Charlie Whitehurst

Charlie Whitehurst

Whitehurst in 2008.
No. 6     San Diego Chargers
Quarterback
Personal information
Date of birth: (1982-08-06) August 6, 1982
Place of birth: Green Bay, Wisconsin
Height: 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Weight: 226 lb (103 kg)
Career information
High school: Alpharetta (GA) Chattahoochee
College: Clemson
NFL Draft: 2006 / Round: 3 / Pick: 81
Debuted in 2006 for the San Diego Chargers
Career history
San Diego Chargers (2006–2009) Seattle Seahawks (2010–2011) San Diego Chargers (2012–present)
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
Second-team All-ACC (2005)
Career NFL statistics as of 2013
Pass attempts 155 Pass completions 84 Passing percentage 54.2 Passing yards 805 TD–INT 3-4 QB Rating 64.6 Stats at NFL.com

Charles David Whitehurst (born August 6, 1982) is an American football quarterback for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Chargers in the third round (81st overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at Clemson.

Whitehurst has also played for the Seattle Seahawks. He is the son of former NFL quarterback David Whitehurst.

Early years

Whitehurst was a player with the Alpharetta Youth Football Association (AYFA). His 1993 90 Pound Division 1 Team won the both the Southeastern Region Championship and the State of Georgia Championship. His 1994 105 Pound Division 1 Team won the Division 1 Championship in GYFC and the Runner up for the State of Georgia Championship. He attended Taylor Road Middle School.

Whitehurst attended Chattahoochee High School in what is now Johns Creek, Georgia and was a three year letterman in football and a four year letterman in baseball.

College career

While playing college football at Clemson University, Whitehurst became the first quarterback to go 4-0 in the rivalry between Clemson and the University of South Carolina, including a 63-17 rout of the Gamecocks in Columbia on November 22, 2003.^[1]

Professional career

San Diego Chargers

Whitehurst was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the third round (81st overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played in two regular season games as the third-stringer to Billy Volek and starter Philip Rivers.

Seattle Seahawks

Whitehurst was acquired by the Seattle Seahawks on March 17, 2010, in exchange for a 2011 third-round draft pick to San Diego, and the two teams switched second-round picks in the 2010 NFL draft. He was signed to a two-year, $8 million contract for a quarterback with essentially no starting experience. Seattle's front office later stated they had already picked up a potential franchise quarterback in the draft by acquiring Whitehurst with the 2011 pick.^[2]

On November 7, 2010, Whitehurst started and played in week 9 against the New York Giants due to an injury suffered by starter Matt Hasselbeck.

Whitehurst started on January 2, 2011, in a Sunday Night game against the division rival St. Louis Rams to determine the NFC West champion. In the game, Whitehurst had a 61-yard pass to Ruvell Martin. Whitehurst was 5-for-5 for 85 yards on the opening drive and finished the first half going 16-for-21 with 138 yards and one touchdown. He finished the game with a total of 22 completions and 36 attempts and 192 yards. ^[3]Hasselbeck returned as the starter for the subsequent playoff game.

Prior to the 2011 preseason, Whitehurst was named the backup to Tarvaris Jackson, the former Vikings quarterback whom Seattle acquired in the 2011 offseason. However, Jackson and Whitehurst were expected to compete for the starting job once Whitehurst became familiar with the new offensive schemes. Whitehurst went 14-of-19 passing with one touchdown to put Seattle on the board against the Vikings in 2011's second preseason action. Whitehurst took over for an injured Jackson during a week 5 matchup at the New York Giants. In that game Whitehurst outscored Jackson's 14 points in the first three quarters by putting up 20 points in the fourth quarter, going 11-for-19, 149 yards, and a 27-yard touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin, securing a 36-25 Seattle victory. Coach Pete Carroll named Whitehurst to take over as starting quarterback until Jackson healed from a pectoral injury, although no official date of Jackson's medical clearance had been released.^[4][5] Whitehurst was named the starter for week 7 against the Cleveland Browns, because Jackson had suffered a pectoral injury against the Giants. Whitehurst went 12 of 30 for 92 yards, with no touchdowns and two turnovers. Whitehurst started in week 9 against the Cincinnati Bengals, but was benched for an injured Jackson after going 4 of 7 for 52 yards.^[6]

San Diego Chargers

On March 16, 2012, Whitehurst signed a two-year contract with his former team the San Diego Chargers.

References