Warrick Dunn

Warrick Dunn is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 12th overall in the 1997 NFL Draft, after playing college football at Florida State. Dunn was named AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1997 and earned three Pro Bowl selections in his career.

In 1997 Dunn was named NFL Rookie of the Year by Football News, Pro Football Weekly and Sports Illustrated, and designated Offensive Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press, Football Digest and College and Pro Football Newsweekly. He would go on to play five seasons with the Buccaneers, six seasons with the Falcons, and then one final year with the Buccaneers. He retired from the NFL 14th all-time in all-purpose yards with 15,306 and 19th in rushing yards with 10,967.

During his tenure as a Falcon’s running back, Dunn’s curiosity and interests off the field helped him develop a close relationship with Falcon’s owner Arthur Blank. In December 2009, that relationship helped Dunn realize a long-time goal of expanding his knowledge and experience in the area of NFL team management, branding, and operations by being unanimously approved by NFL owners to become a limited partner of the Atlanta Falcons. The purchase of his minority ownership position in the club was completed in March 2010.

In addition to his impressive on-field accomplishments and resume, Dunn is perhaps best known for his involvement in philanthropy. As a rookie for Tampa Bay, Dunn founded our Homes for the Holidays program to fulfill his mother’s dream of home ownership for single parent families. The program partners with local organizations to turn houses into homes for single parent families through home furnishings and down-payment assistance. Since its inception, Homes for the Holidays has furnished 169 homes, provided over $800,000 in down-payment assistance, and served over 457 single parents and children.

The impact of Homes for the Holidays inspired Dunn to expand into three additional programs: Count on Your Future, Sculpt, and Hearts for Community Service Scholarships, all housed today under the Warrick Dunn Charities umbrella. Together, the four programs are dedicated to strengthening and transforming communities by combating poverty, hunger, and improving the quality of lives for families academically, socially, and economically.