O. J. McDuffie

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O. J. McDuffie
Date of birth December 2, 1969
Place of birth Marion, Ohio
Position(s) Wide receiver
College Penn State
NFL Draft 1993 / Round 1
Statistics
Team(s)
1993-2000 Miami Dolphins

Otis James McDuffie (born December 2, 1969 in Marion, Ohio) is a former American Football player who played wide receiver for the Miami Dolphins from 1993 to 2000. In college, McDuffie was an All-American at Penn State University. He was formerly a radio personality for WAXY, an AM sports radio station in South Florida.

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[edit] Miami Dolphins

McDuffie was selected in the first round (25th pick overall) of the 1993 NFL Draft. He returned punts and was a reserve wide receiver before earning the starting spot for the Dolphins. During his formative years as a member of the Dolphins, McDuffie became known as Dan Marino's favorite receiver. His 415 career catches are fourth all-time in Dolphins history. In 1998, McDuffie caught 90 passes, leading the NFL in that category. He is the only Dolphin to achieve this feat. McDuffie played his entire career in Miami, retiring in 2000 due to a toe injury.

[edit] Penn State

McDuffie played college football for legendary coach Joe Paterno at Penn State. He wore the number 24 for the Nittany Lions. He set many single-season and career receiving records, as well as all-purpose yard records. His performance in a Penn State Fiesta Bowl victory over Tennessee on January 1, 1992 garnered him the game's offensive MVP.

McDuffie also played baseball while at Penn State.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in Labor and Industrial Relations from Penn State in 1992.

[edit] High school

McDuffie attended Hawken School in Gates Mills, Ohio, excelling in football, basketball, track and field and baseball. He set Hawken's record for all-purpose yards with 7,302 in his high school career. In 1986, McDuffie returned an interception 108 yards, an unofficial Ohio state record [1]. During his senior year in 1987, he was named the A-AA Ohio Player of the year. For the 1987 high school football season, he scored 136 points (21 touchdowns) ahead of future professional football players Desmond Howard and Robert Smith [2].

His number 32 is retired at Hawken School, and the News-Herald named McDuffie the number 3 player of the 20th century in Northeast Ohio [3].

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