Devin Hester

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Devin Hester
Date of birth	November 4, 1982 (age 24)
Place of birth	Riviera Beach, Florida
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)
Weight	189 lb (86 kg)
Position(s)	Cornerback, Return Specialist
College	University of Miami
NFL Draft	2006 / Round 2 / Pick 57
Career Highlights
Pro Bowls	2007
Honors	NFC Player of the Month (12/06) AP's 2006 All-Pro Team
Records	Longest play (108 yds)* Most TD returns in a season (6) Most Kick TD returns in a season (5) Most TD returns as a rookie (6) Most TD returns in one game (2)** Shared with Nathan Vasher *Shared with with five others
Stats
Statistics	Pro Football Reference NFL.com CBS.com
Team(s)
2006 -present	Chicago Bears

Devin Hester (born November 4, 1982) is an American football cornerback and return specialist for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He is an alumnus of the University of Miami, where he became the first person in the university’s history to play in all three phases of the football.^[1] Hester was Chicago’s second overall draft pick in 2006, and quickly earned a reputation for his ability to return kicks and punts. Dubbed as the “Windy City Flyer” and “Anytime”, Hester holds the league's all-time record for most touchdown returns in one season.^[2]

1 Early life
2 Collegiate career
3 Professional career
4 Personal life
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Early life

Devin Hester was born to Juanita Brown and Lenorris Sr. Hester in Riviera Beach, Florida. His early life was full of adversity. When he was twelve years old his father, who had recently been divorced from his mother, died. Later in his life, his mother was severely injured in a car accident. His stepfather, Derrick Brown, eased Hester’s emotions by introducing him to football. With the additional aid of his older brother, Lenorris Jr., Hester was able to excel in football and academics.^[3]

Hester attended Suncoast High School. During his high school career, he played football as a cornerback, wide receiver, and running back. He was also a precocious return specialist, earning honors from SuperPrep.com as the nation’s sixth best high school prospect in Florida, and being named as a Parade All-American. Hester also participated in the 2002 CaliFlorida Bowl, where he returned a kick for an 80-yard touchdown.^[4]^[5]

During his youth, Hester was a fan of the Dallas Cowboys. He especially idolized Deion Sanders, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin. He was also a fan of the Chicago Bulls during the Michael Jordan and Phil Jackson era.^[6] Hester was also a fan of Fred Taylor during his tenure at the University of Florida. In addition to football, He enjoyed playing soccer and following baseball.^[6]

[edit] Collegiate career

After completing high school, Hester enrolled into the University of Miami. As a sophomore, He earned national recognition after being named onto the "Walter Camp All-America Team" and “The Sporting News' All-America team”. Hester’s recognition was influenced by his prodigious success as a kick returner. His ability to thrust laterally and breakaway from pursuers made him one of the nation’s most dangerous return specialists.^[4] During his freshman year, Hester returned an opening kick for a 97-yard touchdown against the University of Florida. In a game against Duke University in 2005, Hester broke six tackles while returning an 81-yard punt.^[7] Ultimately, Hester completed his college career with a total of six touchdowns from kick returns, including one blocked field goal return. He also scored one rushing and receiving touchdown, and recorded five interceptions as a defensive back.

Hester became the first football player in Miami Hurricanes' history to play as member of the special, offensive, and defensive teams.^[4]^[1] In addition to his productive tenure at the University of Miami, Hester befriended Deion Sanders through Ed Reed, one of Sanders’ teammates who was an alumnus of the University of Miami. Sanders counseled, advised, and also provided Hester with encouragement. Hester was also known as “Anytime” in college, which is a tribute to Sanders’ nickname, “Prime Time”. He also adopted Sanders’ signature touchdown dance, and showboating maneuvers, which he carried to his future NFL career.^[3]

[edit] Professional career

The Chicago Bears drafted Hester in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft. Although he was drafted as a cornerback, Lovie Smith intended to use Hester as a return specialist, due to his collegiate exploits. Hester’s rookie season was eventful and record breaking. In only thirteen weeks as professional football player, Hester returned six touchdowns, including a record tying 108-yard touchdown from a missed field goal against the New York Giants.^[8] He also returned a punt for a clutch 83-yard game-winning touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals, and two kickoff returns in one game against the St. Louis Rams.^[9]^[10]

Following his record-breaking game during week fourteen, opposing teams exercised additional caution when allowing Hester to return kicks.^[11]^[2] Although Hester did not have any big plays in the first two games of the post-season, the Bears won both NFC playoff rounds, and advanced to Super Bowl XLI to play the Indianapolis Colts. He started the game on a high note for the Bears by returning the game’s opening kick for a touchdown. The feat was the first touchdown return in an opening kickoff in Super Bowl history. The return also marked the quickest lead ever taken by any team.^[12] Following the kick, the Colts did not kick the ball directly to Hester, significantly limiting the Bears’ return efforts.^[13] The team’s special teams coordinator, Dave Toub stated the team is currently formulating new strategies that will allow Hester to overcome this issue in the upcoming 2007 season.^[14]

Hester's feats earned him three NFC Special Teams Player of the week Awards,^[15] and a trip to the 2007 Pro Bowl.^[16] After the 2006 season ended, he was named as the "NFC’s Player of the Month" for December, and was a finalist in the 2006 Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year voting.^[17] He was also voted onto the Associated Press’s 2006 All-Pro team with 48 and a half votes, finishing second behind LaDainian Tomlinson, Champ Bailey, and Jason Taylor who all received 50 votes.^[18] He finished the 2006 season by accumulating three touchdowns for 600 yards on 47 punt returns, and two touchdowns for 528 yards on 20 kick returns, thus making him one of the league’s most productive kick and punt returners.^[19]^[15] Even without taking an offensive snap prior to week fourteen, Hester was the Bears' second leading scorer, behind kicker Robbie Gould.^[20] On a negative note, Hester struggled to control the football at times, having games with multiple fumbles on at least two separate occasions.^[21]^[22]^[2]

Many fans speculated that Hester’s speed and prior experience as a wide receiver would earn him a spot on the Bears' offense team, similar to teammate Rashied Davis. While Lovie Smith dismissed the speculation, he played Hester as a wide receiver for one play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on December 17, 2006.^[23]^[24] Hester attributes his talent to his mentor, Deion Sanders, whom Hester claims helped him perfect his return prowess.^[15]^[6] Sanders, a former cornerback and return specialist, compliments Hester after every productive performance. However, Sanders also berated Hester for taunting another player en route to his second touchdown return against the St. Louis Rams.^[25]^[26]

[edit] Personal life

Hester is in a relationship with Tamara James, a former women's basketball player he met at the University of Miami. James currently plays professionally for the Washington Mystics. In an interview with the Black Sports Network in 2005, Hester revealed that he was engaged to James, but the couple had not yet set a date for their marriage ceremony.^[27] A later article by the Chicago Tribune confirmed that he had proposed to James on June 6, 2005 at a Miami Heat basketball game.^[3] Hester’s family resides in Florida and was struck by Hurricane Wilma in 2005. Hester has assisted his family financially in helping them rebuild their home.^[28] His brother Lenorris Jr., resides with Hester during the regular season in their Chicagoland home. Hester was raised as a Christian. He brings a Bible to every game he plays.^[29]

Hester’s successful rookie year drew him a lot of publicity and popularity. Ever since his record-breaking performance against the Rams, Hester has been offered marketing opportunities from Nike, soft drink businessmen, and cell phone companies.^[30] There has also been a surge in the demand for Hester’s #23 jerseys within the Chicagoland sporting stores.^[31] His reputation has also been bolstered by EA Sports' Madden NFL 2008, where Hester's perfect 100 speed rating will make him the fastest player in the game's history.^[32]