Mike Pritchard
Michael Robert Pritchard (born October 26, 1969) is a former American football player who played college football at the University of Colorado and professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks over a nine-year career.
.jpg.webp) Pritchard (35) playing for the Falcons in 1991 | |||||||||
| No. 35 (Falcons), 81(Broncos), 9 (college), 85 (Seahawks) | |||||||||
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| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | October 26, 1969 Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Rancho (North Las Vegas, Nevada) | ||||||||
| College: | Colorado | ||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1991 / Round: 1 / Pick: 13 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Pritchard grew up in Las Vegas and starred as an all-purpose back. His athletic talent attracted attention from collegiate football programs from across the nation. Pritchard eventually accepted an athletic scholarship offer from head coach Bill McCartney of the University of Colorado. He was part of the legendary 1987 recruiting class at Colorado that included Eric Bieniemy, George Hemingway, Alfred Williams, and Kanavis McGhee, all of whom were key players on the 1990 National Championship team.
At Colorado, Pritchard was a versatile player who excelled at a variety of positions, including wide receiver, kick returner, and running back. He started the 1990 season opener at running back, carrying the ball 20 times for 217 yards and two touchdowns. It was his only career start at that position. Pritchard averaged 26.4 yards per pass reception for his career, a mark that remains a school record. His 17.9 average per touch on offense also remains the best in school history.
Pritchard earned a number of honors while at CU. As a senior in 1990, he was named first-team All-Big Eight at wide receiver, also garnering honorable mention All-American honors from the UPI. That same year he was named the most valuable player on CU's national championship team, the only one in school history. Pritchard was later inducted into the University of Colorado sports Hall of Fame in 2015.
Pritchard was the first of nine Colorado players selected in the 1991 NFL Draft. He was selected 13th overall by the Atlanta Falcons. He played nine seasons in the NFL, spending time with Atlanta (1991-93), Denver (1994-95) and Seattle (1996-99). Pritchard had his best professional season in 1992 while he was with the Falcons. That year he caught 77 receptions for 827 yards and scored 5 touchdowns. In 127 career NFL games, he caught 422 passes for 5,178 yards (12.3 yard average) and scored 26 touchdowns.
After his playing career, he moved back to his hometown of Las Vegas where he embarked on a broadcasting career doing color commentary on the UNLV radio network. He has also appeared on TV and radio as a commentator and in both the Las Vegas and Denver areas. Pritchard currently co-hosts a radio morning show on KRLV in Las Vegas.