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Stephen Sullivan (American football)

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Stephen Sullivan
refer to caption
Sullivan with LSU in 2019
No. 85 – Carolina Panthers
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1996-11-28) November 28, 1996 (age 27)
Donaldsonville, Louisiana, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:Donaldsonville
College:LSU (2016–2019)
NFL draft:2020 / round: 7 / pick: 251
Career history
Roster status:Practice squad
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Receptions:14
Receiving yards:171
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Stephen Sullivan (born November 28, 1996) is an American professional football tight end for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers and was a part of their national championship win in 2020. In college he played wide receiver. He was selected by the Seahawks in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL draft.

Early life

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Sullivan spent his childhood in Irving, Texas, where he lived in extreme poverty and at times experienced homelessness. His youth football coach offered to let Sullivan live with him. While Sullivan originally planned on attending Nimitz High School, he opted to move to Donaldsonville, Louisiana and stay with family and enroll at Donaldsonville High School.[1] He eventually moved out of his aunt's house and stayed with the family of a teammate.[2] Sullivan excelled in football at Donaldsonville and caught 57 passes for 987 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior.[3] As a senior, he was named first-team All-State after finishing the year with 57 receptions for 1,159 yards.[4] Sullivan was rated a four-star recruit and committed to play college football at LSU over offers from TCU and Mississippi State.[5]

College career

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Sullivan spent his first two seasons playing special teams and was used on offense primarily as a blocking receiver. As a sophomore, he had 11 receptions for 219 yards and a touchdown while also rushing twice for five yards and a touchdown. LSU's coaching staff worked out Sullivan at tight end going into his junior season before ultimately moving him back to receiver.[6] As a junior, he finished second on the team with 23 receptions and 363 receiving yards and scored two touchdowns. Sullivan spent most of his senior season as the Tigers' second tight end, catching 12 passes for 130 yards as the Tigers won the 2020 National Championship.[7]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
6 ft 4+7⁄8 in
(1.95 m) 		248 lb
(112 kg) 		35+3⁄8 in
(0.90 m) 		10+1⁄8 in
(0.26 m)		 4.66 s 1.62 s 2.72 s 4.62 s 7.51 s 36.5 in
(0.93 m)		 10 ft 3 in
(3.12 m)
All values from NFL Combine[8][9]

Seattle Seahawks

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Sullivan was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the seventh round with the 251st overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft.[10] He was waived on September 5, 2020, and signed to the practice squad the next day.[11][12] While on the practice squad, the Seahawks listed Sullivan as a defensive end as well as tight end after he began practicing at both positions.[13] He was elevated to the active roster on October 31 for the team's week 8 game against the San Francisco 49ers, and reverted to the practice squad after the game.[14] He was placed on the practice squad/injured list on November 23, 2020.[15] His practice squad contract with the team expired after the season on January 18, 2021.[16]

Carolina Panthers

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On February 3, 2021, Sullivan signed a reserve/futures contract with the Carolina Panthers.[17] He was waived on August 31, 2021, and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[18][19] On January 8, 2022, Sullivan was promoted to the active roster ahead of the week 17 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[20]

In 2022, Sullivan played in 14 games for Carolina, recording two receptions for 46 yards. On January 9, 2023, Sullivan signed a futures/reserve contract with the Panthers.[21]

On August 31, 2023, Sullivan was placed on injured reserve.[22] He was activated on October 14.[23]

On January 8, 2024, the Panthers signed Sullivan to a one-year contract extension.[24] He was placed on injured reserve on August 1 and released with an injury settlement one week later.[25][26] He was re-signed to the practice squad on September 30.[27]

References

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  1. ^ Alexander, Wilson (August 8, 2019). "How LSU's Stephen Sullivan rose from poverty to become first college graduate in his family". The Advocate.
  2. ^ Miller, Brody (August 6, 2019). "Bridging the gap: Stephen Sullivan's improbable path to and through LSU". The Athletic.
  3. ^ Sayles, Damon (September 29, 2015). "4-Star WR Stephen Sullivan on Top 6: 'I Love Everything About Each School'". Bleacher Report.
  4. ^ Sayles, Damon (December 22, 2015). "4-Star WR Stephen Sullivan Updates His Recruitment: 'I've Made My Decision'". Bleacher Report.
  5. ^ Fambrough, Robin (January 2, 2016). "Donaldsonville's Stephen Sullivan commits to LSU". NOLA.com.
  6. ^ Lopez, Andrew (August 11, 2018). "LSU working wide receiver Stephen Sullivan at tight end". NOLA.com.
  7. ^ Shipp, Sonny (April 3, 2020). "Stephen Sullivan: NFL draft rankings, projections and prediction". 247Sports.com.
  8. ^ "Stephen Sullivan Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
  9. ^ "2020 NFL Draft Scout Stephen Sullivan College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
  10. ^ "Get to know Stephen Sullivan, the Seahawks' seventh-round NFL draft pick out of LSU". The Seattle Times. April 25, 2020. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  11. ^ Boyle, John (September 5, 2020). "Seahawks Make Roster Moves To Establish Initial 53-Man Roster". Seahawks.com.
  12. ^ Boyle, John (September 6, 2020). "Seahawks Sign 14 Players to Practice Squad, Including LB Shaquem Griffin". Seahawks.com.
  13. ^ ""Snacks" Harrison has a new number, Stephen Sullivan has a new position". Tacoma News Tribune. October 21, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
  14. ^ Condotta, Bob (October 31, 2020). "Seahawks add D.J. Reed and Colby Parkinson to 53-player roster and elevate Jayson Stanley and Stephen Sullivan". SeattleTimes.com. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
  15. ^ "Stephen Sullivan: Out with injury". CBSSports.com. November 23, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  16. ^ "Five no longer under contract". FantasyGuru.com. January 18, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  17. ^ Weaver, Tim (February 3, 2021). "Panthers sign former Seahawks TE Stephen Sullivan to reserve/futures contract". Panthers Wire. USA Today.
  18. ^ Gantt, Darin (August 31, 2021). "Panthers reduce roster on Tuesday morning". Panthers.com. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  19. ^ Gantt, Darin (September 1, 2021). "Panthers announce practice squad signings on Wednesday". Panthers.com. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  20. ^ Gantt, Darin (January 8, 2022). "Panthers add Stephen Sullivan to the active roster". Panthers.com. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  21. ^ "Panthers sign 9 players on Monday". pantherswire.usatoday.com. January 9, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  22. ^ Gantt, Darin (August 31, 2023). "Panthers place Stephen Sullivan on IR". Panthers.com.
  23. ^ Gantt, Darin (October 14, 2023). "Tight end Ian Thomas placed on injured reserve". Panthers.com.
  24. ^ Gantt, Darin (January 8, 2024). "Panthers extend three, sign 11 practice squaders to future deals". Panthers.com.
  25. ^ Gantt, Darin (August 1, 2024). "Panthers add to tight end room after injury". Panthers.com.
  26. ^ Rizzutti, Anthony (August 8, 2024). "Panthers release TE Stephen Sullivan from injured reserve". Panthers Wire. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  27. ^ Gantt, Darin (September 30, 2024). "Panthers make practice squad moves". Panthers.com.
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