Randy Shannon

He was named a starter in the third game of the season against the Washington Redskins, becoming the first Cowboys rookie to start at outside linebacker since Dave Edwards did it in 1963.

In his 4 starts he made 38 tackles (including 11 both against the Redskins and the Green Bay Packers).

He also was second on the team with 14 special teams tackles and played in all three linebacker spots, including middle linebacker on passing downs.

He finished the season with 50 tackles, 3 quarterback pressures, one pass defensed and one forced fumble.

Randy Leonard Shannon (born February 24, 1966) is an American football coach and former player who is currently the linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator for the Florida State Seminoles football program.

As a football player, he played linebacker for the Miami Hurricanes from 1985 to 1988 followed by two seasons in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys, all under head coach Jimmy Johnson.

Shannon was born in Miami, Florida, and grew up in the Liberty City neighborhood.

When he was 3 years old, his father was murdered.

His older twin brothers, who became addicted to crack cocaine when Shannon was 10, both died of AIDS, as did his older sister.

Shannon attended Miami Norland High School, where he earned All-state honors playing football as a defensive back in his senior year.

He also played basketball, averaging 19 points a game, and was a member of the track team.

Shannon received a football scholarship to attend the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, where he played for head coach Jimmy Johnson's Miami Hurricanes football team from 1985 to 1988.

He was converted into an outside linebacker as a redshirt freshman.

The next year as a backup, he tallied 82 tackles (fifth on the team), including 13 against the University of Pittsburgh that was led by running back Craig Heyward.

As a junior, he was named the starter at strongside linebacker and was considered a coach on the field.

In the first game, he returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown against the University of Florida.

He had 13 tackles against the University of Notre Dame and East Carolina University.

He compiled 87 tackles (4 for loss), while helping the team win the 1987 national championship team.

As a senior, he was a part of a squad that ranked second in the nation in total defense.

He had a career-high 14 tackles against the University of Michigan.

He registered 83 tackles (fourth on the team), 8 tackles for loss (fourth on the team), 5 sacks (fourth on the team), 8 passes defensed (first on the team) and 3 forced fumbles (first on the team) and was included on several All-American lists as an honorable mention.

He graduated from the University of Miami with a bachelor's degree in 1988; he was the first member of his family to earn a college degree.

Of the 25 games he started in his career, the Hurricanes won 24.

Shannon did not have the prototypical size of an NFL linebacker and wasn't picked in the 1989 NFL draft until the eleventh round (280th overall pick) by the Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboys were led by his former Hurricanes coach, Jimmy Johnson, who had accepted the NFL job after Shannon's senior season and had been charged with rebuilding a depleted Cowboys roster.

Shannon surprised some observers by making the team despite being a low round pick.

During his NFL career, Shannon played in 17 regular season games during the 1989 and 1990 seasons, starting four of them.

The Cowboys continued to develop their roster in the offseason and Shannon was cut at the end of the preseason in 1990.

He returned to the Cowboys and appeared in a few games in September but was released on October 1, concluding his professional playing career.

During his time in the league, Jimmy Johnson credited Shannon with teaching his "bigger, faster linebackers how to play the position."

Miami Hurricanes head coach Dennis Erickson hired Shannon in 1991 to be a graduate assistant at his alma mater.

He was promoted to defensive line coach the following year and spent the next several seasons coaching defensive line and linebackers at the school.

In 1998, Shannon was hired as a defensive assistant by the NFL's Miami Dolphins, and he was promoted to be the Dolphin's linebackers coach in 2000.

He won the Frank Broyles Award as the nation's top collegiate assistant coach while at Miami in 2001.

Shannon was born and raised in the Liberty City neighborhood of Miami, Florida.

In 2001, Miami Hurricanes head coach Larry Coker hired Shannon to be the Canes' defensive coordinator.

That year Miami won the BCS National Championship, and Shannon received the Broyles Award recognizing him as the best assistant coach in college football.

The Hurricanes' 2001 national championship team is widely considered to be one of the greatest college football teams of all time.

Shannon remained the Hurricanes defensive coordinator for six seasons, and his defenses consistently finished among the best in the nation:

Shannon was the head coach at the University of Miami from 2007 to 2010 and has served as an assistant coach for the National Football League (NFL)'s Miami Dolphins and several college teams, including stints as the defensive coordinator for the Miami Hurricanes, the Florida Gators, and the UCF Knights.