Emmanuel Jamaal 'E.J.' Burt (born October 22, 1977) is a former

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 ...

defensive lineman.

Early life

Emmanuel Jamaal Burt was born in Akron, Ohio.

College career

Burt enrolled in the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classifie ...

, and played football there during the 1996 and 1997 seasons. In 1998, he transferred to West Liberty State, and played in their team as well. He was named Conference Player of the Year in both 1999 and 2000, as well Division II All-American for both seasons. He still holds several records for the team, including record sacks in a year (48), record sacks in a season (17) and number of career tackles for a loss (83.5). He graduated from West Liberty in 2000, with a bachelor's degree in Graphic Design.

Professional football career

National Indoor Football League

Burt played for the Ohio Valley Greyhounds team, in the National Indoor Football League, for the 2001 season.

Arena Football 2 League

In 2002, Burt played for the Cape Fear Wildcats, a North Carolina team in the Arena Football 2 League. At the end of the season, he was named All-Arena Football 2 League Player, and Arena Football 2 League Lineman of the Year.

Arena Football League

Orlando Predators

Burt was signed for the 2003 season of the

Orlando Predators The Orlando Predators were a professional arena football team based in Orlando, Florida and member of the Arena Football League (AFL). The team was most recently owned by Orlando Predators LLC, a company owned by David A. Siegel, and played its ...

. He played 16 games of the season, alternating between the Offensive and Defensive Lineman positions. His notable stats for the season were 31 tackles, 9.5 sacks, and causing 8 forced fumbles. At the end of the season, head coach Fran Papasedero said about Burt:

With his tremendous quickness, I felt defense would not be a problem. Offensively, he had pretty good feet, he just didn’t know how to use them. I felt if we brought him along slowly, he would have a chance to contribute. As it turned out, we looked like geniuses for signing him, but honestly, we had our doubts just like everyone else.

Burt was one of three Predators players who were voted into the AFL's All-Rookie Team at the end of the season. At the end of the 2003 season, the Predators offered Burt an additional two-year contract to remain with them, which he signed. In the news release regarding this, Burt was called "one of the great “rags to riches” stories in the AFL." In the 2004 season, he again played in 16 games for the Predators, again in both the Offensive and Defensive Lineman positions. His notable stats while there were a total of 19.5 tackles and 6.5 sacks. In 2005, he again played 16 games for the team, and was recorded as having 30.5 tackles, 8.5 sacks, five forced fumbles and four pass break ups. At the end of the season, he was named Second Team All-Arena.

Philadelphia Soul

At the end of the 2005 season, Burt became a free agent. He was signed with the

Philadelphia Soul Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia TSOP, is a genre of late 1960s–1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featu ...

, and played for them for the 2006 season. He played in 16 games with the Soul, and was credited with 8 tackles and 4.5 sacks.

Chicago Rush

Burt was signed by the Chicago Rush for the 2007 season. During the season, he had a total of 21.5 total tackles, 6 sacks, five pass break ups and four forced fumbles.

Utah Blaze

Burt was signed by the

Utah Blaze The Utah Blaze was a professional arena football team based in Salt Lake City, Utah and competed in the West Division of the Arena Football League. Home games were played at the EnergySolutions Arena. In 2013, the team did not submit proper ...

for the 2008 Season. As of January 2008, he was ranked 12th on the AFL’s all-time list for sacks in a career. His notable stats for the 2008 season were 5 tackles, 2 sacks and one forced fumble.

References

External links

Utah Blaze bio page

AFL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burt, E.J. 1977 births Living people Players of American football from Akron, Ohio American football defensive linemen Akron Zips football players Cape Fear Wildcats players Orlando Predators players Philadelphia Soul players Chicago Rush players Utah Blaze players West Liberty Hilltoppers football players Ohio Valley Greyhounds players