnover which gave the team the momentum to mount a comeback victory. Throughout the season, Coach Lenti advocated for schools to recruit Simeon, but few listened. Simeon wound up at the University of Illinois for college.
College career
After three days of practice, University of Illinois defensive coordinator Denny Marcin told Rice’s parents that their son was destined for greatness. He knew what greatness looked like after coaching Lawrence Taylor at North Carolina. In the third game of the season, Rice sacked Houston quarterback Jimmy Klingler three times and was named ABC’s Player of the Game. That season, he had 9 sacks, a school record for a freshman and was voted the Big Ten rookie of the year. Simeon’s sophomore season was a disappointment for him and the team. Meanwhile, he studied hard and picked up extra credits in an attempt to graduate early. His junior season the team finished 6-5. Rice was a member of what was considered the best linebacker group in the country. His fellow linebacker Dana Howard won the Butkus award for best linebacker in the country. Kevin Hardy, another linebacker on the team, was named the team MVP. Rice had 16 sacks, a school record, and was named a 2nd team All-American. Perhaps his finest game of the season was against Washington State. He had 5 sacks, blocked a field goal, and recovered a fumble. By November, teams were devising special blocking schemes to keep Rice out of the backfield.