Andre Jerome "Bubba" Caldwell (born April 15, 1985), is a former professional

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

player who was a wide receiver and

kickoff returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). Caldwell played college football for the Florida Gators, where he was a member of a BCS National Championship team. A third-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, he played professionally for the Cincinnati Bengals and

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...

. With the Broncos, he won

Super Bowl 50 Super Bowl 50 was an American football game to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2015 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) cha ...

against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

Early years

Caldwell was born in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

in 1985.Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Andre Caldwell
Retrieved March 25, 2011. He attended Tampa's Jefferson High School,databaseFootball.com, Players
Andre Caldwell
. Retrieved March 25, 2011. where he played football and ran track. In football, he played

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

and also lined up at receiver and returned punts for the Dragons.GatorZone.com, Football History, 2007 Roster
Andre Caldwell
. Retrieved March 25, 2011. His senior year, he moved from wide receiver to starting quarterback, and passed and rushed for over 2,220 yards and thirty-eight touchdowns while leading the Dragons to a Florida Class 4A state championship. He was the ''

Tampa Tribune ''The Tampa Tribune'' was a daily newspaper published in Tampa, Florida. Along with the competing ''Tampa Bay Times'', the ''Tampa Tribune'' was one of two major newspapers published in the Tampa Bay area. The newspaper also published a ''St. Pe ...

s Hillsborough County Player of the Year, an all-state selection, and was named a '' Parade'' magazine, SuperPrep and ''

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'' high school All-American following his senior season in 2002. He played in the 2003 U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Considered a five-star recruit by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

, Caldwell was listed as the No. 1 wide receiver in the nation in 2003. Also a standout athlete, Caldwell competed in track as sophomore and junior. At the 2002 Florida Class 3A Region 3 meet, he recorded a personal-best time of 10.39 seconds in the

100 meters The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contes ...

to win region title. He got a PR of 21.71 seconds in the 200 meters. As a

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

collegiate, he joined the Gators track & field team following the conclusion of spring football practice. He finished 19th in 100m with time of 10.74 in the only meet of the season at the SEC Outdoor Championships. This was his first competition on the track in four years.

College career

Caldwell accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

in Gainesville, where he played for coach

Ron Zook Ronald Andrew Zook (; born April 28, 1954) is an American football coach and former player who currently serves as the Defensive Coordinator of the Seattle Sea Dragons of the XFL. He was the head football coach at the University of Florida from ...

and coach

Urban Meyer Urban Frank Meyer III (born July 10, 1964) is a college football TV commentator and former American football coach. He spent most of his coaching career at the collegiate level, having served as the head coach of the Bowling Green Falcons fro ...

from 2003 to 2007.
2012 Florida Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 67, 69, 72, 90, 94, 95, 97, 100, 104, 116, 119, 143, 146, 151–153, 154, 176, 189 (2012). Retrieved September 17, 2012. In part because of his brother Reche's legacy as a Gator, and in part because of his friendship with Florida commitment and quarterback Chris Leak, Caldwell chose to play for the Gators. As a true freshman seeing limited playing time, he had just nineteen receptions. During his sophomore season in 2004, Caldwell's production jumped to forty-three catches and three receiving touchdowns, as well as two rushes for sixty-six yards and one score. He received a

medical redshirt Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

for the 2005 season after fracturing his leg in an early-season

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC) game against the

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Collegi ...

. During his junior season, he emerged as the team's second leading wide receiver in catches (57), yards (577) and touchdowns (6), and also threw for a touchdown pass in the Gators 38–28 victory over the

Arkansas Razorbacks The Arkansas Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the intercollegiate athletics teams representing the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville. The University of Arkansas student body voted to change the name of the school mascot (ori ...

in the 2006 SEC Championship Game. As a junior in 2006, he threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to help the Gators win their seventh SEC championship. Four weeks later, the Gators won their first BCS Championship Game and the second national championship in team history. Just days after the championship, Caldwell announced he would return to Florida for his senior season. As a senior team captain in 2007, Caldwell recorded a career-high 761 yards and seven touchdowns on fifty-six receptions, had twelve carries for fifty-eight rushing yards and a touchdown, and was the recipient of the Gators'

Fergie Ferguson Award The Forest K. Ferguson Award, commonly known as the "Fergie Ferguson Award," is presented annually to a senior member of the Florida Gators football team in memory of one of the University of Florida's greatest athletes. Namesake The award tak ...

as the "senior football player who displays outstanding leadership, character and courage." Caldwell finished his senior season with 100-yard receiving games against the

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Lady Toppers are the athletic teams that represent Western Kentucky University (WKU), located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, competing in the Co ...

Vanderbilt Commodores The Vanderbilt Commodores are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt fields 16 varsity teams (6 men's teams and 10 women's teams), 14 of which compete at the National ...

South Carolina Gamecocks The South Carolina Gamecocks represent the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I. The University of South Carolina uses "Gamecocks" as its official nickname and mascot. While the men's teams were traditionally known as the Fighti ...

, and

Florida Atlantic Owls The Florida Atlantic Owls are the athletics teams of Florida Atlantic University. The Owls participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)'s Division I as members of Conference USA. On October 21, 2021, Florida Atlantic accep ...

. His 185 receptions in his four-year college career remains the best career total in Gators history. Caldwell graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in sociology in December 2007.

Professional career

2008 NFL Combine

Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals chose Caldwell in the third round (ninety-seventh overall pick) in the 2008 NFL Draft, and played for the Bengals for four seasons from to .National Football League, Current Players
Andre Caldwell
Retrieved March 25, 2011. In his rookie year, he made contributions in late season as a receiver and kickoff returner, and finished with eleven receptions for seventy-eight yards, a 26-yard average on thirteen kickoff returns, and five rushes for fifty-three yards during his rookie season. Caldwell caught his first career touchdown, a game-winning touchdown against the Steelers on September 27, 2009. In Week 5, Caldwell caught another game-winning touchdown pass against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

with 20 seconds to go in the game.

Denver Broncos

Caldwell signed a two-year deal with the

on March 21, 2012. He was re-signed by the Broncos to a two-year deal on March 11, 2014. The contract is worth up to $3.5 million. On February 7, 2016, Caldwell was part of the Broncos team that won

. In the game, the Broncos defeated the

by a score of 24–10. Caldwell had one catch for 22 yards in the Super Bowl. His catch occurred on the Broncos' opening drive and contributed to them getting into field goal range.

Detroit Lions

On May 4, 2016, the Detroit Lions signed Caldwell to a one-year contract. On August 22, 2016, Caldwell was released by the Lions.

Personal life

Caldwell is the younger brother of the late Reche Caldwell (1979–2020), who was a former NFL wide receiver and Florida Gators star.

References

Bibliography

* Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). .

External links

*
Denver Broncos player profile

Florida Gators player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caldwell, Andre 1985 births Living people African-American players of American football American football wide receivers Cincinnati Bengals players Denver Broncos players Detroit Lions players Florida Gators football players Florida Gators men's track and field athletes Track and field athletes from Florida Track and field athletes in the National Football League American male sprinters Players of American football from Tampa, Florida Thomas Jefferson High School (Tampa, Florida) alumni 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people