Tyreek Hill

Early life

A native of Pearson, Georgia, Hill attended Coffee High School, where he won both the 100 meters and 200 meters at the 2012 Georgia 5A state meet.

On May 26, 2012, at the 36th Golden South Classic in Orlando, Florida, Hill ran a new season-best in the 100 m (10.19) and a PR in the 200 m (20.14). His time in the 200 m missed Roy Martin's 1985 national high school record by only one hundredth of a second. Hill's mark the fastest time by a junior athlete in the 2012 season and the fastest by a junior since Ramil Guliyev's 20.04 in 2009. His time in the 100 m ties Abraham Hall for second fastest by a junior in the 2012 season, behind only Adam Gemili. He was Track and Field News "High School Athlete of the Year" in 2012. Hill also clocked a 4.25 40-yard dash at a Nike Sparq Camp. Hill ran a wind-assisted (+5.0 m/s) 9.98 in the 100-meter dash at the 2013 Hutchinson NJCCA Championships.

Hill was a USA Today All-American track and field selection in 2012.

Garden City Community College

At Garden City Community College, Hill ran track and played football. As a sophomore in 2013, Hill ran for 659 rushing yards and five touchdowns and caught 67 passes for 532 receiving yards.

Oklahoma State University

Coming out of Garden City CC, Hill was a highly sought after junior college recruit and chose to attend Oklahoma State University.

On August 30, 2014, Hill made his debut for the Cowboys and caught a season-high six passes for 62-receiving yards in a loss to Florida State. On September 25, 2014, he caught his first career touchdown against Texas Tech and finished the victory with three receptions for 50-yards, six rushing attempts for 39-yards, and three kick returns for a total of 62-yards. In the following game against Iowa State, Hill finished with a season-high 148 kick-return yards on 5 attempts and returned his first kick return for a touchdown of the season. On November 1, 2014, he gained a season-high 102 rushing yards on 18 attempts and scored his first rushing touchdown of the season against Kansas State.

On December 6, 2014, he appeared in his last game as a part of Oklahoma State's football team and helped them win a comeback victory over Oklahoma after he returned a punt for a 92-yard touchdown.

In December 11, 2014, Oklahoma State dismissed Hill from their football and track teams for his domestic violence arrest a few days prior. In his only season at Oklahoma State, Hill had a total of 102 rushing attempts for 534 rushing yards and one touchdown, 31 receptions for 381 receiving yards and a touchdown, 30 kick returns for 740 return yards and two touchdowns, and 27 punt returns for 256 punt return yards and a touchdown. As a running back, wide receiver, and returner, he accounted for 1,811 all-purpose yards and six touchdowns. 996 combined return yards which ranked second in the nation. He was ranked 11th nationally in all-purpose yards.

University of West Alabama

On September 1, 2015, the University of West Alabama announced that Hill enrolled and would play football for the Tigers during the 2015 season. West Alabama head coach Brett Gilliland has stated that he initially turned down Hill, saying that after he read the police report detailing how he choked and hit his girlfriend. After getting to know Hill personally, he spoke to people at Oklahoma State, Hill's former coaches at Garden City Community College, and a high school mentor. He was also swayed by a part of the plea deal that required Hill to either attend school full-time or be employed.

Professional career

Hill was projected to be undrafted during the 2016 NFL Draft, mainly due to his domestic violence arrest. Although he was not invited to the NFL combine, Hill was able to showcase his abilities at West Alabama's Pro Day. Scouts were mainly impressed with his speed and he received much praise for his workout. Regardless of his workout, many teams had completely removed Hill from their draft boards, but his head coach from West Alabama maintained that at least 20 teams were still interested in him.

2016 season

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Hill in the fifth round (165th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. He was the first player from West Alabama to be drafted since 1974, when Ken Hutcherson was drafted 97th overall by the Dallas Cowboys.

The Chiefs were criticized by fans for the selection due to his past issues with domestic violence and the Chiefs' history with former linebacker Jovan Belcher. General Manager John Dorsey had to receive consent from Chiefs' owner Clark Hunt to make the selection and says they thoroughly vetted the prospect which included speaking to the prosecutor that charged him. After drafting him, the Chiefs' held an impromptu press conference and addressed the issue to the media during the first day of rookie mini camp.

Hill began the 2016 season as the Chiefs' starting punt returner, kick returner, and their fourth wide receiver on their depth chart behind veterans Jeremy Maclin, Chris Conley, and Albert Wilson. In the Kansas City Chiefs' season-opener, he made his first career catch for a nine-yard touchdown pass from Alex Smith as the Chiefs came back from being down 21-3 to defeat the San Diego Chargers 33-27 in overtime.

In Week 8, Hill caught five passes for a season-high 98 receiving yards and a touchdown during a 30-14 victory over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. On November 13, 2016, Hill had a season-high ten catches for 89 receiving yards, helping the Chiefs comeback from a 17–0 deficit and defeat the Carolina Panthers 20-17.

On November 27, 2016, Hill returned a kickoff for an 86-yard touchdown, ran for a three-yard touchdown, and caught a three-yard touchdown pass with less than five seconds left in the fourth quarter. He was the first player with a kick return for a touchdown, rushing touchdown, and touchdown reception in a single game since Gale Sayers did so for the Chicago Bears in 1965. During his return, he reached a speed of 22.77 miles per hour (36.64 km/h), the fastest speed any NFL player had reached that season. His performance in Week 12 earned him AFC Offensive Player of the Week.

On December 8, 2016, in Week 14, Hill returned a punt against the Oakland Raiders for a 78-yard touchdown and caught six receptions for 66 yards and scored on a 36-yard touchdown reception, helping the Chiefs win 21–13 on Thursday Night Football and move to first place in the AFC West. He was named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance in Week 14. During a Week 16 contest against the Denver Broncos, Hill had a season-high six carries for 95 rushing yards and scored a 70-yard rushing touchdown in a 33-10 victory. On January 1, 2017, in the regular season finale, he caught five passes for 46 receiving yards, had three carries for 15 rushing yards, and a 95-yard punt return for a touchdown in a 37-27 win over the San Diego Chargers.

Hill finished his rookie season with 61 receptions for 593 receiving yards and six touchdowns, 24 carries for 267 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns, 14 kick returns for a total of 384 yards and a touchdown, and 39 punt returns for 592-yards and two touchdowns. He also appeared in all 16 games, had one start, and made seven combined tackles. Hill was named to the 2017 Pro Bowl as a return specialist. On January 6, 2017, Hill was named First-team All-Pro as a punt returner. He was ranked #36 by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.

2017 season

In the season opener on Thursday Night Football against the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, Hill finished with a career-high 133 receiving yards on seven receptions, which included a 75-yard reception for a touchdown, as the Chiefs won by a score of 42–27.

Career statistics

*Combines stats from runs, receptions, kick returns, and punt returns

Personal life

Hill was raised by his mother, Virginia Hill. He has a son that was born to him and ex-girlfriend during his time at Oklahoma State.

Legal issues

Stillwater police records indicate that on December 12, 2014, Hill was arrested on complaints of assault of his 20-year-old pregnant girlfriend. Oklahoma State dismissed him from the football team after the charges.

Hill eventually plead guilty to domestic assault and battery by strangulation and was sentenced to three years of probation, an anger-management course, a year-long batterer's program, and was required to undergo a domestic-abuse evaluation . His ex-girlfriend eventually gave birth to a boy.