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Austin Collie
refer to caption
Collie with the Indianapolis Colts in 2010
No. 17, 10
Position: Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1985-11-11) November 11, 1985 (age 39)
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Height: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight: 204 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school: Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills, California)
College: BYU
NFL Draft: 2009 / Round: 4 / Pick: 127
Career history
Career highlights and awards
  • PFWA All-Rookie Team (2009)
  • Second-team All-American (2008)
  • MW Freshman of the Year (2004)
  • First-team All-MW (2008)
  • Second-team All-MW (2007)
Career NFL statistics
Receptions: 179
Receiving yards: 1,908
Receiving average: 10.7
Receiving touchdowns: 16
Player stats at CFL.ca (archive)

Austin Kirk Collie (born November 11, 1985) is a former professional football player. He played as a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He also played in the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Collie played college football for the BYU Cougars. The Indianapolis Colts picked him in the fourth round of the 2009 NFL draft. He also played for the New England Patriots in the NFL. Later, he joined the BC Lions in the CFL.

Early Life and High School Football

Austin Collie was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. His parents, Scott and Nicole Collie, were American. His dad, Scott, also played football at Brigham Young University (BYU). He even played professionally in the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Austin became a star wide receiver at Oak Ridge High School. This school is in El Dorado Hills, California. He won many awards there. He was named an All-American by PrepStar and SuperPrep. He was also voted Northern California's Most Valuable Player.

In his final year of high school, he caught 60 passes. These catches gained him 978 yards and 18 touchdowns. In 2004, Collie also became an Eagle Scout. This is the highest rank in the Boy Scouts of America.

In December 2009, his hometown newspaper, The Sacramento Bee, honored him. They named him the Sacramento Area's Player of the Decade. This covered the years 2000 to 2009.

College Football Career

Collie played college football at Brigham Young University (BYU). In 2004, he was named the Mountain West Conference (MWC) Freshman of the Year. He also earned the MVP award for the 2007 Las Vegas Bowl. In 2008, he was chosen for the All-MWC first-team.

Austin Collie set several records during his time at BYU. He played for three years: 2004, 2007, and 2008.

Reception records in BYU Cougars football history
Category Amount BYU All-time Rank
Career receptions 215 2nd (Dennis Pitta - 221)
Career receiving yards 3,255 1st
Career receiving touchdowns 30 1st

During his junior year, Collie was one of the best wide receivers in college football. He was selected for the college football All–American team. This means he was recognized as one of the top players in the country.

2008 NCAA receiving records
Category Number NCAA Rank, 2008
Receiving yards per game 118.31 1st
Total yards receiving 1538 1st
Consecutive 100-yard receiving games 11 Tied for 1st (Michael Crabtree)
Receiving yards per catch 14.51 3rd
Total receptions 106 3rd
Touchdowns receiving 15 4th
Total all–purpose yards (per game) 162.46 12th

On January 9, 2009, Collie announced he would leave college early. He decided to enter the 2009 NFL draft. The Indianapolis Colts picked him in the fourth round. He was the 127th player chosen overall.

Professional Football Journey

Playing for the Indianapolis Colts

Austin Collie quickly impressed the Indianapolis Colts coach, Jim Caldwell. He started his first season in 2009 as the third wide receiver. He played well as a rookie. He was among the top new wide receivers in the NFL for his stats.

Collie had a strong start to his second year in 2010. He caught many touchdown passes. He became a key player for quarterback Peyton Manning. However, he faced some tough injuries.

On November 7, 2010, Collie was involved in a collision during a game. He was hit on both sides of his head. He had to be taken off the field. He suffered a concussion from this hit. Later that year, on December 19, he got another hit to the head. This was his second concussion that year. It ended his 2010 season early. These injuries led to many discussions about player safety in football.

In 2011, Collie played in all 16 games. He caught 54 passes, but only one for a touchdown. In 2012, he got his third concussion during a preseason game. Later that season, he tore a tendon in his right knee. This injury made him miss the rest of the 2012 season.

Because of his injuries, the Colts decided not to re-sign him in 2013.

Time with Other NFL Teams

On August 2, 2013, the San Francisco 49ers signed Collie. He joined them for a one-year contract. However, he was released on August 31 during the final team cuts.

The New England Patriots then signed Collie on October 3, 2013. He signed a one-year contract. Due to his past injuries, the contract allowed the Patriots to release him if he got hurt again. He was released on November 5 because of a knee injury. He had only 3 catches for 34 yards with them.

The Patriots re-signed him on December 5 to help their team. They needed more players because other wide receivers were injured. He was released again on December 27. But then, he was re-signed one more time on January 2, 2014. The Patriots released him again after the playoffs.

Playing in the CFL with BC Lions

On January 29, 2015, the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL) signed Austin Collie. In his only CFL season, he played in 16 games. He caught 43 passes for 439 yards and scored 7 touchdowns. Collie even threw a touchdown pass himself! It was a trick play where he threw a 21-yard pass to the quarterback.

On April 8, 2016, Austin Collie announced he was retiring from professional football.

NFL Career Statistics Summary

Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2009 IND 16 5 60 676 11.3 39T 7 2 1 0.5 2 0 0 0
2010 IND 9 6 58 649 11.2 73T 8 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 1
2011 IND 16 5 54 514 9.5 27 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
2012 IND 1 0 1 6 6.0 6 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
2013 NE 7 1 6 63 10.5 19 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
Total 49 17 179 1,908 10.7 73 16 2 1 0.5 2 0 1 1

Life After Football

Austin Collie is married and has four children. After he retired from playing professional football, he started working at Cognitive FX. This is a special center in Provo, Utah. It helps people who have had concussions.

See Also

  • List of NCAA major college football yearly receiving leaders
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