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JOHN ABRAHAM
Defensive End
1996 / 1999
Timmonsville, SC
Biography
A late bloomer, Abraham played only two years of high school football, but flashed enough raw talent that the Charlotte Observer named him one of the state’s top 25 recruits in 1955. Abraham picked USC over Clemson and made an early mark as a Gamecock, earning time as a second string defensive end as a true freshman. He helped end Georgia’s final drive by teaming with Henry Taylor to sack Mike Bobo for an 11-yard loss at the USC 28, as the Gamecocks went on to win 23-14 in that 1996 matchup. At the end of his freshman season he was given the Scott Sinclair Award as the team’s outstanding freshman. Abraham would go on to start the next two season at defensive end, earning a reputation as one of the conference’s most feared pass rushers. In 1999 he dropped around ten pounds as Lou Holtz came on board and shifted him to outside linebacker. Abraham earned 2nd Team All-SEC honors that season despite the Gamecocks’ lack of success. He was a co-captain that season and was given the Steve Wadiak Award as the team’s MVP. After the season he played in the Senior Bowl before becoming the 13th pick in the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. Abraham went on to be named to five Pro Bowls (as of the end of the 2010 season) while recording 133.5 sacks with the Jets (2000-05). Falcons (2006-12) and Cardinals (2013-14).
Prior Schools
SchoolLocation


Roster Listings
YearRosterNumPosHtWtYrGmsGS
1996 Program vs Georgia 95 DE 6-3 218 Fr 0 0
1997 Lindy's 1997 Annual 95 DE 6-4 234 So
1997 Auburn 1997 95 DE 6-4 234 So 11 11
1998 Media Guide 95 DE 6-4 247 Jr
1999 Media Guide 95 DE 6-4 246 Sr
1999 Fall 1999 95 OLB 6-4 236 Sr 11 11
9999 Gamecock Archives All-Time By # 95 DE 6-4 236 0 0
1998 Fall 1998 95 DE 6-4 247 Jr 10 10
Depth Chart Appearances
DescriptionPositionRank
1998 Media Guide Defensive End Starter
1999 Media Guide Outside Linebacker Starter
1999 vs Georgia Outside Linebacker Starter
Honors
AwardYear
1996 Scott Sinclair Outstanding Freshman
1999 All-SEC 2nd Team
1999 Rex Enright - Captain's Cup
1999 Senior Bowl
1999 Steve Wadiak MVP
Defense
YearSoloAstTklTFLSacksIntPBUQBHFRFFBKIPCDSRZSIPPYPT
1996 5 7 12 2.0 4.0 1 8 0 2 1
1997 16 19 35 5.0 6.5 0 14 0 1 0 13 4 3 25.58 0.73
1998 28 33 61 5.0 6.0 0 13 0 0 2 27 6 3 60.1 2.61
1999 32 29 61 6.0 6.0 1 12 5 1 1 26 5 5 66.93 1.58
Tot 81 88 169 18.0 22.5 2 47 5 4 4 66 15 11 152.61

IP - Impact Plays; CDS - Conversion Down Stops (3rd & 4th Down); RZS - Red Zone Stops; IPP - Impact Play Points; YPT - Yards Per Tackle
Punt Returns
YearRetYdsAvgTD
1996 1 14 14.0 0
Tot 1 14 14.0 0
Games Started
DateOpponentPosition
1997-09-06 Central Florida Defensive End
1997-09-13 Georgia Defensive End
1997-09-20 East Carolina Defensive End
1997-09-27 Mississippi State Defensive End
1997-10-04 Auburn Defensive End
1997-10-11 Kentucky Defensive End
1997-10-18 Arkansas Defensive End
1997-10-25 Vanderbilt Defensive End
1997-11-01 Tennessee Defensive End
1997-11-15 Florida Defensive End
1997-11-22 Clemson Defensive End
1998-09-05 Ball State Defensive End
1998-09-12 Georgia Defensive End
1998-09-19 Marshall Defensive End
1998-09-26 Mississippi State Defensive End
1998-10-03 Mississippi Defensive End
1998-10-10 Kentucky Defensive End
1998-10-24 Vanderbilt Defensive End
1998-10-31 Tennessee Defensive End
1998-11-14 Florida Defensive End
1998-11-21 Clemson Defensive End
1999-09-04 N.C. State Linebacker
1999-09-11 Georgia Linebacker
1999-09-18 East Carolina Linebacker
1999-09-25 Mississippi State Linebacker
1999-10-02 Mississippi Linebacker
1999-10-09 Kentucky Linebacker
1999-10-16 Arkansas Linebacker
1999-10-23 Vanderbilt Linebacker
1999-10-30 Tennessee Linebacker
1999-11-13 Florida Linebacker
1999-11-20 Clemson Linebacker
Scoring Plays
DateOpponentQtrTimeUSCOppPlay
Defense - Sacks
YearDateOpponentDownTo GoSideYdlinePlay
1997 1997-09-06 Central Florida 1 32 USC 44 Daunte Culpepper sacked for loss of 2 (John Abraham)
1997 1997-09-27 Mississippi State 3 6 MST 24 Wyatt sacked for loss of 6 (Henry Taylor, John Abraham)
1997 1997-10-18 Arkansas 1 10 ARK 43 Clint Stoerner sacked for loss of 8 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-05 Ball State 1 10 USC 42 Walters sacked for loss of 7 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-19 Marshall 2 9 USC 40 Chad Pennington sacked for loss of 9 (John Abraham, John Stamper)
1998 1998-09-19 Marshall 2 10 MAR 43 Chad Pennington sacked for loss of 3 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-10 Kentucky 3 4 USC 27 Tim Couch sacked for loss of 3 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-18 East Carolina 1 10 ECU 49 David Garrard sacked for loss of 13 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 1 10 USC 34 Clint Stoerner sacked for loss of 7 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-11-20 Clemson 2 19 CLM 13 Woody Dantzler sacked for loss of 4 (John Abraham)
Defense - Tackles For Loss
YearDateOpponentDownTo GoSideYdlinePlay
1997 1997-09-06 Central Florida 3 10 USC 44 Daunte Culpepper rush for loss of 1 (John Abraham, Selvesta Miller)
1997 1997-09-27 Mississippi State 1 10 MST 26 Greer rush for loss of 1 (John Abraham, Henry Taylor)
1997 1997-10-11 Kentucky 2 5 USC 5 Anthony White rush for loss of 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-05 Ball State 1 10 BAL 24 Walters rush for loss of 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-03 Mississippi 1 10 UMS 23 Joe Gunn rush for loss of 3 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-03 Mississippi 2 1 UMS 25 Deuce McAllister rush for loss of 3 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-10 Kentucky 2 8 USC 12 Craig Yeast loss of 1 on pass from Tim Couch (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-24 Vanderbilt 1 15 VAN 38 Hogans loss of 1 on pass from Zolman (John Abraham)
1998 1998-11-21 Clemson 3 6 50 Zachery rush for loss of 4 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-04 N.C. State 1 10 NCS 28 R.Spikes rush for loss of 4 (Corey Atkins, John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-11 Georgia 1 1 USC 1 Arnaud rush for loss of 1 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-25 Mississippi State 1 10 MST 43 Wayne Madkin rush for loss of 1 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-09 Kentucky 2 2 USC 4 Derek Horner rush for loss of 3 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-23 Vanderbilt 1 10 USC 20 Rodney Williams rush for loss of 1 (Marco Hutchinson, John Abraham)
Defense - Passes Broken Up
YearDateOpponentDownTo GoSideYdlinePlay
1999 1999-11-20 Clemson 1 8 USC 8 Woody Dantzler pass for Rod Gardner incomplete (John Abraham)
Defensive Plays
YearDateOpponentDownTo GoSideYdlinePlay
1997 1997-09-06 Central Florida 2 3 USC 3 Huff rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1997 1997-09-27 Mississippi State 1 10 MST 20 Greer rush for 3 (John Abraham, Shane Burnham)
1997 1997-09-27 Mississippi State 2 15 USC 29 Isaac, 15-yd pass from Wyatt (Marco Hutchinson, John Abraham)
1997 1997-10-11 Kentucky 3 16 UKY 34 Anthony White, 7-yd pass from Tim Couch (John Abraham)
1997 1997-10-18 Arkansas 1 10 USC 33 Rod Stinson rush for 2 (John Abraham)
1997 1997-11-15 Florida 2 12 FLA 10 Fred Taylor rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1997 1997-11-15 Florida 2 1 FLA 33 Fred Taylor rush for 2 (John Abraham, Homer Torrance)
1997 1997-11-15 Florida 1 10 USC 28 Eugene McCaslin rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-05 Ball State 1 10 BAL 20 L.Moore rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-05 Ball State 1 6 USC 6 Cartwright rush for 2 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-12 Georgia 1 5 USC 5 Patrick Pass rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-12 Georgia 2 11 UGA 32 Olandis Gary rush for 1 (John Abraham, Darion Hutcherson)
1998 1998-09-12 Georgia 1 10 USC 10 Olandis Gary rush for 5 (Keris Sullivan, John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-12 Georgia 1 10 USC 22 Arnaud pitch for 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-19 Marshall 1 10 MAR 18 Chapman, 2-yd pass from Chad Pennington (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-19 Marshall 1 10 MAR 16 Chapman rush for 5 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-26 Mississippi State 1 10 MST 34 Johnson rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-09-26 Mississippi State 1 16 MST 42 Johnson rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-03 Mississippi 3 13 UMS 20 Joe Gunn rush for 3 (Ray Green, John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-03 Mississippi 3 4 UMS 22 Romaro Miller rush for loss of 4, fumble, forced by (John Abraham), recovered by Matt Luke at UM 18
1998 1998-10-03 Mississippi 2 7 UMS 19 Joe Gunn rush for no gain (Corey Atkins, John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-03 Mississippi 2 12 UMS 34 Joe Gunn rush for 3 (John Abraham, Cecil Caldwell)
1998 1998-10-10 Kentucky 2 10 USC 43 Derek Homer rush for 5 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-10 Kentucky 1 10 UKY 29 Anthony White rush for 11 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-10 Kentucky 1 10 UKY 40 Anthony White rush for 8 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-24 Vanderbilt 1 10 VAN 5 R.Williams rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-24 Vanderbilt 2 9 VAN 6 R.Williams rush for 3 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-31 Tennessee 3 13 USC 36 Tee Martin scrambles for 2 (Errol Rochester, John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-31 Tennessee 1 10 USC 40 Travis Henry rush for 15 (Keris Sullivan, John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-31 Tennessee 1 10 USC 25 Travis Henry rush for 4 (Andre Offing, John Abraham)
1998 1998-10-31 Tennessee 1 12 UTN 47 Copeland, 14-yd pass from Tee Martin (John Abraham, Ray Green)
1998 1998-11-14 Florida 3 7 FLA 49 Travis Taylor, 36-yd pass from Doug Johnson (Homer Torrance, John Abraham)
1998 1998-11-14 Florida 3 2 FLA 43 Eugene McCaslin rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1998 1998-11-21 Clemson 1 10 USC 39 Witherspoon rush for 8 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-04 N.C. State 1 10 NCS 36 C.Coleman, 4-yd pass from Jamie Barnette (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-04 N.C. State 2 4 NCS 43 Ray Robinson rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-04 N.C. State 1 10 NCS 22 Ray Robinson rush for 5 (John Abraham, Ray Green)
1999 1999-09-04 N.C. State 3 2 USC 47 R.Spikes rush for 1 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-04 N.C. State 2 15 NCS 30 R.Spikes rush for 4 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-11 Georgia 1 10 UGA 35 Phillips, 6-yd pass from Quincy Carter (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-11 Georgia 4 7 USC 26 Hines, 43-yd field goal blocked by (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-11 Georgia 1 10 UGA 44 Patrick Pass rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-11 Georgia 2 8 USC 41 Johnson, 16-yd pass from Quincy Carter, fumble, recovered by (John Abraham) at SC 25, returned 21 yards
1999 1999-09-18 East Carolina 2 9 ECU 8 J.Wilson rush for 12 (John Abraham, Arturo Freeman)
1999 1999-09-18 East Carolina 2 10 ECU 35 J.Wilson, 2-yd pass from David Garrard (John Abraham)
1999 1999-09-18 East Carolina 3 8 ECU 37 David Garrard rush for loss of 8, fumble, forced by (John Abraham) recovered by J.Wilson
1999 1999-09-18 East Carolina 1 10 USC 44 J.Wilson rush for 11 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-02 Mississippi 1 10 UMS 45 J.Gunn rush for 7 (John Abraham, Arturo Freeman)
1999 1999-10-02 Mississippi 1 10 UMS 37 Deuce McAllister rush for 4 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-02 Mississippi 2 3 USC 24 J.Gunn rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-09 Kentucky 2 2 UKY 40 Team rush for loss of 19, fumble, forced by (John Abraham), recovered by (Kenny Harney) at UK 21
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 3 2 USC 28 M.Williams, 4-yd pass from Clint Stoerner (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 3 5 USC 13 M.Williams, 1-yd pass from Clint Stoerner (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 2 6 ARK 8 Cedric Cobbs rush for 2 (Kalimba Edwards, John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 1 10 ARK 17 Chrys Chukwuma rush for 1 (Kalimba Edwards, John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 1 10 ARK 33 Michael Jenkins rush for 7 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 3 8 USC 31 Michael Jenkins rush for 6 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 2 6 ARK 35 Alvin Ray rush for 15 (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-16 Arkansas 1 10 50 Andre Ackee rush for 1 (John Abraham, Dan Gawronski)
1999 1999-10-23 Vanderbilt 2 5 USC 28 Rodney Williams rush for no gain (John Abraham)
1999 1999-10-23 Vanderbilt 1 10 VAN 41 Rodney Williams rush for 11 (Ray Green, John Abraham)
1999 1999-11-13 Florida 2 1 FLA 29 Earnest Graham rush for 1 (Kenny Harney, John Abraham)
1999 1999-11-20 Clemson 3 23 CLM 9 Woody Dantzler rush for no gain (John Abraham)