The Redskins’ first-round draft choices during the first three seasons of the salary cap era were disasters.

Quarterback Heath Shuler (third overall, 1994) was better at passing bills as a member of Congress than he was at passing footballs. Receiver Michael Westbrook (fourth overall, 1995) was most famous for beating up teammate Stephen Davis during a 1997 practice. And offensive tackle Andre Johnson (30th overall, 1996) was so bad that he never played a snap for Washington.

But with top defensive lineman Sean Gilbert threatening to hold out – which he would do all season — general manager Charley Casserly was smart with the 17th pick in the 1997 draft, choosing Miami defensive end Kenard Lang.

“A lean, mean sacking machine,” Lang said the other day with a chuckle from Orlando where he coaches the football team at Wekiva High.

While Lang was no Hall of Fame cinch like Casserly’s last first-rounder, cornerback Champ Bailey (seventh overall, 1999), he did record 50 sacks during his 10 NFL seasons, the first five of which were in Washington. The Redskins, who had been 31-49 during the five years before Lang’s arrival, were 40-39-1 during his tenure and 33-47 during the five years after his departure for Cleveland as a free agent following the 2001 season.

A reliable performer at tackle and end, upon signing with the Browns, Lang was described by ESPN.com’s Len Pasquarelli as “one of the most sought-after players” on the market. And although he played at “The U” which had some less than sterling characters, Lang was always a solid citizen, which foreshadowed his move from wearing cleats to leading young men.

“Coaching was in my blood because my dad [Calvin] coached [high school] basketball and football, but I didn’t really think about it until near the end of my career,” said Lang, whose brother, uncle and cousin have also coached in Florida high schools and colleges. “If we had a young guy come in, my [position] coaches Andre Patterson and Jacob Burney [now with Washington] would put him in my hands. For my coaches to trust me like that to do the right thing, that was the ultimate respect. And I always loved kids so I knew I could be a coach.”

Lang began his coaching career as an assistant at Edgewater High in his native Orlando in 2007, the same year that he finished his sociology degree. He became the head coach across town at Jones High the next year. The Tigers, who had been 1-9 in 2007, were 30-25 under Lang with four playoff appearances. And now he takes on another major challenge at Wekiva, which was 1-9 last season and is 18-43 during its six-year history.

“I like teaching kids the fundamentals of football, the joy of making your parents proud of you for doing the right thing and what life is really about,” said Lang, who has also worked in vocational education and as an adviser to troubled students.

Like tight end Jordan Reed, whom Washington selected in the third round last week, Lang didn’t expect to be selected by the Redskins 16 years ago, but he’s glad that he was. And he has some advice for cornerback David Amerson, Washington’s top choice.

“If I recall right, the teams that had talked to me the most were the Jets, the Giants, Cincinnati and Baltimore so when the Redskins picked me, I was kinda surprised, but I was happy,” Lang said. “I expected to go in the first round, but I didn’t worry about being a first-round pick. I could have been a free agent or a first-rounder, I still would’ve put the same amount of pressure on myself to do the right thing.”

The first major right thing that Lang did on the field for the Redskins was when he teamed with linebacker Marvcus Patton to force a fumble in overtime in the 1997 home opener.

“My favorite memory in Washington is when we won our first home game in the new stadium against Arizona,” said Lang, who keeps in touch with ex-teammates Shawn Barber, Marco Coleman and N.D. Kalu. “We went to overtime, they fumbled and Gus [Frerotte] threw a touchdown to Michael Westbrook. I liked playing in Washington. I just wish I could’ve finished my career there. I guess ownership didn’t want me. What they offered me [as a free agent] was nowhere close to what other teams offered me.”

But if Lang hadn’t gone to Cleveland, he wouldn’t have met his wife Meredith, a boot camp instructor, nor had their daughters Aubrey, 4, and Mia, 2.
And for all he has accomplished on the field including starting all 16 games during his final NFL season in Denver under current Redskins coach Mike Shanahan, Lang is more proud of having gone back to school to earn his degree 10 years after he left.

“It was kind of difficult getting back in the swing of things for the first month, but after that, it was like riding a bicycle,” said the 38-year-old Lang, who hasn’t worn a uniform in more than six years although he’s just four months older than current Redskins captain London Fletcher. “Physically, I can’t play football any more, but the degree I’ll have for life.”


(cbs.local.com)

Kenard Lang resigned as Jones High’s head football coach Tuesday to take over the vacant Wekiva High head-coaching position.

Lang said on Wednesday that he was offered and had accepted the Wekiva job.

“It’s an opportunity to do something else, to do something different,” Lang said. “I enjoyed it [at Jones]. I love it here. The people are great, the kids are great, there’s phenomenal community support. I just was looking for a little change.”

Lang, 37, said that he has already begun his tenure at Wekiva.

“It’s a larger program and I want to build it, make it successful,” Lang said. “It has great community support with its ties around the area in Apopka and on borderline of Pine Hills.”

An Evans graduate who played in the NFL from 1997-06, Lang took over at Jones in 2008. The Tigers had fallen on hard times prior to Lang’s arrival,  including going 1-9 in 2007.  

Lang accumulated a 30-25 record in five seasons at Jones,  guiding the Tigers to four playoff appearances. Jones went 7-5 this past season, falling to Cocoa in the Class 4A regional finals.

Wekiva, part of the Class 8A classification, went 1-9 this past season. The Mustangs were previously led by Ty Parker, who went 18-43 in six seasons at the school.

Lang also cited Wekiva principal Elise Gruber as a reason for taking the wekiva job.

"Kenard is a perfect fit for Wekiva," Gruber said. "Not only does he have experience with our community, being raised in it, he also has a diverse background. He brings a lot of experience to the program. I was impressed with his integrity and personality and his ability to connect with athletes. And he has a pretty good record since 2008. We’re looking forward to him doing the same thing at Wekiva."

Gruber said Lang will begin meeting players on Friday. 

Lang will remain on Jones’ faculty until the end of the semester before joining Wekiva’s staff. 


(orlandosentinel.com)

Football season can bring out the best. Bright House Sports Network has been privy to showcasing some of the best athletes in the country on our Subway Restaurants Game of the Week. We've seen some amazing plays and some great games. But this time of year also brings out the best in people.

Like Kenard Lang.

You can’t miss his bright orange shirt, wooly beard or 6-foot-5 stature. The Jones High head football coach has transformed from barking out plays on the sidelines to bringing holiday cheer.

The Kenard Lang Foundation teamed up with the Wal-Mart in Ocoee and NFL Charities to give 30 lucky kids from the Walt Disney World Boys & Girls Club in Pine Hills a chance to shop for the holidays. They were each given a $75 shopping pass. The retail regiment marched the isles looking for snacks, toys and new gear.

"Boys & Girls Club of Pine Hills, that's where I grew from when I was younger and it's all in good fun,” said Lang, whose foundation has been taking kids shopping during the holidays for the last nine years. “I'm able to do it. I just want to give to them and most importantly, teach them that it's great to give."

Wardrobing was key. But it was also a great way to get presents for others. Club Youth of the Year Martine Louis got everything she needed to make her gifts.

"That's a survival box. Some of the things were like a Snickers so you can have something as sweet as you, a jolly rancher so you can laugh when I'm not there, a tissue to dry your tears when I can't do it for you," Louis said.

14-year-old Demetrius Pickens didn’t have his present ideas picked out to the tee but he was sure to be “looking for gifts for my family and a few for my friends.”

“Hey, go buy something that you like. Go buy something for your mom, your dad, your sister and brother. Put a smile on their face,” Lang said with a big grin on his face and his youngest daughter in tow.

“This is the perfect way to give everybody something because if I had to come up with the money myself then I probably wouldn’t be able to get everything I wanted,” Louis said thankfully.



(baynews9.com)

The sting is going to last for quite some time.

Former University of Miami All-American Kenard Lang still was distraught Thursday night last week when asked about the allegations of major NCAA rules violations made against his alma matter.

"It's extremely disappointing and very disturbing how all of these things can happen," said Lang, who played for the Hurricanes from 1994-96 and now is head football coach at Jones High School in Orlando. "It hurts your heart. I don't condone any of it, at all. Accepting gifts? Players know they're not supposed to, but what are they going to say? Some of them have parents who fight to keep them fed. What are they going to say if someone wants to take them for a $300 dinner … no thank you?"

Yahoo! Sports a week ago reported claims that more than 70 former, current or prospective Miami student athletes were provided cash, gifts, and other improper benefits by former UM booster Nevin Shapiro, a convicted Ponzi schemer. Shapiro provided Yahoo! with receipts, photographs and other evidence to corroborate his claims, made during jailhouse interviews over an 11-month period. The NCAA is now investigating the UM program.

Shapiro claimed top-notch prospects during recruiting trips to the school would be treated to expensive dinners, parties on Shapiro's $1 million yacht, trips to Miami strip clubs and sessions with prostitutes."They were taking advantage of these young kids," Lang said, "just so they could say, 'Hey, I was out with so-and-so, and I had my picture taken with so-and-so.'

"Everything is all hunky dory and he's this big Miami booster hanging with the players. But then, he does something wrong and gets caught and he wants to sit there like a little bird and chatter. You go to jail and now you want to snitch?"

Lang has two players looking at Miami for their futures. Junior ATH Lavante "Kermit" Whitfield committed to the Hurricanes in the spring, while senior OL Duaron Williams has been strongly considering UM.

That was before Tuesday's revelation.

"Everybody knows it's the kind of thing that goes on sort of behind the scenes," said Williams, the No. 10-ranked player in the Sentinel's 2012 Central Florida Super60. "But when it gets reported, that's really bad for the school."

Other Miami prospects are re-thinking their futures, as well.

Winter Garden West Orange safety Lucas Thompson, the No. 9 player in the Sentinel's 2012 Central Florida Super60, has had Miami atop his list of possible colleges from the beginning of his recruitment.

"Miami is still like my top school. All that stuff happened years ago and this coaching staff has nothing to do with that," said Thompson, who will make his college decision on national TV at the Under Armour All-American Game in January. His top five schools are currently Miami, South Carolina, Louisville, West Virginia and East Carolina. "I'm still playing high school football, so I'm just worried about West Orange right now. We're still waiting to hear what's going to happen (with the Miami investigation)."

Thompson said if the Hurricanes get slapped with anything like a four-year post-season probation, they are off his list. As for a shorter penalty, say two-year probation, "That wouldn't really bother me too much really, because I'd just be a sophomore. The junior and senior seasons we could still go to bowl games as juniors and seniors."

Chris Hays covers college football recruiting for the Sentinel. He can be reached at chays@tribune.com.



(orlandosentinel.com)

 

Approaching National Signing Day in 1993, Evans High defensive end Kenard Lang’s top five schools were Miami, Florida, Notre Dame, FAMU and Clemson.

He visited Notre Dame on Heisman Trophy weekend. Raghib “The Rocket” Ismail was there. So was Tim Brown. It also was very cold, and Lang came prepared, wearing a big coat with lots of fur.

“I must have looked like a bear,” Lang said.

The cold weather wasn’t for him, though.

When he visited Florida, the sprawling campus proved too overwhelming.

“I realized that wasn’t for me because the campus was humongous,” Lang said. “Then I went to the University of Miami. The feeling at Miami was more intimate. At Florida, you felt like a Social Security item.”

He was so impressed with the Hurricanes that he decided not to visit Clemson. He had FAMU on his list because that’s where his parents, Calvin and Johnnie, went.

Lang said he made his decision roughly 10 days before National Signing Day that year. That didn’t keep schools from trying to change  his mind, though, in that short time frame.

Lang said one school came up to him and said, ‘”You don’t look like a Miami guy.’ ” It was a reference to the Hurricanes’ outlaw image at the time.

Another coach, who was at Michigan at the time, said, “What’s a Michigan education when compared to a Florida A&M eduction?” Lang said he walked out on that coach.

Lang said if there is one thing he could change about National Signing Day today, it would be to limit early offers to recruits. Between committing and decommitting, the recruits sometimes can be unfairly labeled through the process.

“They are still kids,” Lang said. “A lot of them don’t have the mind-set of adults. We still have adults who are 40 years old who make mistakes.”
NSD has changed plenty in the almost two decades since Lang was recruited. He said he is fine with the increased exposure recruits receive.

“I love it,” he said. “I catch myself watching to see who the University of Miami is getting. Twenty years down the road, it’ll probably be bigger than this.”

Click here to order Kenard Lang’s proCane Rookie Card.



(orlandosentinel.com)

Jones High School football coach Kenard Lang was watching the NFC Championship Game on Sunday and saw Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler leave with an injured left knee.

He and a former teammate were communicating at the time, and they had the same thought.

"Could you ever imagine Brett Favre doing that?'' Lang said."No.''

Cutler has been a source of controversy since his falling-out with then-Denver Broncos coach Josh McDaniels led to a trade to the Bears after the 2008 season. That controversy has heightened as some NFL players and fans have questioned how hurt Cutler was and whether he could have continued playing with a shot at the Super Bowl at stake.

When Cutler was replaced by Todd Collins in the third quarter, the Bears trailed 14-0. Third-string quarterback Caleb Hanie engineered a comeback, but the Green Bay Packers prevailed for a 21-14 victory.

"You have to be taken off the field on a stretcher to come out of a game like that,'' said Lang, who played 10 NFL seasons with the Redskins (1997-2001), Browns (2002-05) and Broncos (2006). "Once you get a reputation, it sticks with you.''

Cutler said he is scheduled for an MRI on his left knee Monday. Lang said the results may not change how Cutler is viewed by the public.

"The damage is done, MRI on not,'' Lang said. "They've already labeled him as a quitter.''

Lang made two playoff appearances in his career, with the Redskins after the 1999 season and with the Browns in 2002. He never advanced past the divisional round.

Then there is the case of former NFL player Ken Harvey, a friend of Lang's. Harvey played 11 seasons in the NFL and never made the postseason.

"When you get to the playoffs and then to the NFC Championship Game, there is no such thing as an injury,'' Lang said. "You might walk with a limp for the rest of your life, but is it worth it to get to the Super Bowl?

"Absolutely.''

Click here to order Kenard Lang’s proCane Rookie Card.



(orlandosentinel.com)