Tag Archives: Niko Noga

Big Red Draft History: 1984 NFL Draft

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The Big Red Zone continues its series looking back on each of the 28 St. Louis Cardinals drafts (1960-87). This installment focuses on the 1984 Draft, which was held May 1-2 in New York.

When the Cardinals selected University of Tennessee wide receiver Clyde Duncan with their first-round pick (17th overall) in the 1984 NFL Draft, no one was more surprised than Duncan himself.

“It was a really a shock. I had no idea I would go in the first round,” said Duncan, who did not make a significant impact as a receiver at Tennessee until his senior season, when he caught 33 passes for 640 yards and six touchdowns.

The Big Red chose Duncan even though they could have taken the more highly rated Louis Lipps, a wide receiver from Southern Mississippi. 

Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill (R) greets 1984 top pick Clyde Duncan.

In his first two seasons in the NFL—his only seasons—Duncan had a combined four receptions for 39 yards and one touchdown. In his first two seasons, Lipps caught 104 passes for 1,994 yards and 21 TDs for Pittsburgh.

There was only one problem with Duncan. He couldn’t catch the football. 

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Niko Noga: One Tough Samoan

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He has an “unusual background,” head coach Jim Hanifan said after the Cardinals drafted a little-known linebacker in the eighth round of the 1984 NFL draft.

That man was University of Hawaii star Falaniko “Niko” Noga, who was born in American Samoa in 1962. He said that being born with him was something that is given to all Samoans at birth.

“It’s an instinct that comes from way back,” he told the St. Louis Post Dispatch in a 1985 interview. “I think our people have big monsters in them. We believe that we can do anything to anybody. When you realize you have that monster in you, you have to find something to use it for. I found football.”

The 6-foot-1, 235-pound rookie quickly caught the eye of head coach Jim Hanifan. He excelled on special teams and introduced himself to the home fans in an October 1984 game against the Chicago Bears.

Noga broke open a close game when he barrelled through the Bears’ line and blocked Dave Finzer’s punt with just over 6 minutes remaining in the contest.

“As soon as I saw him drop the snap, I put on my engine and was gone,” Noga said after the game. “The play wasn’t designed to block a punt. But when I saw what had happened, I knew what I had to do. I just wanted to get there.

“That’s the best hit I’ve had in the National Football League,” the rookie added.

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Big Red Flashback: Revisiting Cards Record Breaking Victory

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Posted by Bob Underwood

The NFL was coming off another strike and the Big Red were on a three-game losing streak. They were facing a bad Tampa Bay team and owner Bill Bidwill was talking about leaving town. It’s a wonder that even 22,449 fans showed up to see the Cardinals play the Buccaneers on a dreary, rainy Sunday in early November.

And like many fans, the Cards were no-shows themselves for the first three quarters of the game spotting the Bucs a 28-3 lead. As St. Louis Post Dispatch columnist Kevin Horrigan wrote, “As the fourth quarter began, the Bucs are up by 25 points and it’s so quiet you can hear the cheerleaders, which is a bad sign. NFL cheerleaders are designed to be seen, not heard.”

But the game was far from over. The Big Red erupted for four touchdowns in the final 12:42 to win the game 31-28. It was the largest fourth quarter comeback in NFL history.

“Just another laugher,” said Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill who was accompanied by detectives after receiving a death threat prior to the game.

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The Top 100 St. Louis Football Cardinals (100-91)

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With the NFL celebrating its centennial season in 2019, the league will soon be announcing its top 100 players of all-time. I thought it would be fun to look back and rank the Big Red’s top 100 players who played in St. Louis.

The Cardinals moved from Chicago after the 1959 season and played 28 years in St. Louis before Bill Bidwill moved to the desert in 1988. Several great players played under the arch during this period including four Hall of Famers.

These rankings are only based on the player’s time spent in St. Louis. Consideration was given to the player’s statistics, All-Pro/Pro Bowl selections, team leadership, and impact in the community. It is next to impossible to compare eras, so many of these picks were very difficult.

So here goes.

The Top 100 St. Louis Football Cardinals of All-Time: 100-91

100. CARL BIRDSONG (P)

Carl Birdsong played 5 seasons in St. Louis.

It seemed the Big Red never took the punting position seriously. In the 1960s they used safeties Jerry Norton and Jerry Stovall, kick returner Chuck Latourette, and even Jackie Smith. In the 70s it seemed they had a new punter every season. Hal Roberts, Jeff West, and Terry Joyce among others. And then there was the Steve Little experiment in 1978/79.

After 21 seasons Carl Birdsong finally brought some stability to the position. He was an undrafted free agent out of tiny SW Oklahoma St. where he was an All-American punter. Birdsong played for the Cardinals five seasons (1981-1985) and had the longest punt in the NFL his rookie season (75 yards) as he was named to the UPI All-Rookie team. His best year was in 1982 when he averaged 43.8 yards per punt. He followed that up with a Pro Bowl berth in 1983 when he finished second in the NFL with a net average of 37.3 yards. Birdsong lost his job in 1986 in part because new kicker John Lee’s kickoffs were too short and the head coach Gene Stallings wanted someone who could punt and kick off.

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