Michael Vick

Hopewell Valley Student Podcasting Network 

Show Name: Interesting World of Sports

Episode #7: Michael Vick

Tweet to be shared on the network’s twitter handle: You are listening to The Interesting World of Sports podcast with your host(s) Dylan Yasher, and Connor Batcha.

Today we will be discussing the Early Life Playing Career and downfall of Mike Vick.

Segment 1: Early life

• Vick was born in Newport News, Virginia 
• In a 2001 interview, Vick told the Newport News Daily Press that when he was 10 or 11, “I would go fishing even if the fish weren’t biting, just to get away from the violence and stress of daily life in the projects.”
• Vic was only 3 years old when his father started to teach him the fundamentals of football.
• As a freshman, he impressed many with his athletic ability; he threw for over 400 yards in a game that year. 
• Ferguson High School was closed in 1996 as part of a Newport News Public Schools building modernization program. Due to this, Vick, a sophomore at the time, and coach Tommy Reamon both moved to Warwick High School.
• Under Reamon’s coaching, he passed for 4,846 yards with 43 touchdowns. He added 1,048 yards and 18 scores on the ground. 
• Vick chose to attend Virginia Tech
• He led the Hokies to an 11–0 undefeated season and to the Bowl Championship Series national title game in the Nokia Sugar Bowl against Florida State. 
• Vick won both an ESPY Award as the nation’s top college player and the first-ever Archie Griffin Award as college football’s most valuable player. 
• He was invited to the 1999 Heisman Trophy presentation and finished third in the voting behind Ron Dayne and Joe Hamilton. 
• Vick left Virginia Tech after his redshirt sophomore season.

Segment 2: NFL Career

• Vick was selected first in the 2001 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, becoming the first African-American quarterback to be taken with the top pick.
• Vick set a then-NFL record for most rushing yards by a quarterback in a single game with 173 against the Minnesota Vikings on December 1, broken by Colin Kaepernick (181) in 2013. He tied for third in team history for the best touchdown-to-interception ratio in a season. He had a streak of 177 passes without an interception as the Falcons finished with a 9–6–1 win-loss-tie record and reached the playoffs.
•  On January 4, 2003, Vick led the Falcons to an upset victory over the heavily favored Green Bay Packers 27–7 in the first playoff round. The Falcons lost 20–6 to the Donovan McNabb-led Philadelphia Eagles in the National Football Conference divisional playoff game the following week. Vick was named to his first Pro Bowl after the season.
• Vick suffered a fractured right fibula during a preseason game before the 2003 season against the Baltimore Ravens. He missed the first 11 games of the regular season, making his debut in week 13.
• Vick returned to form in 2004, passing for 2,313 yards with 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He added 902 yards of rushing and three touchdowns as the Falcons finished with an 11–5 record.
•  On October 31, 2004 in a game against the Denver Broncos, he became the first quarterback to throw for more than 250 yards and rush for over 100 yards in the same game. 
• Vick, whose single-season rushing total was the third-highest for a quarterback in NFL history, was named to his second Pro Bowl after the season after leading Atlanta to their third division title. 
• He signed a nine-year $130 million extension on December 23.

Segment 3: Legal Stuff

• A search warrant executed on April 25, 2007, as part of a drug investigation of Vick’s cousin Davon Boddie led to discovery of evidence of unlawful dog fighting activities at a property owned by Vick in rural Surry County in southeastern Virginia
• Media attention quickly grew as state officials investigated, soon joined by federal authorities.
• As separate state and federal investigations progressed, more details emerged about an interstate dog-fighting ring that involved drugs and gambling. 
• Gruesome details of abuse, torture, and execution of under-performing dogs 
• Vick and several others were indicted on federal and Virginia state felony charges
• In July 2007, Vick and three other men were indicted on federal felony charges of operating an unlawful interstate dog fighting
• Vick was accused of financing the operation, directly participating in dog fights and executions, and personally handling thousands of dollars in related gambling activities.

Music Credits:   

• Majik Most- All I know
• Majik Most-Just a feeling
• Cullah-Italian Singing Hip Hop

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