Stan Smagala

Stanley Adam Smagala (born April 6, 1968) is a former American football safety in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame.

Smagala grew up in Chicago, Illinois and attended St. Laurence High School, where he played as a running back. He accepted a scholarship from the University of Notre Dame, where he was converted to cornerback.

Although head coach Lou Holtz tried to convince him to transfer to another school, at one point he was the team's second fastest player (4.35 seconds in the 40-yard dash) behind wide receiver Tim Brown and eventually became a three-year starter at right cornerback.

His most famous play was a 64-yard interception return for a touchdown against the number 2 ranked University of Southern California in 1988. He also helped the team win a national championship and a school-record 23-game winning streak.

Los Angeles Raiders

Smagala was selected by the Los Angeles Raiders in the fifth round (123rd overall) of the 1990 NFL Draft, but was immediately traded to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a sixth round (#158-James Williams), eighth round (#197-Arthur Jimerson), ninth round (#230-Leon Perry), tenth round (#259-Jim Szymanski) and an eleventh round (#304-Myron Jones) draft choice.

Dallas Cowboys

On September 23, 1990, he suffered a broken left forearm while playing against the Washington Redskins and was placed on the injured reserve list. He was waived on August 26, 1991. On October 17, he was re-signed to replace first-year player Donald Smith. He appeared in 8 games, playing mainly on special teams and making 8 tackles.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On April 2, 1992, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Smagala as a Plan B free agent. He was placed on the injured reserve list with a knee injury on September 1. He was released on August 22, 1993.

After football he worked for a Real Estate Development company.