Sydney William Kitson (born September 27, 1958) 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 with ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

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) for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

and the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

. 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 ...

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...

Early years

He attended

New Providence High School New Providence High School is a comprehensive public high school in the borough of New Providence, in Union County, United States, operating as the lone secondary school in the New Providence School District, serving students in ninth throu ...

New Providence, New Jersey New Providence is a borough on the northwestern edge of Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located on the Passaic River, which forms the county boundary with Morris County bordering Chatham Township. As of the 2020 United S ...

, where he played football on the New Providence Pioneers. He accepted a scholarship from

. In college, he started his career at

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

, before being moved to

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

and eventually to

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

Professional career

Green Bay Packers

Kitson was selected by the

in the third round (61st overall) of the

1980 NFL Draft The 1980 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 draft was held April 29–30, 1980, at the New York She ...

. As a rookie, he was a reserve

until the tenth game, when he replaced an injured

Buddy Aydelette William Leslie "Buddy" Aydelette (born August 19, 1956) is a former American football guard. He began his career with the Green Bay Packers of the NFL. He was drafted by the Packers in the 7th round (169th overall) of the 1980 NFL Draft. He w ...

as the team's

long snapper In American football, the long snapper (or deep snapper) is a center on special teams whose duty is to snap the football over a longer distance, typically around 15 yards during punts, and 7–8 yards during field goals and extra point attempt ...

. On October 13,

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

, he was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

with a neck injury for five games. In

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

, he was placed on the

, after suffering a cracked shoulder, while playing against the

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural 1960 season to the 1981 season and then agai ...

in the preseason. In

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

, he alternated at

left guard In gridiron football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is a player who lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team on the line of scrimmage used primarily for blocking. Right g ...

with

Dave Drechsler Dave Drechsler (born July 18, 1960) is a former guard in the National Football League. In the 1983 NFL Draft, Drechsler was drafted in the second round by the Green Bay Packers and played two seasons with the team. He played at the collegiate le ...

for the first 4 games, before being moved to

right guard Right Guard is an American brand of deodorant and shower gel that is manufactured and sold by Thriving Brands LLC. It is the second largest brand in the male deodorant category in the United States. Right Guard was introduced in 1960 by The Gill ...

after the 11th game of the season in place of

Tim Huffman Timothy Patrick Huffman (born August 31, 1959) is a former guard in the National Football League (NFL). Biography Huffman was born in Canton, Ohio. He is also a fictional co-host of the "What The Butson" podcast. Career Huffman was drafted by ...

. He had a reception for 9 yards as an eligible receiver against the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

. In

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

, he was benched after the third game, in favor of using a larger

Ron Hallstrom Ronald David Hallstrom (born June 11, 1959) is a former American football guard in the National Football League for the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at the University of Iowa and was drafted in th ...

at right guard. He was released on October 23 to make room for guard Keith Uecker.

Dallas Cowboys

On November 27,

, he was signed as a

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

and only played in one game. He was waived on August 27, 1985 season.

Personal life

From 1986 to 1992, he founded a real estate company that developed and sold residential communities, commercial properties, senior housing units, retail stores and offices. Kitson is the chairman/CEO and one of the founding partners of Kitson & Partners, a real estate development company. He and his associates planned a new

solar-powered Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovoltaic ef ...

city called

Babcock Ranch Babcock Ranch is a planned community located in southeastern Charlotte County and northeastern Lee County, Florida consisting of approximately . The planned community was approved as part of a public-private partnership with the State of Flor ...

Southwest Florida Southwest Florida is the region along the southwest Gulf coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is known for its beaches, subtropical landscape, and winter resort economy. Definitions of the region vary, though its boundaries are generally ...

. Kitson also serves on the board of directors of the

Florida Council of 100 The Florida Council of 100 is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization of Florida business leaders who advise the state's governor. It was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. History The association was founded in 1961 ...

and as the Chair of the Florida Chamber.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kitson, Syd 1958 births Living people New Providence High School alumni People from New Providence, New Jersey Sportspeople from Orange, New Jersey Players of American football from Essex County, New Jersey Players of American football from Union County, New Jersey American football offensive guards Wake Forest Demon Deacons football players Green Bay Packers players Dallas Cowboys players