Michael Wayne Huff, II (born March 6, 1983) 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 with ...

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

. He last played for the

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 headquart ...

of 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). 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

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

, and was recognized as a consensus All-American and the top college defensive back. He was drafted by the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

with the seventh overall pick in the

2006 NFL Draft The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with ad ...

, and has played for the NFL's

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 its ...

and Denver Broncos.

Early years

Huff was born in

Irving, Texas Irving is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. Located in Dallas County, it is also an inner ring suburb of Dallas. The city of Irving is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. According to a 2019 estimate from the United States Census Bureau, ...

. He attended Nimitz High School in Irving, and was a three-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

in football and a four-year letterman in

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

. In football, he played wide receiver,

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

, and

, contributed in the playoffs his freshmen and junior years. His football jersey No. 23 was retired by Nimitz High School. Huff was inducted into the

Irving Independent School District Irving Independent School District is a school district based in Irving, Texas (USA). The district, which covers , serves most of the city of Irving, except for Valley Ranch and a portion of Las Colinas. The district also serves small porti ...

Hall of Fame Class in 2013.

College career

Football

Huff attended the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

, where he played for coach

Mack Brown William Mack Brown (born August 27, 1951) is an American college football coach. He is currently in his second stint as the head football coach for the University of North Carolina, where he first coached from 1988 until departing in 1997, whe ...

Texas Longhorns football The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate team representing the University of Texas at Austin (variously Texas or UT) in the sport of American football. The Texas Longhorns, Longhorns compete in the NCAA Division I Football ...

team from 2001 to 2005. He was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American in

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

and won the

Jim Thorpe Award The Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport athlete Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. It is voted on by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, the award became sponsored by Paycom ...

as the nation's best defensive back. In 2002, he earned a third-team Freshman All-American selection from the ''

Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

''. He had four career interceptions returned for touchdowns, a school record. In the Rose Bowl game against the

USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC), located in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ' ...

, Huff recovered a fumbled lateral from

Reggie Bush Reginald Alfred Bush Jr. (born March 2, 1985) is an American former football running back who now serves as an on-air college football analyst for Fox Sports. He played college football at USC, where he earned consensus All-American honors twi ...

, a play that many credit with changing the momentum of the game and helping the

2005 Texas Longhorns football team The 2005 Texas Longhorns football team represented the University of Texas at Austin during the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season, winning the Big 12 Conference championship and the national championship. The team was coached by Mack Bro ...

win the NCAA National Championship. He also was the key defender who prevented USC running back

LenDale White LenDale Anthony White (born December 20, 1984) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the second round (45th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the Seattle Seahawks and Den ...

from gaining a first down on a crucial fourth-down-and-two with USC leading late in the 4th quarter.

Track and field

Huff also ran

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

at the

, where he recorded personal bests of 6.67 seconds in the

60 meters 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior ath ...

and 10.13 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 contest ...

Personal bests

Professional career

Oakland Raiders

2006 season

Michael Huff was selected in the 1st round (7th overall) by the

in the

. After immediately being named the starter at

strong safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

in his rookie year, he recorded 78 tackles. On October 22, 2006, in a game against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

, Huff recorded 4 solo tackles and his first safety. He started all 16 games in his rookie season.

2007 season

His first forced fumble came in his second year in a match-up against the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

on November 11, 2007. His first interception came in a game against rivalry team

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

, which set up

kicker Kicker or The Kicker may refer to: Sports * Placekicker, a position in American and Canadian football * ''Kicker'' (sports magazine), in Germany * Kicker, the German colloquial term for an association football player * Kicker, the word used i ...

Sebastian Janikowski Sebastian Paweł Janikowski (; born March 2, 1978) is a Polish former American football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. He played college football at Florida State ...

for the field goal, which led to a victory 20-17. Huff ended the game with an impressive performance, adding in 9 total tackles (7 solo, 2 assists). The following week, against another rival team, the

, Huff sacked Broncos

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 ...

Jay Cutler Jay Christopher Cutler (born April 29, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the Van ...

. Huff finished his 2007 season with 85 tackles, 1 forced fumble and 1 interception. Huff was moved to

free safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

after the acquisition of

Gibril Wilson Gibril Donald Wilson (born November 12, 1981) is a former American football safety in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the New York Giants in the fifth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He played college football at Tennessee. W ...

2008 season

After recording just 12 tackles through the first 5 games of the 2008 season, Michael Huff was benched from his

position in favor of Hiram Eugene.

2009 season

At the start of the 2009 season, Oakland had Hiram Eugene and Huff splitting snaps. Huff displayed excellent ball skills in the first two weeks, intercepting 3 passes. Huff finished the season with 59 tackles, half a sack and 3 interceptions, playing next to

Tyvon Branch Tyvon A. Branch (born December 11, 1986) is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft and has also played for the Kansas City Chiefs and Arizona Cardinals ...

2010 season

Huff opened the 2010 season as the Raiders starting free safety, still playing next to

. The 2010 season would be the Raiders best season at 8-8 since losing

Super Bowl XXXVII Super Bowl XXXVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Oakland Raiders and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers to decide the National Football League (NFL) cham ...

to 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 ...

in the

2002 NFL season The 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League. The league went back to an even number of teams with the addition of the Houston Texans; the league has remained static with 32 teams since. The clubs were real ...

. For the second straight year, Huff finished with 3 interceptions, along with career highs in almost every defensive category on his way to his first All-Pro section, he was selected as a 2nd team All-Pro. Huff finished the season with 94 tackles, 4 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, and 3 interceptions.

2011 season

On opening day of the

2011 NFL season The 2011 NFL season was the 92nd regular season of the National Football League and the 46th of the Super Bowl era. It began on Thursday, September 8, 2011, with the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay defeating the Super Bowl XLIV champion New ...

, he was still the starting free safety playing next to Tyvon Branch in a win over the

. On October 9, 2011 against the

, Huff intercepted his first pass of the year in the endzone with no time remaining to ensure victory for the Raiders. This was one day after the passing of the Raiders long-time owner Al Davis. On the play the raiders defense only had 10 men on the field. Huff said that Davis “had his hand on that ball.”

2012 season

Huff once again started the 2012 season at free safety for the Raiders. However, injuries to starting

Ron Bartell Ronald Bartell (born February 22, 1982) is a former American football cornerback. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Central Michigan University and Howard. Early years ...

and

Shawntae Spencer Shawntae Spencer (born February 22, 1982) is a former American football cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round (58th overall) in 2004 NFL Draft. Youth He played college foot ...

forced the team to move Huff to cornerback before Oakland's week 3 victory against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

. Huff was cut by the

on March 12, 2013.

Baltimore Ravens

2013 season

On March 27, 2013 Huff agreed to terms with the

on a three-year deal worth $6 million. On October 30, 2013 Huff was released by the

Denver Broncos

On November 19, 2013 Huff was signed by the

NFL career statistics

Coaching career

Texas

Huff has joined the newly formed staff at

joining newly named

Tom Herman Thomas Herman III (born June 2, 1975) is an American football coach and head coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls. He was the head football coach for the Texas Longhorns at the University of Texas at Austin from 2017 to 2020. Prior to that, he se ...

in his first coaching role. He will be a Quality Control Coach, serving as Assistant Defensive Backs Coach.

References

External links

Michael Huff's Official Website

Oakland Raiders bio

Michael Huff profile on ESPN.com

Michael Huff profile
at

Texas Football {{DEFAULTSORT:Huff, Michael 1983 births Living people All-American college football players American football safeties Baltimore Ravens players Denver Broncos players Oakland Raiders players People from Irving, Texas Players of American football from Texas Sportspeople from the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex Texas Longhorns football players