Efrem Dale Hill (born July 23, 1983) is a former professional

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

wide receiver. He was signed as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by 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. T ...

in 2005. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the

Samford Bulldogs The Samford Bulldogs are the 17 varsity teams (8 men's and 9 women's) that represent Samford University in NCAA Division I athletics. The men's basketball team made its first NCAA Tournament appearances in 1999 and 2000.They were led by Reed Raw ...

. Hill was also a member of the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...

and

Georgia Fire The Georgia Fire were a professional Indoor American football, indoor football team based in Rome, Georgia. They were members of the American Conference in the Professional Indoor Football League (2012), Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) ...

Early years

Hill attended

North Springs High School North Springs Charter High School (formerly called North Springs High School from 1963 to 2007) is a charter high school located in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States. It is the only magnet school in the Fulton County School System The Ful ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. During his

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

season, he had 680 yards passing and 943 yards rushing. Hill started at quarterback from his

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In ...

-senior seasons, earning the team's Best Back Award for two consecutive seasons and the Coach's Corner Award. Hill was a three-sport athlete at North Springs, also playing

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

. He was a member of North Fulton's Super 11, he helped lead North Springs to the quarterfinal round and an eighth-place finish in the state. He placed ninth in the state in the triple jump with a height of 43' 13".

College career

While at Samford, Hill majored in

Business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...

Freshman (2001)

In 2001, Hill finished second on the team in receiving with 12

reception Reception is a noun form of ''receiving'', or ''to receive'' something, such as art, experience, information, people, products, or vehicles. It may refer to: Astrology * Reception (astrology), when a planet is located in a sign ruled by another p ...

s for 114 yards. He had one reception in his first three games, catching one for 11 yards against

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

, one for 10 yards against Nicholls State and one for a season-long 24 yards against

Jacksonville State Jacksonville State University (JSU) is a public university in Jacksonville, Alabama. Founded in 1883, Jacksonville State offers programs of study in six academic schools leading to bachelor's, master's, education specialist, and doctorate degrees ...

. He had two receptions in each of the next three games. He had two receptions for 12 yards against

Charleston Southern Charleston Southern University (CSU) is a private Baptist university in North Charleston, South Carolina. It is affiliated with the South Carolina Baptist Convention ( Southern Baptist Convention). History Charleston Southern University was ch ...

. He had two catches for seven yards against UT-Martin. Hill caught two passes for 23 yards against Elon. He set a career-high with three catches for 27 yards against VMI in the season finale.

Sophomore (2002)

In 2002, Hill finished second on the team in receiving for the second consecutive season with 569 yards on 39 receptions and six

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s. He also returned three kickoffs for 102 yards. Hill finished the season with back-to-back 100-yard receiving games. He caught five passes for 102 yards and one touchdown at Southeast Missouri State. Hill caught a season- and career-high six receptions for 125 yards and two touchdowns at

Youngstown State Youngstown State University (YSU or Youngstown State) is a public university in Youngstown, Ohio. It was founded in 1908 and is the easternmost member of the University System of Ohio. The university is composed of six undergraduate colleges an ...

. He was named I-AA Independent Offensive Player of the Week after his performance at Youngstown State.

Junior (2003)

In 2003, Hill was a consensus

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

selection. He was also, a

Walter Payton Award The Walter Payton Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding offensive player in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) of college football as chosen by a nationwide panel of media and college sports ...

finalist. He was named

Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern and Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It participates in NCAA Divisi ...

Offensive Player of the Year and Male Athlete of the Year. For the season he had 92 receptions for a school-record 1,387 yards. He led the nation in yards per game, averaging 126.09. Hill led the conference in: receiving yards per game, receptions per game (8.36), scoring (8.2 ppg.) and scoring by touchdown (8.2 ppg.). Hill caught seven passes for 107 yards and a touchdown at Chattanooga. He caught nine passes for 148 yards and a season-high three touchdowns against West Alabama. He recorded eight receptions for 87 yards at

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

. He caught four passes for 104 yards and a 64-yard touchdown at

Eastern Kentucky Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...

. Hill caught 11 passes for a career-high 223 yards at UT-Martin. He caught eight passes for 95 yards and two touchdowns against

Tennessee State Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennes ...

. He caught 10 passes for 112 yards at

Tennessee Tech Tennessee Technological University, commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech, is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie ...

. Hill had a school-record 16 receptions for 197 yards and two touchdowns against Jacksonville State. He caught 10 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown at

Eastern Illinois Eastern Illinois University is a public university in Charleston, Illinois. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradually expanded into a co ...

Senior (2004)

In 2004, Hill played in all 11 games leading the team in all receiving categories. He was also second on the team in punt returns with six for 50 yards with an average of 8.3 yards per return. Hill recorded nine receptions for 209 yards (long of being 84 yards) and three touchdowns, against West Alabama. He also returned one punt for four yards. Against

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

Hill had 11 receptions for 83 yards (long of 26 yards) and one touchdown. Against Furman, Hill had 10 receptions for 88 yards (long of 15 yards). In the game against Southeast Missouri, Hill had seven receptions for 84 yards (long of 15 yards). He also returned two punts for 29 yards (long of 24 yards). At Eastern Kentucky, Hill had six receptions for 84 yards (long of 39 yards) and three touchdowns. Against

Murray State Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, ...

, Hill had six catches for 95 yards (long of 34 yards) and one touchdown. Against UT-Martin, Hill had two receptions for 25 yards (long of 13 yards). At Tennessee State, Hill had seven catches for 99 yards (long of 31 yards) and one touchdown. Against Tennessee Tech, Hill had six receptions for 163 yards (long of 74 yards) and one touchdown. He also had one punt return for one yard. Against Jacksonville State, Hill had four catches for 28 yards (long of 14 yards). He also returned two punts for 16 yards. In the season finale against Eastern Illinois, Hill had three catches for 28 yards (long of 19 yards). Then in 2005, after the 2004 bowl season was over, Hill played in The Villages Gridiron Classic College All-Star Game.

Career statistics

Professional career

Carolina Panthers

In 2005, Hill went undrafted in the

2005 NFL Draft The 2005 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The NFL draft, draft was held April 23–24, 2005 NFL seaso ...

. However, he was signed by the

on April 29, 2005. After being waived from the Panthers on September 3, 2005, he was signed to the Panthers

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

two days later. He was then signed to the Panthers active roster on December 20, 2005. Hill was then waived by the Panthers on September 2, 2006, he was then signed to the team's practice squad on October 17, 2006.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Hill was signed by the

on January 17, 2007. He was later waived by the Buccaneers on June 25, 2007.

Cleveland Browns

On June 26, 2007, Hill was claimed off waivers by the

Edmonton Eskimos

Hill signed with the

on May 20, 2009.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

On April 20, 2011, it was announced that Hill had signed with the

Personal life

Hill was married at age 22, and currently has a young daughter and son. He holds the head football coaching position at Discovery High School in Lawrenceville, Georgia. He is also the head coach for Discovery's track team.http://highschoolsports.blog.ajc.com/2016/03/22/discovery-hires-former-nfl-player-hill/

Notes

External links

Browns bio

Player card
on

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Profile
on

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Profile
on CBS Sports.com
Profile
on

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Draft profile
on NFLDraftScout.com

on SI.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Efrem 1983 births Living people Players of American football from Atlanta Players of Canadian football from Atlanta American football wide receivers Canadian football wide receivers Samford Bulldogs football players Carolina Panthers players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Cleveland Browns players Edmonton Elks players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Georgia Fire players