Grant Wiley
Encyclopedia
Grant Wiley is a retired American football
Linebacker
who played for the Minnesota Vikings
in the National Football League
. He played college football
at West Virginia
. He is one of only a handful of consensus All-Americans from WVU.
After suffering a career ending shoulder
injury, he became a model
and an actor
.
. He was named to the Pennsylvania Sports Fever Fab 85. He was also named to the Pennsylvania Football News All-state team.
in 2000
and earned Big East Rookie of the Year honors after recording 94 tackles
and 14 tackles for losses, he recorded three interceptions, one reception
for 26 yards against East Carolina
and two against Idaho which he returned one for a touchdown. He was voted Second-team Freshman All-America
n and finished the season 12th in the conference in tackles and seventh in tackles-for-losses. His best performance of the season came against Idaho, when he recorded seven tackles, 2.5 sacks
, and two interceptions. His first interceptions came in the third quarter, down 9-0, when he intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown. The interception helped the Mountaineers record a come-from-behind victory.
In 2001
, Wiley's sophomore season was a relatively quiet season for him. One of his best performances came in a 35-0 loss to Virginia Tech
, where he had a key interception. He was awarded the Ideal Mountaineer Man Award by the West Virginia coaches at the end of the season.
As a junior in 2002
, Wiley earned national recognition. One of his best games was against Temple
, where the Mountaineers won 46-20. He recorded an interception in the game that he returned deep into Temple territory, and a forced fumble by quarterback
Mike Frost. Wiley recorded 133 tackles and two interceptions for the season.
Wiley's senior season, 2003
, was an average season for the Mountaineers. After starting the season 1-4, West Virginia played Rutgers
in a must-win situation. Wiley helped the Mountaineers win 34-19, by recording 11 tackles and a diving interception. Also, in the 52-31 victory over Pitt
, he recorded a key interception in the endzone. Wiley also recorded 18 tackles in the game against the Miami Hurricanes
. A team captain
, Wiley earned consensus All-American honors for the season, making him one of only a handful of Mountaineers to do so. He was also a finalist for the 2003 Bronko Nagurski Award
, which was won by Oklahoma
's Derrick Strait
. Wiley led the nation that season with 7 forced fumbles and ranked third with 7.6 tackles per game. He finished the year with 158 tackles, 14 tackles for a loss, two interceptions, and nine forced fumbles.
and later signed a free agent
contract with the Minnesota Vikings
, on April 27. On August 6, he was placed on the waived-injured list by the Vikings. He was later placed on injured reserve
.
In 2005
, Wiley returned to Vikings training camp once again. This training camp was to be his last, as he seriously injured his shoulder
in early August. After injuring his shoulder he was listed as day-to-day. However, turned out the injury was worse than expected. Thus, on August 9, he was waived, after agreeing on an injury settlement. That injury, being his second to require surgery
, turned out to be career ending.
on July 14–15, 2006 at Wayne Jamison Stadium. This camp was not an ordinary football camp. At the camp, along with several instructors familiar to state football fans, he spent the camp demonstrating and instructing the attendees in the same session at the same time, rather than splitting them up into position specific groups.
and model
. His credits include serving as an extra
on the February 6, 2008 episode of All My Children
where he played a bar patron at the Pine Valley
Inn. He is currently shooting a film in Colorado
.
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...
Linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
who played for the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. He played 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...
at West Virginia
West Virginia Mountaineers football
The West Virginia Mountaineers football team represents West Virginia University in the NCAA FBS division of college football. Dana Holgorsen is the team's 33rd head coach. He has held the position since he was promoted in June 2011 after the resignation of Bill Stewart. The Mountaineers play their...
. He is one of only a handful of consensus All-Americans from WVU.
After suffering a career ending shoulder
Shoulder
The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle , the scapula , and the humerus as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder make up the shoulder joints. The major joint of the shoulder is the glenohumeral joint, which...
injury, he became a model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
and an actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
High school career
Wiley attended Perkiomen Valley High School in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. He won Offensive Player of the Year by the Norristown Times-Herald. He was named Pac Ten MVP, PCTV Offensive Player of the Year and the Pottstown Mercury Player of the Year. He was also named to the Philadelphia Inquirer All-Area team. He was selected to play in the Ohio-Pennsylvania Big 33 game. He was rated the eighth-best Linebacker prospect in the East by PrepStar. He won Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors as a juniorEleventh grade
Eleventh Grade is the eleventh, and for some countries final, grade of secondary schools. Students are typically 16 or 17 years of age, depending on the country and the students' birthdays.-Brazil:...
. He was named to the Pennsylvania Sports Fever Fab 85. He was also named to the Pennsylvania Football News All-state team.
Collegiate career
Wiley began attending West Virginia UniversityWest Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
in 2000
2000 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 2000 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the Oklahoma Sooners claiming their first national championship and their first conference championship since the departure of head coach Barry Switzer....
and earned Big East Rookie of the Year honors after recording 94 tackles
Tackle (football move)
Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary purposes of tackling is to disposses an opponent of the ball, to stop the player from gaining ground towards goal or to stop them from carrying out what they intend....
and 14 tackles for losses, he recorded three interceptions, one reception
Reception (American football)
In American football, a reception is part of a play in which a forward pass from behind the line of scrimmage is received by a player in bounds, who, after the catch, proceeds to either score a touchdown or be downed. Yards gained from the receiving play are credited to the player as receiving...
for 26 yards against East Carolina
East Carolina Pirates football
The East Carolina Pirates is a college football team that represents East Carolina University . The team is currently a member of the Conference USA, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association .The Pirates have won seven conference championships and...
and two against Idaho which he returned one for a touchdown. He was voted Second-team Freshman All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n and finished the season 12th in the conference in tackles and seventh in tackles-for-losses. His best performance of the season came against Idaho, when he recorded seven tackles, 2.5 sacks
Quarterback sack
In American football and Canadian football, a sack occurs when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a forward pass, or when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "pocket" and the intent of what he was going to do is unclear...
, and two interceptions. His first interceptions came in the third quarter, down 9-0, when he intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown. The interception helped the Mountaineers record a come-from-behind victory.
In 2001
2001 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the University of Miami winning the national title for the fifth time.The Hurricanes were led by Larry Coker, who was in his first year as head coach after five years as Miami's offensive coordinator under Butch Davis...
, Wiley's sophomore season was a relatively quiet season for him. One of his best performances came in a 35-0 loss to Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech Hokies football
The Virginia Tech Hokies football team is a college football program that competes in NCAA Division I-FBS, in the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They have more wins in team history than any other program in the ACC. Their home games are played at Lane Stadium which seats over...
, where he had a key interception. He was awarded the Ideal Mountaineer Man Award by the West Virginia coaches at the end of the season.
As a junior in 2002
2002 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season ended the season with what most consider an exciting double overtime national championship game. Ohio State and Miami both came into the Fiesta Bowl undefeated. The underdog Buckeyes defeated the Hurricanes 31–24, ending Miami's 34 game winning...
, Wiley earned national recognition. One of his best games was against Temple
Temple Owls football
The Temple Owls football team participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference...
, where the Mountaineers won 46-20. He recorded an interception in the game that he returned deep into Temple territory, and a forced fumble by quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Mike Frost. Wiley recorded 133 tackles and two interceptions for the season.
Wiley's senior season, 2003
2003 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with an abundance of controversy, resulting in a split national championship. This was the first split title since the inception of the BCS, something the BCS intended to eliminate....
, was an average season for the Mountaineers. After starting the season 1-4, West Virginia played Rutgers
Rutgers Scarlet Knights football
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represents Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision play...
in a must-win situation. Wiley helped the Mountaineers win 34-19, by recording 11 tackles and a diving interception. Also, in the 52-31 victory over Pitt
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
, he recorded a key interception in the endzone. Wiley also recorded 18 tackles in the game against the Miami Hurricanes
Miami Hurricanes
The Miami Hurricanes, of Coral Gables, Florida, are the varsity sports teams of the University of Miami. They compete in the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference . The university fields 15 athletic teams for 17 varsity sports...
. A team captain
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...
, Wiley earned consensus All-American honors for the season, making him one of only a handful of Mountaineers to do so. He was also a finalist for the 2003 Bronko Nagurski Award
Bronko Nagurski Trophy
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America to be the best defensively in the National Collegiate Athletic Association; the award is presented by the Charlotte...
, which was won by Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
's Derrick Strait
Derrick Strait
Derrick Strait is a professional American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. Strait was originally drafted by the New York Jets in the third round of the 2004 NFL Draft...
. Wiley led the nation that season with 7 forced fumbles and ranked third with 7.6 tackles per game. He finished the year with 158 tackles, 14 tackles for a loss, two interceptions, and nine forced fumbles.
Career statistics
| Career Defensive Statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Year | Team | G | Tack | Solo | Ast | TFL | Sack | FF | FR | Int | Yds | Lng | TD | Pass Def. | Block |
| 2000 2000 NCAA Division I-A football season The 2000 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the Oklahoma Sooners claiming their first national championship and their first conference championship since the departure of head coach Barry Switzer.... |
West Virginia Mountaineers | 12 | 94 | 57 | 37 | 14.0 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 38 | 22 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2001 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season The 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the University of Miami winning the national title for the fifth time.The Hurricanes were led by Larry Coker, who was in his first year as head coach after five years as Miami's offensive coordinator under Butch Davis... |
West Virginia Mountaineers | 9 | 98 | 51 | 47 | 6.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2002 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season The 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season ended the season with what most consider an exciting double overtime national championship game. Ohio State and Miami both came into the Fiesta Bowl undefeated. The underdog Buckeyes defeated the Hurricanes 31–24, ending Miami's 34 game winning... |
West Virginia Mountaineers 2002 West Virginia Mountaineers football team The 2002 West Virginia Mountaineers football team completed the regular season with a 9–4 record and traveled to the , where they lost to the Virginia Cavaliers 48–22... |
13 | 133 | 91 | 42 | 13.5 | 3.0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 2003 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season The 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with an abundance of controversy, resulting in a split national championship. This was the first split title since the inception of the BCS, something the BCS intended to eliminate.... |
West Virginia Mountaineers | 13 | 167 | 99 | 68 | 14.0 | 1.0 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Total | 47 | 492 | 298 | 194 | 47.5 | 9.0 | 9 | 2 | 8 | 74 | 22 | 2 | 18 | 0 |
Professional career
Wiley was rated as the 13th best out of 51 Inside Linebackers and was projected to be selected in the sixth or seventh round. However, he went undrafted in the 2004 NFL Draft2004 NFL Draft
The 2004 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, 2004 at the theater at Madison Square Garden...
and later signed a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
contract with the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
, on April 27. On August 6, he was placed on the waived-injured list by the Vikings. He was later placed on injured reserve
Injured reserve
The injured reserve list is a list of reserved players who are injured and unable to play for a period of time, used most prominently in the National Hockey League and National Football League . It is used because these leagues have a maximum number of players on the team roster, so placing a...
.
In 2005
2005 Minnesota Vikings season
2005 was the 45th year of season play for the Minnesota Vikings and the 86th regular season of the National Football League.-Offseason:Red McCombs sold the Minnesota Vikings to a group led by Zygi Wilf in May 2005. Wilf was originally going to be a limited partner to Reggie Fowler. However Fowler...
, Wiley returned to Vikings training camp once again. This training camp was to be his last, as he seriously injured his shoulder
Shoulder
The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle , the scapula , and the humerus as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder make up the shoulder joints. The major joint of the shoulder is the glenohumeral joint, which...
in early August. After injuring his shoulder he was listed as day-to-day. However, turned out the injury was worse than expected. Thus, on August 9, he was waived, after agreeing on an injury settlement. That injury, being his second to require surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
, turned out to be career ending.
After football
After his football career ended, Wiley served as an instructor at a football camp in Bridgeport, West VirginiaBridgeport, West Virginia
Bridgeport is a city in Harrison County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 7,306 at the 2000 census.The town of Bridgeport had its beginning in pre-Revolutionary War times. In 1764, John Simpson entered the area and gave his name to Simpson Creek. Bridgeport was chartered in 1816....
on July 14–15, 2006 at Wayne Jamison Stadium. This camp was not an ordinary football camp. At the camp, along with several instructors familiar to state football fans, he spent the camp demonstrating and instructing the attendees in the same session at the same time, rather than splitting them up into position specific groups.
Acting career
Wiley is currently an actorActor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
. His credits include serving as an extra
Extra (actor)
A background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
on the February 6, 2008 episode of All My Children
All My Children
All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
where he played a bar patron at the Pine Valley
Pine Valley, Pennsylvania
Pine Valley, Pennsylvania is the fictional setting for the long-running American soap opera All My Children. It is a small suburb of Philadelphia...
Inn. He is currently shooting a film in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
.
Television appearances
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 2008 in television The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2008. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and new channel launches.-January:-February:-March:-April:-May:-June:-July:-August:... |
All My Children All My Children All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most... |
Extra | One episode (February 6) |
External links
- Profile at CBSSports.com
- Profile at WVUStats.com
- Profile at Scout.com