Errict Undra Rhett (born December 11, 1970) is an American former professional football player who was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

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 seven seasons during the 1990s and early 2000s. Rhett played college football for the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, and was recognized as an All-American. A second-round pick in the

1994 NFL Draft The 1994 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 24–25, 1994, at the Marriott Ma ...

, he played professionally for 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) South division. The cl ...

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 it ...

and

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 (A ...

of the NFL.

Early life

Rhett was born in Pembroke Pines, Florida in 1970.Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Errict Rhett
Retrieved July 9, 2010. He attended

McArthur High School McArthur High School is located in Hollywood, Florida. It serves students from both Hollywood and Pembroke Pines in grades 9 through 12. The school is a part of the Broward County Public Schools district. History Alfred Ryll (former Mayor of ...

in Hollywood, Florida,databaseFootball.com, Players
Errict Rhett
. Retrieved June 7, 2010. where he was a star high school football player for the McArthur Mustangs. He also was a two-time state wrestling champion in the 185-pound and 220-pound weight class for the McArthur Mustangs wrestling team. At the 1988 Wrestling State Championship, Rhett did not meet the qualifications to wrestle at the 220lbs weight class because he only weighed 173lbs. In order to wrestle 220lbs, all wrestlers must weigh a minimum of 185lbs. Rhett sprinted across the street to a 7-Eleven, only to return 1:30 minutes later and stepped on the scale weighing 186lbs. Rhett went on to capture his 1st State Championship. When the media asked Rhett how did he gain that much weight in that short period of time, Rhett simply said " What the mind can conceive the body will achieve".

College career

Rhett accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

in Gainesville, Florida, and played tailback for coach Steve Spurrier's

Florida Gators football The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division o ...

team from

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

.
2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 77, 78, 88, 93, 97, 103, 125, 127, 138–140, 143, 147–148, 152, 159, 162, 173, 185 (2011). Retrieved August 31, 2011. Rhett broke Gator alumnus Emmitt Smith's former Gators career rushing record, finishing with 4,163 yards and thirty-four

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 Amer ...

s, 1,230 yards receiving and two touchdown

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 ...

s, and leading the Gators in rushing for all four seasons of his college career. Memorably, he rushed for 193 yards against the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...

in 1992, and for 196 yards against the Auburn Tigers in 1993. Aided by his consistent running game, the Gators won the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC) championship in

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

and again in 1993. As a senior team captain, Rhett was named most valuable player (MVP) of the

1994 Sugar Bowl The 1994 Sugar Bowl took place on January 1, 1994, in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,

, rushing for 105 yards and three touchdowns in the Gators' 41–7 victory over the

West Virginia Mountaineers The West Virginia Mountaineers are the athletic teams that represent West Virginia University, an American university located in Morgantown, West Virginia. The school is a member of National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I. The Mou ...

. He was a first-team All-SEC selection in 1991 and 1993, a first-team All-American in 1993, and was chosen by his teammates as the Gators' most valuable player in 1993. During his time at Florida, Rhett was initiated as a brother of Omega Psi Phi fraternity. He graduated from Florida with a bachelor's degree in 1995, and was later inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 2005. The sports editors of ''The Gainesville Sun'' ranked him as No. 34 among the 100 all-time greatest Gators of the first 100 seasons of Florida football in 2006.

Professional career

Rhett was chosen by the

in the second round (thirty-fourth pick overall) in the 1994 NFL Draft, and played seven professional seasons from to . During his

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

season with Tampa Bay, he rushed for 1,011 yards and seven touchdowns.National Football League, Historical Players
Errict Rhett
Retrieved May 23, 2010. Rhett had a career year the following season when he rushed for 1,207 yards and eleven touchdowns. He was involved in a contract hold-out before the season, but still led the Buccaneers in rushing despite appearing in just nine games. Rhett played four more years in the NFL, but he never matched the numbers that he produced during his first two seasons. His best post-Tampa Bay season came in when he rushed for 852 yards for the

. Rhett's career ended when the

waived him immediately before the start of the season. During his seven NFL seasons, Rhett rushed for 4,143 yards and twenty-nine touchdowns; he also had eighty-nine receptions for 552 yards and three touchdowns.

Life after football

Rhett is the father of three children: son Errict, Jr., and daughters Morgan and Amaurri.Scott Carter,
GatorZone.com Catches Up with Errict Rhett at Nike Uniform Launch Event
" GatorZone.com (September 2, 2010). Retrieved May 25, 2011. All three are actively involved in sports; he coaches his son's Optimist league junior football team and regularly attends his daughters' track meets. When his playing career ended after the 2000 NFL season, Rhett returned to South Florida, where he grew up. Today, he is the chief executive officer of Errict Rhett Custom Homes and the Errict Rhett Foundation. Rhett's foundation emphasizes charitable activities that benefit underprivileged children, including an after-school support program, college scholarships, and a mentoring program.Errict Rhett Foundation
Programs
Retrieved May 25, 2011.

References

Bibliography

* Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). . * Golenbock, Peter, ''Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory'', Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). . * Hairston, Jack, ''Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told'', Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). . * McCarthy, Kevin M.,
Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football
', Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). . * Nash, Noel, ed., ''The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football'', Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). . {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhett, Errict 1970 births Living people All-American college football players American football running backs Baltimore Ravens players Cleveland Browns players Florida Gators football players People from Pembroke Pines, Florida Players of American football from Florida Tampa Bay Buccaneers players