And then there was one. One former Nebraska football player whose season will continue in a few weeks when the Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers kicks off.
Randy Gregory is officially the last man standing. And it would certainly seem as though he might get a chance to leave his mark on the game when all is said and done. Certainly, if there’s one thing we saw in Sunday Night’s NFC Championship, it’s that the Niners need some more pass rush.
They’ll also need to do it without blitzing. San Fran doesn’t blitz that much anyway, and the Chiefs are insanely good when their opponent brings added pressure. So, the former Nebraska football player will need to find a way to make an impact all on his own.
In getting to the Super Bowl, Gregory adds another chapter to what has been one heck of an interesting ride, both in college and then in the NFL.
With the Nebraska football team, he was an All-Big Ten defender in 2013 and 2014 who finished his time in Lincoln with 29 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks. He was someone who was feared by opponents. He was game-planned for often and was another impressive defensive lineman who was a product of the Bo Pelini years.
Former Nebraska football pass rush ace heads to Super Bowl
Drafted in the first round, Gregory missed all or parts of several NFL seasons due to repeated drug test failures. However, when he did play, he showed that he was still one of the best in the NFL at getting to the quarterback.
This year, the ex-Nebraska football star was traded to San Francisco after starting the year with the Denver Broncos. While he didn’t see a ton of playing time despite playing in 12 games, he did manage to record 2.5 sacks.
Gregory doesn’t have a sack yet in this postseason, but he has recorded two tackles in each of the 49ers playoff games.