Billy Pittman

Billy Pittman (born September 19, 1984) is a former American football player. He played college football as a wide receiver for the University of Texas Longhorns from 2003 to 2007 and was the leading receiver on the 2005 Texas team that won the BCS National Championship.

Billy Pittman
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1984-09-19) September 19, 1984
Cameron, Texas
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
College:Texas
Undrafted:2008
Career history
  • San Diego Chargers (2008)*
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only

High school career

He attended C.H. Yoe High School in Cameron, Texas. He started at quarterback for the Yoemen for four years and accounted for 7,090 yards and 66 touchdowns during his prep career. In his senior year, Pittman was third-team 3A THSCA All-State and District 18-3A MVP. He once completed 13-of-19 passes for 223 yards and a touchdown and rushed 24 times for 267 yards and two touchdowns against Waco Connally.

University of Texas

Pittman played college football at the University of Texas from 2003 to 2007.[1] As a freshman in 2003, he sustained a torn quadriceps muscle and was a redshirt.[2] In 2004, he missed the entire season after sustaining a separated shoulder, another torn leg muscle and being diagnosed with Bell's Palsy, a rare condition that results in inability to control facial muscles on the affected side and can also cause facial paralysis.[2][3][4] In 2006, Stewart Mandell published a feature story in Sports Illustrated on Pittman's comeback from the rare disorder. Mandell described Pittman's discovery of his condition as follows:

"It started with a simple twitch. Billy Pittman woke up one spring morning two years ago to find his eye was twitching, and it wouldn't stop. Eye drops, a splash of water to the face -- no help. He went back to bed that afternoon, woke up, and now noticed his nostril wasn't moving. By the next morning, he couldn't feel the left side of his face."[5]

Texas coach Mack Brown recalled that, after missing the 2003 and 2004 seasons, Pittman nearly quit the team: "That poor young man had everything that could possibly happen happen. He was ready to quit."[5] After coming back from the condition, Pittman told a local reporter for the Associated Press, "I've come through a lot. What don't kill you will make you stronger."[2]

Pittman was able to overcome the disorder and became the leading receiver on the 2005 Texas Longhorns football team that finished the regular season with a record and defeated the USC Trojans for the BCS National Championship.[5] During the 2005 campaign, Pittman became the favorite receiver for Texas quarterback Vince Young. In the second game of the season, Pittman helped the Longhorns defeat Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio. Pittman scored the first touchdown against the Buckeyes and gained 63 yards on a catch in the third quarter. He finished the game with five catches for 130 yards.[6][7] He added a 64-yard touchdown catch against Oklahoma and a 75-yard catch against Texas Tech. Pittman caught 34 passes from Young in 2005 for 750 receiving yards, an average of 22.1 yards per catch, and five touchdowns.[1]

Pittman had a second strong showing in 2006 with 35 catches for 456 yards and four touchdowns.[1]

Pittman was suspended for the first three games of the 2007 season for "infringement of amateurism rules". According to Pittman, he drove a friend's car for the duration of this summer, which classifies as an improper benefit.[8][9] In nine games for the Longhorns during the 2007 season, Pittman had 11 catches for 77 yards.[1]

Professional football

Pittman ran a relatively slow time of 4.76 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. At Texas's Pro Day, he improved it slightly to that of 4.71 seconds and had a vertical leap of 32.5 inches. He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent on the 28 April 2008.[10] Pittman was put on waivers at the end of August 2008 as the Chargers made cut the roster to 75 players.[11]

References
  1. "Archived Team-By-Team Final Statistics". NCAA.org.
  2. Jim Vertuno (October 28, 2005). "Pittman emerging as key 'Horns receiver". The Victoria Advocate (Associated Press story).
  3. Chip Brown (October 13, 2005). "Wheel of fortune: Pittman's luck turns north; Vexed, hexed start to UT career in receiver's rearview mirror now". the Dallas Morning News.
  4. Cedric Golden (October 16, 2005). "Longhorn escapes a personal pit". Chicago Tribune.
  5. Stewart Mandell (January 2, 2006). "Sweet resiliency: Pittman overcomes setbacks to become key for 'Horns". Sports Illustrated.
  6. Chip Brown (September 11, 2005). "Charles, Pittman emerge". The Dallas Morning News.
  7. "Longhorns crash Columbus". Austin American-Statesman. September 11, 2005.
  8. Chip Brown (August 31, 2007). "UT suspends WR Pittman for 3 games". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
  9. "Texas WR Pittman suspended 3 games for borrowing friend's car". USA Today. September 2, 2007.
  10. Casey Pearce (April 28, 2008). "Chargers add 17 free agents". Chargers.com. Archived from the original on July 5, 2008. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
  11. "CHARGERS: Bolts need to tackle 'D' woes". North County Times. August 26, 2008. Archived from the original on September 3, 2012. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
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