John Tye Hill (born June 3, 1982) is an American former college and professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

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 ...

who played 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 five seasons. 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

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enro ...

, and earned consensus All-American honors. He was drafted by the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...

in the first round of 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 ...

. He has also played for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

, and

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

Early years

Hill was born in St. George, South Carolina. He attended Woodland High School in

Dorchester, South Carolina Dorchester was a town in the Province of South Carolina. Situated on the Ashley River about from Charleston, it was founded in February 1696 by followers of Reverend Joseph Lord from Dorchester, Massachusetts. They named it after their hom ...

, and played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

. During his senior year, he rushed for 1,445 yards in seven games.

College career

Hill attended

, where he played for the

Clemson Tigers football The Clemson Tigers are the American football team at Clemson University. The Tigers compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic C ...

team from 2001 to 2005. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in human resource development. Hill was an All-American selection in 2005 and also a first-team All-

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

(ACC) choice. He was also a finalist for the Thorpe Award, given to nation’s top defensive back. He had three interceptions, defended 7 passes and 54 total tackles. In 2004 Hill defensed 21 passes, two tackles for a loss and a sack to go along with his 52 tackles. In 2003, he started 11 of the 13 games and had seven pass breakups and two interceptions in his first season as a defensive back while also totaling 37 tackles. In 2002 Hill was a running back and was Clemson's third-leading rusher as a freshman with 225 yards on 42 carries and led all Tiger running backs in yards per carry (5.4). In 2001, he red-shirted as a running back.

Track and field

Hill was also an accomplished member of the track and field team at Clemson, winning three ACC championships and several all-conference accolades. In 2004, he came in first in the 60 meter dash at the ACC Indoor Track and Field Championship with a time of 6.71 seconds. He also posted personal bests of 10.27 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 ...

and 20.97 seconds in the

200 meters The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

Personal bests

Professional career

Pre-draft

While at the 2006

NFL Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footba ...

he also posted the fastest electronically timed

40-yard dash The 40-yard dash is a sprint covering . It is primarily run to evaluate the speed and acceleration of American football players by scouts, particularly for the NFL Draft but also for collegiate recruiting. A player's recorded time can have a he ...

—4.30 seconds.

St. Louis Rams

Hill was drafted in the first round (15th overall) by the

in the

. On July 31, 2006, Hill signed five-year $10.2 million contract with the Rams. In his rookie season he started in ten out of 16 games and finished the year with 50 tackles and three interceptions. Hill started his NFL career with a bang by recording two tackles and an interception, in the season opener against the Broncos. He capped the season by being named Rams Rookie of the Year and was voted to the 2006 All-Rookie honors from

PFWA The Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA), sometimes known as Pro Football Writers Association, is an organization that purports to be " heofficial voice of pro football writers, promoting and fighting for access to NFL personnel to best serve ...

. For the 2007 season, he played in eight games and finished the season with 35 tackles and one interception. However, that interception was instrumental in the Rams 13-7 victory over the Divisional rival 49ers, in San Francisco on November 18, 2007. He finished the season on injured reserve. In 2008, in four starts, Hill totaled 20 tackles, 2 pass deflections, and a forced fumble. Hill tore cartilage in his knee which forced him to sit out the rest of the season after playing only four games. It was the second straight season he ended on injured reserve.

Atlanta Falcons

Hill was traded to the

on September 1, 2009, for a 7th round pick in the

2010 NFL Draft The 2010 NFL Draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The 2010 draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, with the firs ...

. Hill scored the first touchdown of his career on November 8, 2009, when he intercepted a pass from

Jason Campbell Jason S. Campbell (born December 31, 1981) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college footbal ...

and returned it for a 62-yard touchdown. Hill was released on March 16, 2010.

Tennessee Titans

Hill was signed to a one-year contract by the

on March 30, 2010. He was waived by the team on September 4, 2010.

Detroit Lions

Hill was signed by the

on December 2, 2010. On March 4, 2011 the Detroit Lions elected not to tender Hill making him an unrestricted free agent.Lions don't tender Tye Hill
''RotoWorld'' Mar. 4, 2012

References

External links

Detroit Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Tye 1982 births Living people American football cornerbacks Atlanta Falcons players Clemson Tigers football players Clemson Tigers men's track and field athletes Detroit Lions players St. Louis Rams players Tennessee Titans players All-American college football players People from St. George, South Carolina Players of American football from South Carolina