<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=587 border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=bottom><TD>Where Are They Now: SS Andre Waters </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
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August 4, 2004
By GARY KRAVITZ
While some past NFL greats try to totally get away from the everyday grind of football after their careers are over, there are other players who simply can't escape both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.
Former Eagles' strong safety great Andre Waters is specifically that type of person, and was that kind of player. Currently single and residing in Tampa, Florida, the 42-year-old Waters is giving back to the sport that gave him so much fulfillment during a 12-year NFL career that included stints with the Eagles (1984-93) and Arizona Cardinals (1994-95).
I just like coaching, working with young people and making them great people both on and off the field," said Waters, currently in his third year as the defensive coordinator for Saint Augustine's College located in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The Cheyney University graduate had previous college coaching stints at Morgan State, University of South Florida, and Alabama State, where he headed the secondary.
When he initially retired, Waters had high hopes for his golf game, but things didn't pan out. Said Waters jokingly about his golf game: "I just never got the golf game down after retiring. If I get the golf game down, then I'll have another profession, but my golf game needs a lot of work."
When asked which profession he preferred -- coaching or playing -- the bone jarring, hard-hitting No. 20 leans toward strapping on the helmet and shoulder pads.
"I enjoy coaching, but today's athletes are different," said Waters, who describes himself as a very caring, loving, spiritual person. "When you're playing, you are in total control out there on the field. And when I played, gas was a lot cheaper back then, too.
"When coaching, it's very tough because the outcome of the game is put into the hands of your players," Waters said.
As the Eagles starting strong safety from 1986 to 1993, Waters played on some terrific defensive units alongside perennial Pro-Bowl players like Reggie White, Clyde Simmons, Eric Allen, and the late Jerome Brown. However, he feels strongly that the Birds' defensive unit during the 1991 season was the best ever in the NFL.
"We were such a close, tight knit unit; everybody knew their role and we were all like brothers," Waters said.
Waters continued about the 1991 season: "As a defensive unit going into that season, the night before the Green Bay game, we all said in the hotel we're going to win the Super Bowl. We felt our defense was good enough alone to get to the Super Bowl. "Now what we didn't know on that Saturday night, was that (quarterback) Randall Cunningham would get injured for the season against the Packers." Waters, of course, is talking about the season opener when his quarterback was sidelined for the season with a knee injury.
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They had a nice piece on him yesteday on Comcast Sportsnet, Daily News Live Segment.
On ething I had not realized --
reggie white -- dead
jerome brown -- dead
andre waters -- dead
what are the odds. 3 guys from one of, if not the most, dominating defenses ever.
On ething I had not realized --
reggie white -- dead
jerome brown -- dead
andre waters -- dead
what are the odds. 3 guys from one of, if not the most, dominating defenses ever.
