Terry Hoage
Terrell Hoage | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 11, 1962 Ames, Iowa, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Professional football player (retired), winemaker |
| Years active | 1984–1996 (football) |
| Known for | NFL safety, TH Estates Vineyards founder |
Terrell Lee Hoage (born April 11, 1962) is a retired professional football safety whose NFL career spanned 13 seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. He distinguished himself at the University of Georgia, where he earned All-American recognition before embarking on a professional journey with the New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, San Francisco 49ers, Houston Oilers, and Arizona Cardinals.
Early life
Hoage was born in Ames, Iowa and relocated to Huntsville, Texas in 1968. Throughout high school, he demonstrated both athletic prowess and academic excellence, participating in football, basketball, and track while ranking within the top five percent of his graduating class. Starting as a sophomore, he played quarterback and free safety, garnering All District and All Trinity Valley accolades. Despite his strong academic record and athletic ability, the University of Georgia was the sole institution to offer him a football scholarship, where he secured a starting position by his second year.
College career
Between 1980 and 1983, Hoage competed for the University of Georgia under coach Vince Dooley as part of the Georgia Bulldogs football squad. In his freshman season, he notably blocked a Notre Dame field goal during Georgia’s National Championship victory, which ended 17–10. During his junior and senior years, he achieved consensus first-team All-American status. Coach Dooley praised him as "the best defensive player I've ever coached and perhaps the finest I have ever witnessed." In 1983, Hoage placed fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting. He graduated in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in genetics, maintaining a 3.85 GPA. His college roommate, Mike Hubbard, later became the first Republican Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives in over a century.
Professional career
Hoage entered the NFL when the New Orleans Saints selected him in the third round (68th overall) of the 1984 NFL draft. Over his 13-year professional tenure, he played for six franchises: Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, Houston Oilers, San Francisco 49ers, and Arizona Cardinals. He concluded his playing career in 1996. His lone NFL touchdown came during the opening game of the 1988 season with a 38-yard rush against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Life after football
Following retirement from professional football, Hoage interned at Merrill Lynch and successfully passed the Series 7 exam, though he found the corporate atmosphere unappealing. Together with his wife Jennifer, he relocated to Phoenix, Arizona where they launched a construction business before moving to Templeton, California. Hoage declined an opportunity to coach in the NFL offered by Jeff Fisher with the Tennessee Titans, opting instead to pursue farming locally.
In 2002, the couple acquired a vineyard in Paso Robles, California. They collaborated with winemaker Justin Smith—later honored as Wine Spectator Wine of the Year producer—to evaluate and develop their property. This collaboration lent credibility to their venture as they established TH Estates Vineyards, specializing in Rhone varietals and producing approximately 2,000 cases annually. Their inaugural wine, The Hedge Syrah, drew inspiration from vineyard pruning techniques as well as the hedges surrounding University of Georgia’s Sanford Stadium; it was dedicated to coach Dooley.
Later releases from TH Estates incorporated football-inspired names: "46" referenced both Buddy Ryan's defensive scheme and nearby Highway 46; "Skins" alluded simultaneously to the Redskins team name and grape skins; "5 Blocks" honored Hoage's five blocked field goals during his collegiate career alongside specific vineyard blocks.
TH Estate Wines ceased operations in 2023 when the Hoages retired from winemaking.
Awards and honors
- Consensus first-team All-American on two occasions
- Twice honored as the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Defensive Player of the Year
- Ranked fifth in the 1983 Heisman Trophy balloting
- Honored with the 1984 Top V Award
- Recognized as the SEC Athlete of the Year in 1984
- Inducted into the Georgia-Florida Hall of Fame in 1997
- Enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000
- Added to the CoSIDA Academic Hall of Fame in 2004
- Entered the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2009
- Included on the SEC 25-year team spanning 1961 to 1985
- Chosen for the Walter Camp All Century Team at the safety position