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ATHENS, Ohio -- The Ohio football program will be represented by one of its former standouts in Super Bowl LV as safety Javon Hagan (Jacksonville, Fla.) has helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clinch a spot in the NFL's championship game.
Tampa Bay (14-5) holds the distinction of being the first team to play a Super Bowl in its home stadium as the Buccaneers welcome the AFC champion and reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (16-2) to Raymond James Stadium this evening with the right to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy at stake. Kickoff is set for 6:40 p.m. ET, and the contest will be nationally televised on CBS.
The Buccaneers are appearing in their second Super Bowl in franchise history, as No. 5-seeded Tampa Bay upset No. 1-seeded Green Bay, 31-26, in the NFC Championship Game on January 24 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. Tampa Bay is seeking its second Super Bowl title in franchise history. The Buccaneers defeated the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII to conclude the 2002 season.
Hagan made his NFL debut in the conference title game victory over the Packers. He was elevated from the practice squad to the active roster ahead of the contest and played 10 snaps on special teams on the coverage/return units.
Hagan, who suited up for the Bobcats from 2015-19, joined the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in May and had been on Tampa Bay's practice squad during the entire 2020 regular season and for the Buccaneers' 31-23 win over the No. 4-seeded Washington Football in the NFC Wild Card Game on January 9. He was elevated from the practice squad to the active roster prior to Tampa Bay's 30-20 victory over No. 2-seeded New Orleans on January 17 but was a gameday inactive.
A starter in 48 of the 52 career games he played in and three-year team captain at Ohio, Hagan compiled 318 career total tackles (192 solo, tied for fifth-most in program history; 126 assisted), with 9.5 career tackles for loss. He accounted for 32 career passes defensed (tied for eighth-most in program history), tallied six career interceptions for 132 career interception return yards, notched 26 career pass breakups (eighth-most in program history) and forced nine career fumbles with four career fumble recoveries.
Hagan capped off his 2019 senior season at Ohio by earning All-Mid-American Conference First Team selection for the second year in a row after being named to the All-MAC Second Team in 2016 and '17. He holds the distinction of being the first defensive back in the history of Ohio's program to be named to the All-MAC First Team multiple times. Hagan finished the 2019 season ranked ninth among MAC players with a career-high 102 total tackles to lead the team, including a team-high 47 solo stops and a career-high 55 assisted tackles. He recorded double-digit total tackles four times, including a career-high 16 against Western Michigan on Nov. 12. He matched his career-high with three tackles for loss in that game. Hagan's seven pass breakups led the team, and he logged one quarterback hurry, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
Hagan burst onto the scene as a redshirt freshman in 2016, playing in all 14 games with 10 starts. He was named to the 2016 Sound Mind Sound Body Freshman All-America Team by the Football Writer's Association of America and earned MAC Freshman of the Year honors. That season, Hagan ranked fifth on the team with 53 total tackles, tallying 35 solo stops and 18 assisted tackles. He notched a career-high three tackles for loss, recorded a career-high 11 passes defensed, logged a career-high eight pass breakups and picked off a career-high three passes and totaled 120 interception return yards, which ranks as the sixth-most in a single season in program history.
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