place_of_birth carl nicks 
___MASK26___ James Stadium , also known as the " Ray Jay ", is a multi - purpose football stadium located in ___MASK15___ , Florida . It is home to the ___MASK15___ Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League ( NFL ) as well as the NCAA ' s South Florida Bulls football team . The stadium seats 65 , 890 , and is expandable to 75 , 000 for special events . The stadium also hosts the annual Outback Bowl on New Year ' s Day and the Monster Jam tour for monster trucks holds an event at the stadium . New ___MASK46___ ( or ) is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of ___MASK80___ . The population of the city was 343 , 829 as of the 2010 U . S . Census . The New ___MASK46___ metropolitan area ( New ___MASK46___  Metairie  Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area ) had a population of 1 , 167 , 764 in 2010 and was the 46th largest in the United States . The New ___MASK46___  Metairie  Bogalusa Combined Statistical Area , a larger trading area , had a 2010 population of 1 , 452 , 502 . The ___MASK51___ Seahawks are a professional American football franchise based in ___MASK51___ , Washington . The Seahawks compete in the National Football League ( NFL ) as a member club of the league ' s National Football Conference ( NFC ) West division . The Seahawks joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team , along with the ___MASK15___ Bay Buccaneers . The Seahawks are owned by Microsoft co - founder Paul Allen and are currently coached by Pete Carroll . Since 2002 , the Seahawks have played their home games at CenturyLink Field ( formerly Qwest Field ), located south of downtown ___MASK51___ . The Seahawks previously played home games in the Kingdome ( 1976  1999 ) and Husky Stadium ( 1994 , 2000  2001 ). Christmas or Christmas Day ( meaning " Christ ' s Mass ") is an annual festival commemorating the birth ___MASK38___ Jesus Christ , observed ___MASK35___ commonly on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions ___MASK38___ people around the world . A feast central to the Christian liturgical year , it is prepared for by the season ___MASK38___ Advent or the Nativity Fast and initiates the season ___MASK38___ Christmastide , which historically in the West lasts twelve days and culminates on Twelfth Night ; in some traditions , Christmastide includes an Octave . The traditional Christmas narrative , the Nativity ___MASK38___ Jesus , delineated in the New Testament says that Jesus was born in Bethlehem , in accordance with messianic prophecies ; when Joseph and ___MASK72___ arrived in the city , the inn had no room and so they were offered a stable where the Christ Child was soon born , with angels proclaiming this news to shepherds who then disseminated the message furthermore . Christmas Day is a public holiday in many ___MASK38___ the world ' s nations , is celebrated religiously by the vast majority ___MASK38___ Christians , as well as culturally by a number ___MASK38___ non - Christian people , and is an integral part ___MASK38___ the holiday season , while some Christian groups reject the celebration . In several countries , celebrating Christmas Eve on December 24 has the main focus rather than December 25 , with gift - giving and sharing a traditional meal with the family . The 2008 NFL Draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in ___MASK55___ City , ___MASK55___ , on April 26 and April 27 , 2008 . For the 29th consecutive year , ESPN televised the draft ; the NFL Network also broadcast the event , its third year doing so . Of the 252 selections , 220 were regular selections in rounds one through seven , and 32 were compensatory selections , distributed among rounds three through seven . The NFC West is a division ___MASK38___ the National Football League ( NFL )' s National Football Conference ( NFC ). It currently has four members : the Arizona Cardinals , the ___MASK60___ Rams , the ___MASK75___ 49ers , and the ___MASK51___ Seahawks . Carl Nicks , Jr . ( born May 14 , 1985 ) is a former ___MASK56___ player who was an offensive lineman in the National Football League ( NFL ) for six seasons . He played college football for the University ___MASK38___ Nebraska , and was drafted by the New ___MASK46___ Saints in the fifth round ___MASK38___ the 2008 NFL Draft . He also played for the ___MASK15___ Bay Buccaneers . The ___MASK15___ Bay Buccaneers ( often shortened as the Bucs ) are a professional American football franchise based in ___MASK15___ , Florida . The Buccaneers currently compete in the National Football League ( NFL ) as a member team of the National Football Conference ( NFC ) South division . Along with the Seattle Seahawks , the team joined the NFL in as an expansion team . The Bucs played their first season in the American Football Conference ( AFC ) West division as part of the 1976 expansion plan , whereby each new franchise would play every other franchise over the first two years . After the season , the club switched conferences with the Seahawks and became a member of the NFC Central division . During the 2002 league realignment , the Bucs joined three former NFC West teams to form the NFC South . The club is owned by the Glazer family , and plays its home games at Raymond James Stadium in ___MASK15___ . FAU Stadium is a college football stadium located at the north end ___MASK38___ the main campus ___MASK38___ Florida Atlantic University ( FAU ) in ___MASK71___ Raton , Florida . Opened in 2011 , it is home to the Florida Atlantic Owls football team and is intended to be the first part ___MASK38___ FAU ' s multi - use development project , " Innovation Village ". An expansion team is a ___MASK63___ new team in a sports league , usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before , formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area . Sporting leagues also hope that the expansion of their competition will grow the popularity of the sport generally . The term is most commonly used in reference to the North American major professional sports leagues but is applied to sports leagues in other countries with a closed franchise system of league membership . The term comes from the expansion of the sport into new areas . That sometimes results in the payment of an expansion fee to the league by the new team and an expansion draft to populate the new roster . Tulane Stadium was an outdoor football stadium located in New ___MASK46___ , that stood from 1926 to 1980 . Officially known as the Third Tulane Stadium , it replaced the " Second Tulane Stadium " where the Telephone Exchange Building is now located . The former site is currently bound by Willow Street to the south , Ben Weiner Drive to the east , the Tulane University property line west of McAlister Place , and the Hertz Basketball / Volleyball Practice Facility and the Green Wave ' s current home , Yulman Stadium , to the north . Labor Day in the United States is a public holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September . It honors the American labor movement and the contributions that workers have ___MASK94___ to the strength , prosperity , laws and well - being of the country . It is the Monday of the long weekend known as Labor Day Weekend and it is considered the unofficial end of summer . The holiday is also a federal holiday . A single - elimination tournament  also called an Olympic system tournament , a knockout ( or , knock - out ), single penetration , or sudden death tournament  is a type ___MASK38___ elimination tournament where the loser ___MASK38___ each bracket is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event . The Super Bowl is the annual championship game ___MASK38___ the National Football League ( NFL ), the highest level ___MASK38___ professional American football in the world . The game is the culmination to a season that begins in the late summer ___MASK38___ the previous calendar year . Normally , ___MASK43___ numerals are used to identify each game , rather than the year in which it is held . For example , Super Bowl I was played on January 15 , 1967 , following the 1966 regular season . The single exception to this rule is Super Bowl 50 , which was played on February 7 , 2016 , following the 2015 regular season . The next game , Super Bowl LI , scheduled for February 5 , 2017 , will follow the 2016 regular season . ___MASK7___ ( Spanish for " land ___MASK38___ flowers ") is a state located in the southeastern region ___MASK38___ the United States . It is bordered to the west by the Gulf ___MASK38___ ___MASK67___ , to the north by Alabama and Georgia , to the east by the Atlantic Ocean , and to the south by the Straits ___MASK38___ ___MASK7___ and ___MASK82___ . ___MASK7___ is the 22nd most extensive , the 3rd most populous , and the 8th most densely populated ___MASK38___ the U . S . states . Jacksonville is the most populous municipality in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States . The Miami metropolitan area is ___MASK7___ ' s most populous urban area . The city ___MASK38___ Tallahassee is the state capital . A touchdown is a means ___MASK38___ scoring in both American and ___MASK44___ football . Whether running , passing , returning a kickoff or punt , or recovering a turnover , a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent ' s end zone . ___MASK56___ , referred to as football in the United States and Canada , and also known as gridiron , is a sport played by two teams ___MASK38___ eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end . The offense , the team with control ___MASK38___ the oval - shaped football , attempts to advance down the field by running with or passing the ball , while the team without control ___MASK38___ the ball , the defense , aims to stop their advance and take control ___MASK38___ the ball for themselves . The offense must advance at least ten yards in four downs , or plays , or else they turn over the football to the opposing team ; if they succeed , they are given a new set ___MASK38___ four downs . Points are primarily scored by advancing the ball into the opposing team ' s end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponent ' s goalposts for a field goal . The team with the ___MASK35___ points at the end ___MASK38___ a game wins . Papa John ' s Cardinal Stadium is a football stadium located in ___MASK97___ , ___MASK39___ , United States , on the southern end of the campus of the University of ___MASK97___ . Debuting in 1998 , it serves as the home of the ___MASK97___ Cardinals football program . The official seating capacity in the quasi - horseshoe shaped facility was 42 , 000 through the 2008 season . An expansion project that started after the 2008 season was completed in ___MASK91___ for the 2010 season has brought the official capacity to 55 , 000 . An additional expansion project aiming to close the open end of the horseshoe to add 10 , 000 additional seats was announced on August 28 , 2015 , with the goal of opening within 2 years . ___MASK15___ is a major city in , and the county seat of , Hillsborough County , Florida . It is located on the west coast of Florida on ___MASK15___ Bay , near the Gulf of Mexico , and is part of the ___MASK15___ Bay Metropolitan Area . The city had a population of 346 , 037 in 2011 . History . Even after the emergence ___MASK38___ the professional National Football League ( NFL ), college football remained extremely popular throughout the U . S . Although the college game has a much larger margin for talent than its pro counterpart , the sheer number ___MASK38___ fans following major colleges provides a financial equalizer for the game , with Division I programs  the highest level  playing in huge stadiums , six ___MASK38___ which have seating capacity exceeding 100 , 000 . In many cases , college stadiums employ bench - style seating , as opposed to individual seats with backs and arm rests . This allows them to seat more fans in a given amount ___MASK38___ space than the typical professional stadium , which tends to have more features and comforts for fans . ( Only two stadiums owned by U . S . colleges or universities  Papa John ' s Cardinal Stadium at the University ___MASK38___ Louisville and FAU Stadium at Florida Atlantic University  consist entirely ___MASK38___ chairback seating .) The National Football League ( NFL ) is a professional ___MASK56___ league consisting ___MASK38___ 32 teams , divided equally between the National Football Conference ( NFC ) and the American Football Conference ( AFC ). The NFL is one ___MASK38___ the four major professional sports leagues in North America , and the highest professional level ___MASK38___ ___MASK56___ in the world . The NFL ' s 17 - week regular season runs from the week after Labor Day to the week after Christmas , with each team playing 16 games and having one bye week . Following the conclusion ___MASK38___ the regular season , six teams from each conference ( four division winners and two wild card teams ) advance to the playoffs , a single - elimination tournament culminating in the Super Bowl , played between the champions ___MASK38___ the NFC and AFC . The ___MASK56___ Conference ( AFC ) is one ___MASK38___ the two conferences ___MASK38___ the National Football League ( NFL ), the highest professional level ___MASK38___ American football in the United States . This conference and its counterpart , the National Football Conference ( NFC ), currently contain 16 teams each , making up the 32 teams ___MASK38___ the NFL . Both conferences were created as part ___MASK38___ the 1970 merger with the rival ___MASK56___ League ( AFL ), with all ten ___MASK38___ the former AFL teams and three NFL teams forming the AFC , and the remaining thirteen NFL clubs forming the NFC . A series ___MASK38___ league expansions and division realignments have occurred since the merger , thus making the current total 16 clubs per each conference . The New ___MASK46___ Saints are a professional American football team based in New ___MASK46___ , ___MASK80___ . The Saints currently compete in the National Football League ( NFL ) as a member of the league ' s National Football Conference ( NFC ) South division . The team was founded by John W . Mecom Jr ., David Dixon and the city of New ___MASK46___ . The Saints began play in Tulane Stadium in 1967 . ESPN ( originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Networks ) is a U . S .- based global cable and satellite sports television channel owned by ESPN Inc ., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company ( which operates the network ) and the ___MASK6___ Corporation ( which owns a 20 % minority share ). ___MASK80___ ( or ; ___MASK80___ Creole : " Léta de la Lwizyàn ") is a state located in the southern region of the United States . ___MASK80___ is the 31st most extensive and the 25th most populous of the 50 United States . Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans . ___MASK80___ is the only state in the U . S . with political subdivisions termed parishes , which are the local government ' s equivalent to counties . The largest parish by population is East Baton Rouge Parish , and the largest by total area is Plaquemines . ___MASK80___ is bordered by Arkansas to the north , Mississippi to the east , Texas to the west , and the Gulf of Mexico to the south . ___MASK15___ Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida , comprising Hillsboro Bay , McKay Bay , Old ___MASK15___ Bay , Middle ___MASK15___ Bay , and Lower ___MASK15___ Bay . The surrounding area is home to about 4 million residents , making it a heavily used commercial and recreational waterway but putting much stress on the bay ' s ecosystem , which once teemed with enough wildlife to easily support an extensive indigenous culture . Much greater care has been taken in recent decades to mitigate the effects of human habitation on ___MASK15___ Bay , and water quality has slowly improved over time . Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue located in Rockefeller ___MASK85___ in ___MASK55___ City . Its nickname is the " Showplace of the Nation ", and it was for a time the leading tourist destination in the city . Its interior was declared a city landmark in 1978 . It is notable as being the headquarters for the precision dance company , the Rockettes . NFL Network ( occasionally abbreviated on - air as NFLN ) is an American sports - oriented cable and satellite television network that is owned by the National Football League ( NFL ) and is part ___MASK38___ NFL ___MASK33___ , which also includes NFL . com , NFL Films , NFL ___MASK52___ , NFL Now and NFL RedZone . Dedicated to American football , the network features game telecasts from the NFL , as well as NFL - related content including analysis programs , specials and documentaries . The network is headquartered in the Los Angeles suburb ___MASK38___ ___MASK4___ City , California , and broadcasts its worldwide feed from Encompass Digital ___MASK33___ ( formally Crawford Communications ) in Atlanta , Georgia . The National Football Conference ( NFC ) is one ___MASK38___ the two conferences ___MASK38___ the National Football League ( NFL ), the highest professional level ___MASK38___ American football in the United States . This conference and its counterpart , the American Football Conference ( AFC ), currently contain 16 teams each , making up the 32 teams ___MASK38___ the NFL . Both conferences were created as part ___MASK38___ the 1970 merger with the rival American Football League ( AFL ), with all ten ___MASK38___ the former AFL teams and three NFL teams forming the AFC while the remaining thirteen NFL clubs formed the NFC . A series ___MASK38___ league expansions and division realignments have occurred since the merger , thus making the current total 16 clubs per each conference .