Лавераньюс Коулз: Путь американского футболиста

American football player (born 1977)

Laveranues Leon Coles (/l//ə/'/v//ɜr//n//i//ə//s/; born December 29, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the New York Jets. He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles. He was selected by the New York Jets in the third round of the 2000 NFL draft. A Pro Bowl selection in 2003, Coles also played for the Washington Redskins and Cincinnati Bengals.

Coles was born in Jacksonville, Florida. While attending Ribault High School in Jacksonville, Coles played football, basketball, and ran track. In football, he rushed for nearly 5,000 yards in his career, was named to the Blue Chip Dream Team, and was a first team Class 4A All State selection. In basketball, he was a member of a state championship team as a senior. In track, he recorded a time of 10.6 seconds in the 100 meter and 21.8 seconds in the 200 meter on the Ribault track team. Due to a scandal at Florida State which resulted in Coles's dismissal from the team, he often referred to his high school when introducing himself on Monday Night Football.

On September 29, 1999, during his senior season at Florida State, Coles and teammate Peter Warrick went to a Tallahassee, Florida Dillard's department store and, with the aid of a cashier with whom they were friendly, purchased $412.38 worth of clothing and were charged only $21.40—a discount so large that it is considered shoplifting under Florida law. An off duty officer saw the event through a surveillance camera, according to police. Coles, Warrick, and the clerk, were arrested for grand theft. On October 22, Coles pleaded guilty to misdemeanor petty theft and was dismissed from the Florida State Seminoles football team. At that year's rivalry game at the University of Florida, Florida Gators fans brought Dillard's bags to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to mock the team. Florida State won the game, and Seminole fans returned the mocking by requesting the bags as souvenirs. Coles's childhood nickname was "Trouble". Coles was arrested in 1998 for simple battery, suspended for the Seminoles' 1999 season opener versus Louisiana Tech for academic reasons, and was discovered to have accepted a plane ticket from a sports agent's representative in 1999.

Coles was selected by the New York Jets in the third round (78th overall) of the 2000 NFL draft. Coles' first career touchdown catch came in the Jets' "Monday Night Miracle" victory against the Miami Dolphins on October 23, 2000.

After a spectacular 2002 season, Coles signed with the Washington Redskins in the 2002 offseason. He said he left the Jets because the Redskins offered him more money. He made the Pro Bowl for the Redskins in 2003, after catching 82 passes for 1,204 yards, while playing the majority of the season with a fractured toe. It was the most receptions by a Washington player in a single season since Art Monk had 86 in 1989.