Mike Furrey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mike Furrey | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Date of birth | May 12, 1977 (age 29) |
| Place of birth |  Grove City, OH |
| Position(s) | Wide Receiver |
| College | Northern Iowa |
| Statistics | |
| Team(s) | |
| 2003-2005 2006-Present |
St. Louis Rams Detroit Lions |
Mike Furrey (born May 12, 1977 in Grove City, Ohio) is a National Football League wide receiver for the Detroit Lions.
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[edit] High School
Furrey attended Hilliard High School in Hilliard, Ohio, and was a letterwinner in football, basketball, and baseball. In football, he was a first team All-District honoree a first team All-Conference honoree, and a first team All-Ohio honoree as a senior.[citation needed]
[edit] College
After high school, Furrey enrolled at Ohio State University in 1995, where he played in 9 games as a freshman walk-on. In 1996 he transferred to Division I-AA Northern Iowa. In his 3 years at UNI, Furrey set new Gateway Football Conference receiving records with career totals of 242 receptions for 3,544 yards and 27 touchdowns.
[edit] XFL
He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent for the Indianapolis Colts in 2000 but was waived at the end of training camp. He went on to play in the XFL football's only year of existence for the Las Vegas Outlaws. He finished the season with 18 receptions for 243 yards and one touchdown.
[edit] Arena Football League
Furrey played for the New York Dragons in 2002 and 2003 as a wide receiver/defensive back. He was leading the Arena Football League in receptions (108), receiving yards (1,574), receiving touchdowns (46, tying an AFL record for touchdowns in a single season), and points (288) when he left the Dragons on April 29, 2003 to sign with with the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League.
[edit] St. Louis Rams
Furrey made the 2003 Rams roster and played in 13 games, serving as wide receiver and special teams ace. He played in 8 games and 2 playoff contests in 2004. Due to a lack of depth in the Rams' secondary before the 2005 season, Furrey converted to a free safety based on his experience in the AFL where players play both offense and defense. He became the starter in Week 5. Furrey was successful in the transition, as he had one game winning interception 67 yard return for a TD, and the next week a game-clinching interception in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter. At the end of the 2005-2006 season, Furrey was released.
[edit] Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions signed Mike Furrey to a one-year deal on April 4, 2006 as a wide receiver, being one of the few active players in the NFL to have started on both offense and defense in his career. Furrey has emerged as a solid option in the Lions offense, catching 98 passes for 1086 yards and 7 touchdowns through week 17.
On December 31, 2006, Furrey set the pro football record for most catches for a non-rookie after a season with no catches. He had 99 receptions at the end of the 2006 season, after 0 in 2005. The previous record was 92 catches, set in 1960 by Lionel Taylor, playing for Denver in the AFL. [1]
On January 24, 2007, ESPN.com reported that Furrey was resigned by the Lions to a new, three-year contract due to his breakout year and being the second leading receiver behind Roy Williams. The deal is worth around $9 million with a $4 million dollar signing bonus.
[edit] References
- ^ "Lions WR Furrey goes from 0 catches to 93". Associated Press. December 31, 2006. Found at http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2715655&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines.
