| WEEI | |
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| City of license | Boston, Massachusetts |
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| Broadcast area | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Branding | Sports Radio 850 WEEI |
| Slogan | "The Sports Station" and " We're the number 1 sports station in all of (east,central,or western) Mass" |
| Frequency | 850 (kHz) |
| First air date | 1930 (frequency, as WHDH) |
| Format | Sports Radio |
| ERP | 50,000 watts |
| Class | B |
| Facility ID | 1912 |
| Callsign meaning | Edison Electric Illuminating (original owner of 590 kHz when it was WEEI) |
| Affiliations | Red Sox Radio Network Providence College Boston Celtics Fox Sports Radio Boston College New England Revolution |
| Owner | Entercom |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | www.weei.com |
WEEI is a sports radio station in Boston, Massachusetts that broadcasts on 850 kHz from a transmitter in Needham, Massachusetts. A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting is the community that a Radio station or Television station A slogan is a memorable Motto or Phrase used in a Political, commercial, Religious and other context as a repetitive expression of Frequency is a measure of the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit Time. The hertz (symbol Hz) is a measure of Frequency, informally defined as the number of events occurring per Second. Year 1930 ( MCMXXX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. This article is about Broadcast radio, for other uses see Radio (disambiguation. Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a Radio format devoted entirely to Discussion and Broadcasting of sporting events. In radio Telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power (ERP is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency (RF The watt (symbol W) is the SI derived unit of power, equal to one Joule of energy per Second. This is a list of broadcast station classes applicable in much of North America under international agreements between the United States, Canada and The facility ID number or FIN is a unique positive integer assigned by the United States Federal Communications Commission to each domestic and international In Broadcasting and Radio communications a call sign (also known as a callsign or call letters, or abbreviated as a call, or otherwise WEZE is an AM Radio station in Boston Massachusetts on 590 kHz The Red Sox Radio Network consists of 71 stations (48 AM, 23 FM) in the 6 New England states plus Florida & Wyoming. This page refers to a college in Rhode Island. For the college in Manitoba, see Providence College and Theological Seminary. The Boston Celtics are an American professional Basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, playing in the Atlantic Division of the Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming all day every day For similarly-named academic institutions see Education in Boston MA. The New England Revolution, nicknamed the Revs, is a professional soccer club based in Foxborough Massachusetts, that participates in Major League Entercom Communications Corporation ( is the fourth-largest broadcasting company in the United States A webcast is a media file distributed over the Internet using Streaming media technology A website (alternatively web site or Web site, a back-construction from the Proper noun World Wide Web) is a collection of Web pages Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a Radio format devoted entirely to Discussion and Broadcasting of sporting events. This article is about radio broadcasting for other uses see Radio (disambiguation. The hertz (symbol Hz) is a measure of Frequency, informally defined as the number of events occurring per Second. Needham is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The station is one of the top rated sports talk radio stations in the nation. Studios are located in Brighton, Massachusetts. Brighton is a neighborhood of the City of Boston, Massachusetts, located in the northwest corner of the city
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WEEI traces its roots to its original owner, Edison Electric Illuminating (hence the call letters). The Edison Illuminating Company was established by Thomas Edison on December 17, 1880, to construct electrical generating stations initially in New Edison placed the station on the air on 590 kHz in 1924. [1] In 1926, WEEI became a charter member of the NBC "Red" radio network and remained an NBC "Red" affiliate until 1937, when the station was purchased by CBS and became an affiliate of that network. The National Broadcasting Company ( NBC) is an American Television network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. Until 1960, WEEI, through CBS Radio, was the last Boston radio station to devote a large amount of its program schedule to "traditional" network radio programming of daytime soap operas, comedy shows, variety shows, and similar fare.
For the remainder of the 1960s, WEEI was New England's first talk-radio station and home of such hosts as Howard Nelson, Jim Westover and of course, Paul Benzaquin, one of the most popular radio talk show hosts in Boston history. The '60s also saw the daily "WEEIdea" feature that presented cleaning and cooking tips from housewives.
Although its talk radio format was popular, the station went all-news in 1974, following the lead of several other CBS-owned stations. At first, WEEI wasn't 24/7 all-news; the station's late-night schedule featured the CBS Radio Mystery Theater, an attempt to revive radio drama, as well as a local overnight talk show with Bruce Lee (no relation to the martial-arts actor), a holdover from the previous format. CBS Radio Mystery Theater (aka Radio Mystery Theater and Mystery Theater) was an ambitious and sustained attempt during the 1970s But by the end of the 1970s, WEEI was all-news around the clock.
In 1982, CBS sold WEEI to Helen Broadcasting, which retained the all-news format. In 1991, the station was sold to the Boston Celtics, and became a sports station. Upon the change to all-sports, WEEI featured the Andy Moes show and "Glenn (Ordway) and Janet (Prensky)", a short-lived experiment in bringing a "Bickersons"-type format to sports radio. The Bickersons was a Radio comedy sketch series that began in 1946 on NBC with Don Ameche and Frances Langford, moving the following Also part of the roster was Boston sports talk pioneer Eddie Andelman. Eddie Andelman is an American sports radio Talk show host He has worked over 35 years in sports talk radio and appeared on over 100 sports stations all over the country
In 1994, WEEI was acquired by Back Bay Broadcasting, which sold the call letters and all-sports programming of WEEI to American Radio Systems. [2] ARS then placed the intellectual property of WEEI on the 850 kHz frequency that was previously home to WHDH-AM.
WHDH 850 had a long history, along with its rival WBZ-AM 1030, as one of Boston's leading full-service radio stations. WBZ is the callsign for an AM Radio station in Boston Massachusetts which is owned by CBS Radio (formerly Infinity Broadcasting The station featured the legendary comedy team of Bob and Ray before they departed for national fame in New York, then for 34 years was anchored by morning personality Jess Cain, along with other preeminent air talent such as Norm Nathan. Bob Elliott (born 1923 and Ray Goulding (1922–1990 were an American comedy team whose career spanned five decades The City of New York Jess Daniel Dennis Cain III ( born June 17, 1926 - died 14 February 2008) at age 81 was a radio personality for 34 years of mornings on It played jazz, big band, MOR and, in the mid-1970s, Top 40 music. Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States A big band is a type of Musical ensemble associated with playing jazz music and which became popular during the Swing Era from the early 1930s until the late Middle Of The Road was a Scottish pop group who enjoyed great success across Europe in the early 1970s The Top Forty or Top 40 is a music industry shorthand for the currently most-popular songs in a particular genre. It also featured talk radio programs hosted by Avi Nelson, and, later, David Brudnoy. David Brudnoy ( June 5, 1940 &ndash December 9, 2004) was a popular Talk radio host in Boston from 1976 to 2004 But while WHDH-AM was never "all sports," it was easily Boston's top sports station during the 1950s through the end of the 1960s. It called itself The Voice of Sports.
For 30 consecutive years (1946-75), WHDH-AM was the flagship station of the Boston Red Sox, featuring play-by-play announcers such as Jim Britt, Ford C. Frick Award-winning Curt Gowdy, Ken Coleman and Ned Martin. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. Jim Britt ( April 11, 1910 — December 31, 1980) was an American Sportscaster who broadcast Major League Baseball The Ford C Frick Award is an award bestowed annually by the National Baseball Hall of Fame in the United States to a Broadcaster for "major contributions Curtis Edward Gowdy ( July 31 1919 – February 20 2006) was an American Sportscaster, well-known as the longtime "voice" Kenneth R Coleman ( April 22 1925 - August 21 2003) was an American Radio and Television Sportscaster Edwin (Ned Martin (born August 9, 1923 in Wayne Pennsylvania; died July 23, 2002 in Raleigh North Carolina) was an American Prior to 1951, it also broadcast the Boston Braves, the city's National League baseball club (the Red Sox and Braves then only broadcast home games, thus the teams shared the same announcers and did not have schedule conflicts). The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the National League ( NL) is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball
During the winter months, WHDH and WHDH-FM (now 94. 5 WJMN-FM) were the flagship stations of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association and the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, employing such legendary announcers as Johnny Most, Fred Cusick and Bob Wilson. WJMN is a successful Rhythmic Contemporary Hit Radio station licensed to Boston Massachusetts, USA. The Boston Celtics are an American professional Basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, playing in the Atlantic Division of the The Boston Bruins are a professional Ice hockey team based in Boston Massachusetts. The National Hockey League ( NHL) is a professional Ice hockey league composed of 30 teams in North America For the American poet John Most see here. John M Most ( June 15, 1923 – January 3, 1993) was an Fred Cusick (born November 7 1918 is a former Ice hockey broadcaster and served as the Boston Bruins play-by-play TV broadcaster from 1971 till Bob Wilson (Born Bob Castellon) (born 1929 Arlington Massachusetts) is a retired American Radio personality who served as the longtime voice For a single season, Jim Lang was the announcer for Bruins games and brought unprecedented candor to the job. WHDH also was the radio home of Harvard University football in the autumn.
In addition, the original WHDH-TV (Channel 5) was the flagship station of the Red Sox TV network from 1958 through 1971, while WHDH-AM produced an early weekly sports roundtable show, also called "The Voice of Sports," featuring baseball writers from the Boston Herald-Traveler (which owned the station until 1974), various figures from Major League Baseball, and longtime WHDH-TV sports director Don Gillis. The Boston Herald is a Tabloid -format Daily newspaper, the smaller of the two big dailies in Boston Massachusetts, United States Donald A Gillis ( August 1, 1922 - April 23 2008) was an American Sportscaster, born in Canada, who was sports No calls were taken during the show, which featured lively debate among the writers. In 1972-73, "The Voice of Sports" became a daily, afternoon drive telephone-talk program hosted by longtime Boston sportscaster Leo Egan, but it failed to take root.
WHDH-AM began to lose its valuable properties in 1969, when the Bruins and Celtics were wooed away by WBZ. Then the Herald-Traveler Corporation's license to operate Channel 5 was revoked by the Federal Communications Commission, effective March 19, 1972. Stung by the loss of its highly profitable TV station, the Herald-Traveler Corp. was put on the market, and acquired by the Hearst Corporation in June 1972. Hearst Communications Inc is a privately-held American -based Media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower in New York City, USA Less than two years later, WHDH-AM and its FM sibling (by this time called WCOZ-FM) were sold to Blair Radio, a national radio station advertising representative. WHDH then lost the Red Sox after the 1975 regular season; it would not carry their games again until 1983-85. The station's last major sports property was the New England Patriots during the late 1980s. The New England Patriots, commonly called the " Pats " by sports writers and fans are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston
In early 1990, WHDH-AM was sold to local businessman David Mugar, whose New England Television owned Boston CBS affiliate WNEV-TV Channel 7. Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) David G Mugar is an Armenian-American Businessman and Philanthropist from Belmont Massachusetts. CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. By that March, with the sale already complete, Channel 7's call letters became WHDH-TV to correspond with WHDH-AM, and NETV became NETV & Radio. Mugar was hoping to bring back a main competitor to Boston's perennial television and radio duopoly WBZ, with a renewed emphasis on a news and straight talk format. Some sports programs remained, but news and talk were main priorities. Among the personalities to arrive in the early 1990s were mostly talents from within NETV, including TV newscaster Ted O'Brien. The 1990s collectively refers to the years between and including 1990 and 1999 However, by 1993, NETV & Radio was already in trouble due to increasing debt, and when Mugar announced WHDH-TV was being sold to Sunbeam later that year, the days were numbered for WHDH-AM. Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) Sunbeam Television Corporation is a broadcasting company based in Miami Florida, owned by Edmund N The radio station, after WHDH-TV was sold off, remained the last property under Mugar's company, and received a one year stay of execution. By the following spring, it was announced that WHDH-AM would vacate the Boston airwaves entirely, and give the 850 AM dial position to another company. Back Bay Broadcasting earned the position at that point. WHDH-AM's final broadcast, in August 1994, was the death of a beloved heritage radio station in Boston, but had its void filled well by the eventual success of WEEI on 850 AM. Other names In Arabic, the month is called أغسطسص ʾUġusṭuṣ or آب ʾĀb; usage varies from place to place and Year 1994 ( MCMXCIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar)
With the Red Sox coming to WEEI in 1995, they returned to the 850 kHz frequency. [3]
In 1998, American Radio Systems was acquired by CBS. As a result of the merger, the combined company was forced to sell several of its Boston stations. In late 1998, Entercom announced plans to acquire WEEI, along with WAAF, WRKO, WVEI and WEGQ, from CBS for $140 million. WRKO (680 AM) is a Radio station based in Boston Massachusetts, currently owned by Entercom. WEEI is a sports Radio station in Boston Massachusetts that broadcasts on 850 kHz from a transmitter in Needham Massachusetts. WMKK (937 FM, "937 Mike FM" is a Radio station licensed to serve Lawrence Massachusetts.
The station is popular with fans of the Boston professional sports teams, especially the Boston Red Sox. Professional sports, as opposed to amateur Sports are those in which athletes receive payment for their performance The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. WEEI calls itself "the #1 rated sports radio talk station in America," in terms of the percentage of the area radio listening audience tuned-in. WEEI isn't alone in providing 24/7 sports radio in Boston; local competition includes WAMG - ESPN 890 Boston and WWZN - 1510 The Zone. WAMG (890 AM, "890 ESPN" is a sports Radio station in the Boston market licensed to Dedham Massachusetts. WWZN, casually known as "1510 The Zone", is a Radio station licensed to serve the Boston Media market.
WEEI was awarded its first Marconi Award in September 2006 for sports station of the year. WEEI was also named large market station of the year. "Marconi Award" links here Note that in the Netherlands, the radio academy awards are also called Marconi Awards
WEEI is the co-flagship station of the WEEI Red Sox Radio Network with sister station WRKO, where all Red Sox radio broadcasts originate. The Red Sox Radio Network consists of 71 stations (48 AM, 23 FM) in the 6 New England states plus Florida & Wyoming. WRKO (680 AM) is a Radio station based in Boston Massachusetts, currently owned by Entercom. It is also the flagship station of the Boston Celtics, beginning with the 2007-2008 season. The Boston Celtics are an American professional Basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, playing in the Atlantic Division of the In addition, WEEI broadcasts games of the New England Revolution (with conflicted games airing on WRKO), and Boston College football and basketball teams in season. The New England Revolution, nicknamed the Revs, is a professional soccer club based in Foxborough Massachusetts, that participates in Major League WRKO (680 AM) is a Radio station based in Boston Massachusetts, currently owned by Entercom. For similarly-named academic institutions see Education in Boston MA. Sports talk shows such as Dennis and Callahan (6-10 a. m. Monday through Friday), Dale and Holley (10 a. m. - 2 p. m. ), The Big Show (2 p. m. - 6 p. m. ), Planet Mikey (6 p. m. - 11 p. m. ), and Red Sox Review(11 p. m. - 1 a. m. ) air on weekdays. The programs are hosted, respectively by John Dennis and Jerry Callahan-Flash boy Meterparel (produced by Chach and Ian), Dale Arnold and Michael Holley (produced by Rene' and Jimmy Stewart), Glenn Ordway- flash boy Pete Sheppard (Produced by Andy and Brett), Mike Adams- flash boy Jon Ryder (produced by Jason Pothier and Joey the Fish) and Jon Rish. Planet Mikey is a sports talk radio program on Boston 's WEEI 850 kHz AM On weekends the signature show is The Mustard and Johnson Show with Craig Mustard and Larry Johnson (9 a. m. - 2 p. m. in most cases). When local programming isn't on WEEI, usually Fox Sports Radio will air. Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming all day every day WEEI is Fox Sports Radio's highest rated station and was an ESPN Radio affiliate for several years before switching to Fox. Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming all day every day
In April 2005, WEEI began streaming its broadcasts live online by way of a free membership at its official site (or at this link: http://wmc1.liquidviewer.net/WEEI or http://webclust1.liquidcompass.cc/entercom/audio_player.php?id=WEEI). The exception is for Red Sox and Celtics games, as these are streamed only through the team and league websites as part of subscription packages.
The station has an ongoing feud with the Boston Globe. The Boston Globe (and Boston Sunday Globe) is the most widely circulated daily Newspaper in Boston and in New England, In 1999, the Globe's executive sports editor, Don Skwar, banned the newspaper's sports writers from appearing on the station's afternoon "The Big Show" after columnist Ron Borges used a racial slur while on the air in reference to New York Yankees pitcher Hideki Irabu. Ron Borges is currently a sportswriter for the Boston Herald. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. Hideki Irabu ( Japanese: 伊良部 秀輝 born in Hirara (now Miyakojima) Okinawa Prefecture, Japan on May 15, Two weeks later, the ban was extended to WEEI's Dennis & Callahan morning show. WEEI retaliated by banning Globe staffers from all its shows. Nevertheless, WEEI host Michael Holley is a former Globe columnist. [4]
Red Sox broadcasts were a daily feature of the WEEI Red Sox Radio Network slate from March through October. Each broadcast consists of:
During game broadcasts, WEEI is also made available through the Major League Baseball Web page (for a fee), and (for home games) on XM Satellite Radio (as part of the standard service) for those outside the Boston listening area. The entire 162-game Red Sox schedule also may be heard on an extensive radio network throughout the 6 New England States. Many of the smaller stations have always aired the Red Sox Network regardless of what Boston station originated those broadcasts.
The Boston Red Sox recently signed a 10 year radio deal with sister WRKO-AM (also owned by Entercom) for the broadcast rights for the 2007 through 2016 seasons, worth a reportedly $13 million a season radio deal. WRKO (680 AM) is a Radio station based in Boston Massachusetts, currently owned by Entercom. About 30 Red Sox games a season, including all games on Wednesday nights and all weekly day games will still be heard on WEEI as part of the deal.
The station was home to a major local controversy in October 2003, when morning hosts John Dennis and Gerry Callahan had the following exchange about a photo of a gorilla that had escaped from the Franklin Park Zoo:
Callahan: "They caught him at a bus stop, right -- he was like waiting to catch a bus out of town. Pete Sheppard (b March 26, 1967 in Providence Rhode Island) is an Italian-American radio host currently broadcasting on WEEI 850-AM Eddie Andelman is an American sports radio Talk show host He has worked over 35 years in sports talk radio and appeared on over 100 sports stations all over the country Bob (Robin Neumeier is an American Sportscaster for NBC Sports, specializing in Thoroughbred horse racing Ted Sarandis is a sports radio personality in Boston. Sarandis who lives in Winthrop, is best remembered for being the host of the Ted Nation show that David W Shea (b c. 1950 is an Irish-American Sportscaster, who is best known as the former ice hockey announcer for Hockey East and the The Big Show is a sports talk radio program on Boston 's WEEI 850 AM The Franklin Park Zoo, located in Boston Massachusetts, is one of the oldest zoos in the U "
Dennis: "Yeah, yeah -- he's a METCO gorilla. METCO (Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity is a Boston -based program operated and funded by the Department of Education (MA DOE of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts "
Callahan: "Heading out to Lexington. "
Dennis: "Exactly. "
Initially, it was believed that Dennis had said the gorilla was "probably a Metco gorilla waiting for a bus to take him to Lexington" and Dennis was suspended for two days. The radio station attempted to immediately cover up the incident, claiming that recordings of the comments had been lost. However, after mounting public outrage, the two hosts were given longer suspensions, sent to multiple rounds of sensitivity training, and forced to apologize. WEEI also agreed to provide free advertising for the METCO program on the radio station.
Both the station and the hosts have tried their best to put the controversy behind them, going so far as to mute on-air callers who attempt to mention the incident. Regardless of the damage they have done to the hosts' and station's reputation, the comments by Dennis and Callahan have not been shown to have had any long-term negative effect on the ratings of the morning show.
Entercom and Nassau Broadcasting had planned to bring WEEI's programming into 13 more markets, but the deal ended up collapsing. The Town of Easthampton is a city in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. Nassau Broadcasting Partners LP is a company based in Princeton New Jersey that owns radio stations in New England and the Mid-Atlantic United States [5]
On March 6, 2007 on The Big Show, a caller mentioned about the new contract of Red Sox outfielder J.D. Drew, saying that he prayed for the 50-day negotiations. Pete Sheppard (b March 26, 1967 in Providence Rhode Island) is an Italian-American radio host currently broadcasting on WEEI 850-AM Events 1079 - Omar Khayyám completes the Iranian calendar. 1454 - Thirteen Years' War: Delegates of Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. The Big Show is a sports talk radio program on Boston 's WEEI 850 AM The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. David Jonathan "J D" Drew (born November 20 1975 in Valdosta Georgia) is a Major League Baseball Right fielder for the Boston Red Sox
"Asking the Lord for $70 million versus $33 million is ludicrous!!!" -Glenn Ordway
"Quit this Benny Hinn Stuff!" -Pete Sheppard
"Do the Christian thing, as for the money and give to those who need it. Glenn Ordway (born January 16 1951) is a Boston Massachusetts -area radio host television host and Toufik Benedictus "Benny" Hinn (توفيق بندكتوس "بني" الحن born December 3, 1952) is a Televangelist, best known Pete Sheppard (b March 26, 1967 in Providence Rhode Island) is an Italian-American radio host currently broadcasting on WEEI 850-AM A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth " -Steve DeOssie
Since weekend host Larry Johnson is an ordained minister and operates his own congregation, religious references occasionally appear on the station. Steven Leonard DeOssie (born November 22 1962 in Tacoma Washington) is a former American football Linebacker and Long snapper But the hosts thought that this and athletes crediting God for a championship season (e. God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. g. Super Bowl, World Series, etc. professional American football, the Super Bowl is the Championship game of the National Football League (NFL For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. ) was "stretching it". WEEI has listeners and staff who are Catholic (Pete Sheppard and Steve Buckley), Jewish (Jon Wallach, Jon Meterparel, and program director Jason Wolfe), Protestant (Johnson), and Orthodox (Fred Smerlas). Catholic is an Adjective derived from the Greek adjective '' / 'katholikos' meaning "whole" or "complete". Pete Sheppard (b March 26, 1967 in Providence Rhode Island) is an Italian-American radio host currently broadcasting on WEEI 850-AM Steve Buckley (b1956 is an Irish-American journalist He has been a sports columnist with the Boston Herald since 1995 PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. Frederic Charles Smerlas (born April 8, 1957 in Waltham, Massachusetts) was an American football Defensive lineman who