Trace Armstrong left Arizona State for All-American success at Florida
Trace Armstrong was forced to transfer out of Arizona State, and he ended up becoming an All-American at Florida.
•
2 min read
This is the second part of a series examining the most successful second chances in college football history. We will highlight players and coaches that have found success or redemption at a second school after a transfer or coaching change in Double Dip, presented by IHop. We continue with Trace Armstrong, who was forced to transfer out of Arizona State after three years due to an NCAA rule and ended up becoming an All-American with the Florida Gators.
Starting Out -- Arizona State: Armstrong played three seasons with the Sun Devils from 1985-87 and was one of Arizona State's top defensive lineman. In his junior year, Armstrong was an honorable mention All-American after racking up 51 tackles (10 tackles for loss) and seven sacks. He was primed for a stellar senior season, but there was one major problem ...
Armstrong had been forced to sit out the 1984 season because his high school GPA had been miscalculated by Arizona State, so he was not allowed to play until that error had been resolved. Despite being cleared to play, the NCAA ruled that in order to regain a fourth year of eligibility, Armstrong would have to transfer.
He was eligible to play immediately wherever he chose to go after being granted a waiver by the NCAA, and he ended up landing in Gainesville to play for the Florida Gators. He chose Florida because the Gators would allow him to start immediately, and they had recently hired one of Armstrong's former coaches, Rex Norris, as their defensive line coach.
Double Dip -- Florida: Armstrong earned first team All-American honors in 1988 with the Gators, setting the school record at Florida for tackles for loss in a season with 19. He also had 59 total tackles and seven sacks.
He played just one season with the Gators but left an indelible mark in Gainesville. Despite his short time in Gainesville, Armstrong was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000 and earned two degrees from Florida -- his bachelor's in 1989 and his master's of business administration in 2006.
Armstrong's performance in the 1988 season vaulted him up draft boards, and he was selected 11th overall by the Chicago Bears in the 1989 NFL Draft.
Where is Armstrong now? Armstrong played 15 seasons in the NFL with the Bears, Dolphins and Raiders. During his career, he amassed 106 career sacks, which was the 16th most in NFL history when he retired in 2003 (he's currently 25th all-time on the sacks list). He also served as the NFLPA president from 1996-2003.
Now, Armstrong is one of the most powerful agents in football. He's the head of CAA's football coaching division and represents some of the biggest names in coaching at the NFL and college levels: Urban Meyer of Ohio State and Mike McCarthy of the Green Bay Packers are among his client list.
