Angelo King


Angelo King is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions. He played college football at South Carolina State University.

Early years

King attended Columbia High School. He accepted a football scholarship from the South Carolina State University.
He was named a starter at linebacker midway through his freshman season, and was a part of the 1977 team that was awarded the National Black Championship by the Pittsburgh Courier newspaper.
King was a four-year starter that received All-MEAC honors in 1979 and 1980. He also received honorable-mention Little All-American honors in 1980. As a senior, he blocked a school record 4 punts.
In 2007, he was named to the South Carolina State Centennial Football Team. In 2012, he was inducted into the South Carolina State Athletic Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

King was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys after the 1981 NFL Draft. He was waived on August 3. He was re-signed and released again on August 25. On September 8, he was re-signed after linebacker Mike Hegman fractured his arm in the season opener against the Washington Redskins. He played mainly on special teams and remained on the roster after Hegman returned.
He was mainly a nickel linebacker and special teams player for three seasons. On August 27, 1984, he was traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for a sixth round draft choice.

Detroit Lions

King was a part-time starter and special teams player for the Detroit Lions in his first season with the team. In 1985, the team changed to a 3-4 defense and although he was assigned the role of nickel linebacker, he eventually started 9 games after Michael Cofer was lost for the year and posted career-highs with 90 tackles and 4 sacks.
The next year, he missed 5 games with an ankle injury. After Jimmy Williams was lost for the year, he started the last 4 games at strongside linebacker and finished with 23 tackles.
He was cut on September 6, 1987. After the players went on a strike on the third week of the season, those games were canceled and the NFL decided that the games would be played with replacement players. King was re-signed to be a part of the Lions replacement team, but was injured in the first game and placed on the injured reserve list, before being released on October 27.

Personal life

King works in the security business and is an ordained minister.