Fred Biletnikoff
Encyclopedia
Frederick S. "Fred" Biletnikoff (born February 23, 1943) is a former American football
wide receiver
and coach. He spent the majority of his professional playing and coaching days with the Oakland Raiders
. Biletnikoff retired as an NFL player after the 1978 season, and played one additional season in the Canadian Football League for the Montreal Alouettes
.
, by Russian parents who emigrated to the US during the Russian Civil War
. In Erie, he attended what was then Technical Memorial High School and is now Central Tech. The Central Tech field is now named Fred Biletnikoff athletic field.
Turning down other notable offers Biletnikoff chose Florida State University, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity.
in the second round of the American Football League draft and Detroit Lions
in the third round. Biletnikoff signed with the Raiders where he played until retiring at the end of the 1978 season
. He also played one season (1980) with the Montreal Alouettes
of the Canadian Football League
.
In high school he excelled in football, basketball, baseball and track and field earning 1st team recognition his senior year on Pennsylvania's all-state football and basketball teams. He was later honored along with other HS football greats Tony Dorsett
, Joe Montana
and Mike Ditka
to the all-time 1st team Pennsylvania football team.
At Florida State
, Biletnikoff missed several games his first varsity season (as a sophomore -- freshmen were not eligible) with a broken foot. He played on both sides of the ball his junior season leading the team in receptions and interceptions taking an interception the length of the field for a touchdown (99 yards off a pass thrown by George Mira
, one of the best quarterbacks ever to play for the Miami Hurricanes), a record that held until another NFL Hall of Famer, Deion Sanders
, broke the record by one yard.
He was famous for using liberal quantities of Stickum
on his hands to improve his chances of catching a pass.
Biletnikoff's NFL career total of 589 receptions and record 10 straight seasons of 40 or more receptions is even more impressive when it is taken in account that he played most of his career when teams' emphasized running the ball over passing it down field and 13 of his seasons where played in 14 game regular seasons. He played in the second AFL-NFL World Championship
game and in Super Bowl XI, in which he was named MVP
. In 1969, he was selected to the Sporting News AFL All-League Team
. He also played in three American Football League
title games, two American Football League All-Star games
, five AFC
Championships, and four AFC–NFC Pro Bowls
.
(1982), Palomar College
(1983), Diablo Valley College
(1984), Oakland Invaders
(1985), Arizona Wranglers
(1986) and Calgary Stampeders
(1987–88).
On January 31, 2007 Biletnikoff retired as the wide receivers coach for the Oakland Raiders, which had been his role for 10 seasons. His retirement ended an 18 year coaching career with the Raiders.
Fred Biletnikoff, Jr. is currently the Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach of the Arena Football League team, the Spokane Shock. Biletnikoff was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
in 1988 and was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame
in 1991. The Fred Biletnikoff Award
, awarded annually to the best wide receiver in college football
since 1994, was named in his honor. In 1999, Biletnikoff was ranked number 94 on The Sporting News
list of the "100 Greatest Football Players".
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
and coach. He spent the majority of his professional playing and coaching days with the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Biletnikoff retired as an NFL player after the 1978 season, and played one additional season in the Canadian Football League for the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
.
Early years
Biletnikoff was born and raised in Erie, PennsylvaniaErie, Pennsylvania
Erie is a city located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Named for the lake and the Native American tribe that resided along its southern shore, Erie is the state's fourth-largest city , with a population of 102,000...
, by Russian parents who emigrated to the US during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. In Erie, he attended what was then Technical Memorial High School and is now Central Tech. The Central Tech field is now named Fred Biletnikoff athletic field.
Turning down other notable offers Biletnikoff chose Florida State University, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity.
Playing career
Biletnikoff was the first consensus All-American to play for Florida State University. After graduating from Florida State he was drafted by the Oakland RaidersOakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in the second round of the American Football League draft and Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
in the third round. Biletnikoff signed with the Raiders where he played until retiring at the end of the 1978 season
1978 NFL season
The 1978 NFL season was the 59th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded the regular season from a 14-game schedule to 16. Furthermore, the playoff format was expanded from 8 teams to 10 teams by adding another wild card from each conference...
. He also played one season (1980) with the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
.
In high school he excelled in football, basketball, baseball and track and field earning 1st team recognition his senior year on Pennsylvania's all-state football and basketball teams. He was later honored along with other HS football greats Tony Dorsett
Tony Dorsett
Anthony "Tony" Drew Dorsett is a former American football running back in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos.-Early years:...
, Joe Montana
Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford "Joe" Montana, Jr. , nicknamed Joe Cool, Golden Joe, The Golden Great and Comeback Joe, is a retired American football player. Montana started his NFL career in 1979 with the San Francisco 49ers, where he played quarterback for the next 14 seasons...
and Mike Ditka
Mike Ditka
Michael Keller Ditka, Jr. is a former American football NFL player, television commentator, and coach. Ditka coached the Chicago Bears for 11 years and New Orleans Saints for three years. Ditka and Tom Flores are the only two people to win Super Bowls as a player, an assistant coach, and a head...
to the all-time 1st team Pennsylvania football team.
At Florida State
Florida State Seminoles football
The Florida State Seminoles football team represents Florida State University in college football. The Florida State Seminoles compete in NCAA Division I-FBS and are members of the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
, Biletnikoff missed several games his first varsity season (as a sophomore -- freshmen were not eligible) with a broken foot. He played on both sides of the ball his junior season leading the team in receptions and interceptions taking an interception the length of the field for a touchdown (99 yards off a pass thrown by George Mira
George Mira
George Ignacio Mira is a former professional American football player. A quarterback drafted in the second round of the 1964 NFL Draft from the University of Miami, Mira played in eight NFL seasons from 1964-1971 for three different teams...
, one of the best quarterbacks ever to play for the Miami Hurricanes), a record that held until another NFL Hall of Famer, Deion Sanders
Deion Sanders
Deion Luwynn Sanders , nicknamed "Prime Time" and "Neon Deion", is a former National Football League cornerback and Major League Baseball outfielder who currently works as an NFL Network analyst...
, broke the record by one yard.
He was famous for using liberal quantities of Stickum
Stickum
Stickum is a trademark adhesive of Mueller Sports Medicine, of Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin, US. It is available in powder, paste and aerosol spray forms...
on his hands to improve his chances of catching a pass.
Biletnikoff's NFL career total of 589 receptions and record 10 straight seasons of 40 or more receptions is even more impressive when it is taken in account that he played most of his career when teams' emphasized running the ball over passing it down field and 13 of his seasons where played in 14 game regular seasons. He played in the second AFL-NFL World Championship
Super Bowl II
The second AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later to be known as Super Bowl II, was played on January 14, 1968 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida....
game and in Super Bowl XI, in which he was named MVP
Most Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...
. In 1969, he was selected to the Sporting News AFL All-League Team
American Football League All-League Teams
The Sporting News published American Football League All-League Teams for each season played by the American Football League, 1960 through 1969...
. He also played in three American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
title games, two American Football League All-Star games
American Football League All-Star games
-All-League Teams:The Sporting News published American Football League All-League Teams for each season played by the American Football League, 1960 through 1969...
, five AFC
American Football Conference
The American Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the National Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL....
Championships, and four AFC–NFC Pro Bowls
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
.
Coaching career
Biletnikoff began his career in coaching soon after his retirement from playing. He served on the coaching staff of the Orange Glen High SchoolOrange Glen High School
Orange Glen High School is one of the five public high schools in the Escondido Union School District in Escondido, California. It was established in 1962. The school earned the prestigious California Distinguished School Award in 2007...
(1982), Palomar College
Palomar College
Palomar College is a community college with one campus and six education sites in San Diego County, California. The main campus is located in San Marcos, while the six education sites are located elsewhere throughout north San Diego County. The largest of these is the education center located in...
(1983), Diablo Valley College
Diablo Valley College
Diablo Valley College is a two-year community college in Pleasant Hill in Contra Costa County, California.DVC is one of three publicly supported two-year community colleges in the Contra Costa Community College District , and was first opened in 1949...
(1984), Oakland Invaders
Oakland Invaders
Oakland Invaders was a professional American football team that played in the United States Football League from 1983 through 1985.-In reaction to the Raiders relocating to Los Angeles:...
(1985), Arizona Wranglers
Arizona Wranglers
The Arizona Wranglers were a professional American Football team in the United States Football League in the mid 1980s. They played at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe, a suburb of Phoenix.-Founding:...
(1986) and Calgary Stampeders
Calgary Stampeders
The Calgary Stampeders are a Canadian Football League team based in Calgary, Alberta and named in reference to the Calgary Stampede. The Stampeders play their home games at McMahon Stadium...
(1987–88).
On January 31, 2007 Biletnikoff retired as the wide receivers coach for the Oakland Raiders, which had been his role for 10 seasons. His retirement ended an 18 year coaching career with the Raiders.
Fred Biletnikoff, Jr. is currently the Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach of the Arena Football League team, the Spokane Shock. Biletnikoff was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
in 1988 and was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
in 1991. The Fred Biletnikoff Award
Fred Biletnikoff Award
The Fred Biletnikoff Award has been presented since 1994 to America's top college football receiver by the TQC Foundation, Inc. , an independent not-for-profit organization which created the award in 1994 and has sponsored it since...
, awarded annually to the best wide receiver in college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
since 1994, was named in his honor. In 1999, Biletnikoff was ranked number 94 on The Sporting News
The Sporting News
Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
list of the "100 Greatest Football Players".