George Collins (American football)

Last updated

George Collins
No. 66
Position Offensive tackle
Personal information
Born (1955-12-09) December 9, 1955 (age 69)
Macon, Georgia, U.S.
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight257 lb (117 kg)
Career information
High school Warner Robins (Warner Robins, Georgia)
College Georgia
NFL draft 1978: 4th round, 96th overall pick
Career history
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Awards and highlights
Career NFL statistics
Games played69
Games started26
Fumble recoveries2
Stats at Pro Football Reference

George Collins (born December 9, 1955) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and two seasons in the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs.

Contents

Early life

Collins was born in Macon, Georgia, and attended Warner Robins High School. He was named All-State and an All-American as a senior. [1]

College career

Collins was a member of the Georgia Bulldogs for four seasons. He began his collegiate career as a tight end, but was moved to the guard position by coaches who recognized his blocking abilities and encouraged him to gain weight. [2] He became a starter at guard and was named first-team All-Southeastern Conference and a first-team All-American by the Sporting News . [1]

Professional career

Collins was selected in the fourth round of the 1978 NFL draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. [3] He played five seasons with the Cardinals, playing in 69 games with 26 starts. [4] Collins started 13 games during the 1981 season, taking over at left tackle after starter Keith Wortman was waived. [5] He was traded to the San Francisco 49ers in April of 1983, but was cut during training camp. [6] [7] Collins was later signed by the Jacksonville Bulls of the United States Football League and spent two seasons with the team. [8]

Coaching career

After retiring from professional football Collins returned to Georgia as a graduate assistant and earned a master of education degree. He became an offensive line coach at Valdosta State University after graduating. [9] He later entered teaching and was the head football coach at Perry High School, Houston County High School and Rutland High School before retiring in 2015. [10]

References

  1. 1 2 Heeter, Jonathan (August 5, 2015). "The Numbers Game: The 70s". The Telegraph . Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  2. Dooley, Vince; Barnhart, Tony (2005). Dooley: My 40 Years at Georgia. Triumph Books. ISBN   9781617490491.
  3. "NFL drafts 3 Dogs". The Red & Black . GAHistoricNewspapers.com. May 4, 1978. p. 11. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  4. "George Collins Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  5. "The St. Louis Cardinals Wednesday waived veteran offensive lineman..." United Press International . October 21, 1981. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  6. "Transactions". The New York Times . April 22, 1983. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  7. "Walsh still faces many question marks after opener". The San Francisco Examiner . Newspapers.com. August 7, 1983. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  8. "Transactions". The New York Times . November 17, 1983. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  9. "Valdosta State 1986 Media Guide" (PDF). Valdosta.edu. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  10. Seibel, Ron (October 12, 2015). "Rutland's George Collins announces plans to retire". The Telegraph . Retrieved May 19, 2020.