Raymond Lester "Trace" Armstrong III played defensive tackle for the Arizona State Sun Devils from from 1985 to 1987, after redshirting his freshman year of 1984. He was on his way to a stellar career at ASU with an honorable mention All American in his junior year of 1987 before being informed by the NCAA that due an academic mix-up in calculating his high school GPA, he would be denied his final year of NCAA eligibility unless he transferred to another school. He made a wise choice by transferring to Galen Hall's Florida Gators. In 1988 was a first team All American and All SEC selection after setting a Gator record for defensive tackles with 19 tackles for loss (TFL), including 7 sacks. Note that his record was later broken by Brad Culpepper in 1991. Amongst all Gator defensive players, including linebackers and defensive ends, he currently ranks 6th all time for season TFL. His 7 sacks in 1988 are still in the Gator top 15, 3rd for defensive tackles (the others are defensive ends and outside linebackers). He graduated from the University of Florida in 1989 and was the 11th overall pick of the 1989 NFL Draft (Chicago Bears). In the NFL, he found a new niche as defensive end and went on to play six seasons, then serve as president of the NFL Players Association (1996-2003) before becoming an agent for NFL and college coaches (including Urban Meyer). Trace was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Association Hall of Fame as a Gator Great in 2000, and currently resides in Gainesville, Florida.
