Terrell Owens

Terrell Eldorado Owens, sometimes called T. O., (born December 7, 1973, in Alexander City) is a a football player, currently with the Dallas Cowboys. He was deactivated for most of the 2005 season by the Philadelphia Eagles due primarily to behavior stemming from a contract dispute and conflicts with Donovan McNabb and other Eagles' players.

Although Owens is recognized as one of the most dominant receivers in the NFL today, he is also known for being a troublesome, high-maintenance player on and off the field. He has developed a reputation for causing controversies with teammates, coaches, opposing players, and fans. Even so, after banishment from the Eagles in 2005, many teammates came forward voicing support for Owens and campaigning in vain for his reinstatement with the Eagles.

Until recently a resident of Moorestown, New Jersey; Owens also owns a home in Atlanta. With his cousin Antonio Minnifield, Owens is a co-owner of Amani Raha, an upscale bar at Dr Pepper Place that opened in 2005.

Biography

Born into a troubled home in Alexander City, Owens immersed himself in sports from an early age. He was a four-year letterman in football and track at Benjamin Russell High School and also lettered three times in basketball and once in baseball. His high school career was not stellar. He only became a starter for the Wildcats his senior year. He was not heavily recruited and accepted a scholarship offer from Tennessee-Chattanooga because they would allow him to play multiple sports.

Owens played in the 1995 NCAA Tournament in basketball and anchored the school's 4x100 relay team. In football, he wore #80 in honor of his idol, Jerry Rice. As a freshman, Owens was used sparingly by coach Buddy Nix, catching 6 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown. In his sophomore year new head coach Tommy West promoted him to starter. He caught 38 passes for 724 yards and 8 TDs in his second year, including a school record 4 touchdowns against Marshall. Playing for his third coach in three years, Owens anchored the offense during his junior year and caught 58 passes for 836 yards and 6 TDs. He was named to the Southern Conference All-Conference second team. In his senior year Owens faced double coverage every week and was limited to 43 receptions for 666 yards and one touchdown.

San Francisco 49ers

Based as much on his size and speed as on his demonstrated ability, Owens was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 1996 draft as the 89th overall pick. The chance to play alongside Jerry Rice thrilled the rookie. He stayed quiet in practice and made his first impact on special teams, recording three tackles in a game against the Atlanta Falcons.

In the 1997 season, after Jerry Rice went down early in the season with a torn ACL. Owens and quarterback Steve Young helped the 49ers win 13 games. In a 1998 wild-card playoff game against the Green Bay Packers, Owens caught a 25 yard touchdown pass amidst four Packers defenders in the final seconds that lifted the 49ers to a 30-27 victory. This catch became known as "The Catch II" among Niners fans.

The following season the 49ers fell to 4-12. Young retired after the 1999 season and Jeff Garcia was named the starting quarterback. In 2000, although Owens put up very productive individual statistics, the Niners still only managed to win six games. In 2001, the 49ers rebounded to 12-4 before losing to the Packers in the wild card playoff round. By then, Owens was having widely documented feuds with Garcia and head coach Steve Mariucci. Sportswriters reported that Owens would refuse to even speak to the coach. At the conclusion of the 2002 season, Mariucci was fired and replaced by Dennis Erickson. In 2003, the 49ers fell back to 7-9 and Owens continued to criticize Garcia.

While with San Francisco, Owens became notorious for his flamboyant and inflammatory celebrations after touchdowns. Of special note are the times he danced on the start at Texas Stadium (September 24, 2000) and pulled a sharpie out of his sock to sign a ball (October 14, 2002).

Philadelphia Eagles

On March 4, 2004, San Francisco traded Owens to the Baltimore Ravens for a second round pick in the 2004 draft. Owens's contract with the Eagles was reported to be worth $49 million for seven years, including a $10 million signing bonus.

In September 2004, Owens released his autobiography, Catch This! Going Deep with the NFL's Sharpest Weapon. The 288 page book was ghostwritten by Stephen Singular. Owens later admitted in 2005 that he had never actually read his own "autobiography". The book appeared on the New York Times best-seller list briefly.

The 2004 season got off to a great start for the Eagles, who won 13 of their first 14 games with Owens averaging a touchdown catch per game. On December 19, 2004, Owens severely sprained his ankle and fractured a fibula during a home game against the Cowboys, apparently ending his season. The Eagles managed to win their first NFC title since 1980 without Owens. He announced unexpectedly that he intended to play in that year's Super Bowl, even though team doctors were still saying that his injury would take several more weeks to heal. Owens did, in fact, start the game, catching 9 passes for 122 yards in the loss to the Patriots.

In April 2005, Owens hired Drew Rosenhaus as his agent and indicated that he wanted to renegotiate his contract with the Eagles. Owens and Rosenhaus met with Eagles head coach Andy Reid and president Joe Banner, but no agreement was reached, leading Owens to threaten a holdout from training camp until a deal was reached. He did not make good on his threat and did not receive a new contract. He did receive a two-week suspension on August 10, 2005 after a heated exchange with Reid. The Eagles mailed Owens a Notice of Unsatisfactory Work Performance, stipulating expectations for his behavior when he resumed playing August 17.

In a November 3, 2005 interview, Owens said he thought the Eagles would be undefeated if Brett Favre were on the team instead of Donovan McNabb. He also criticized the Eagles organization for not publicly acknowledging his 100th career touchdown catch. Owens was given a 4-game suspension on November 5 for conduct detrimental to the team, which allegedly included a physical fight with team official. Following the suspension he was deactivated and released from the team. In a later interview, Owens apologized to the team (including McNabb) and fans.

Dallas Cowboys

On March 18, 2006, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones announced that they had signed Terrell Owens to a 3-year, $25 million deal, with a $5 million signing bonus. He missed most of training camp and the three of the team's four pre-season games while recuperating from a hamstring injury.

In the Cowboy's first game, against Jacksonville, Owens caught 8 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown, leading the team. In their second game Owens broke a bone in his right hand after amassing 19 yards on three catches. On September 26 he was hospitalized at the Baylor Medical Center in Dallas after a friend called 911, reporting that he had intentionally overdosed on pain medication. Owens has denied that he was attempting suicide and said that the hydrocodone reacted with a natural supplement to make him groggy. He returned to the team after a bye week, amassing 88 yards against the Tennessee Titans. His 13 touchdowns during the season led the NFL.

A children's book penned by Owens and Courtney Parker, entitled Little T Learns to Share was published in November 2006. In December he was fined $35,000 by the league for spitting in the face of Atlanta cornerback DeAngelo Hall during a game.

NFL year by year statistics

Year	Team	G	GS	Rec	Yards	AVG	LG	TD
1996	SF	16	10	35	520	14.9	46	4
1997	SF	16	15	60	936	15.6	56	8
1998	SF	16	10	67	1097	16.4	79	14
1999	SF	14	14	60	754	12.6	36	4
2000	SF	14	13	97	1452	15.0	69	13
2001	SF	16	16	93	1412	15.2	60	16
2002	SF	14	14	100	1300	13.0	76	13
2003	SF	15	15	80	1102	13.8	75	9
2004	PHL	14	14	77	1200	15.6	59	14
2005	PHL	7	7	47	763	16.2	91	6
2005	DAL	2	2	11	99	10.0	21	1
2006	DAL	16	15	85	1180	13.9	56	13
Tot.	-	158	143	801	11715	14.6	91	114

• Rushing Totals: 25 attempts 159 yards 6.4 average 2 TDS
• Pro Bowl selections: 2000 · 2001 · 2002 · 2003 · 2004 (Total: 5)
• All-NFC Pro Selections: 2000 · 2001 · 2002 · 2003 · 2004 (Total: 5)
• ALL-NFL Pro Selections: 2001 · 2002 · 2004 (Total: 3)

References

• Detailed biography at Jockbio.com
• "Terrell Owens." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 16 Jan 2007, 23:35 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 17 Jan 2007 [1].
• Strickland, Susan. (July 28, 2005) "Peace, but no quiet at Amani." Birmingham News.
• Aron, Jaime (September 27, 2006) "Police: T.O. tried to kill himself." Associated Press.

External links

• Terrell Owens Official Website
• ESPN.com Terrell Owens Profile