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Pat Tillman November 6, 1976(1976-11-06) – April 22, 2004 (aged 27) Pat Tillman Place of birth San Jose, California Place of death Sperah, Afghanistan Allegiance United States of America Service/branch United States Army Years of service 2002–2004 Rank Corporal Unit 2nd Ranger Battalion Battles/wars 2003 Invasion of Iraq Operation Purple Heart Pat Tillman Tillman's statue outside of University of Phoenix Stadium Position(s): Safety Jersey #(s): 40, 42 Born: November 6, 1976(1976-11-06) Died: April 22, 2004 (aged 27) Career information Year(s): 1998–2001 NFL Draft: 1998 / Round: 7 / Pick: 226 College: Arizona State Professional teams Arizona Cardinals (1998-2001) Career stats Tackles 390 INT 3 Sacks 2.5 Stats at NFL.com Career highlights and awards Arizona Cardinals#40 retired Arizona State Sun Devils#42 retired Patrick Daniel Tillman (November 6, 1976 – April 22, 2004) was an American football player who left his professional sports career and enlisted in the United States Army in May 2002. He joined the United States Army Rangers and served multiple tours in combat before he was killed by friendly fire in the mountains of Afghanistan. Details about the circumstances surrounding his death have been the subject of controversy and military investigations. He was the first professional football player to be killed in combat since Bob Kalsu of the Buffalo Bills died in the Vietnam War in 1970. Contents [hide] 1 Biography 1.1 Football career 1.2 Military career 1.3 Religious and political beliefs 2 Death Biography Football career Pat Tillman was born in San Jose, California. He started his college career as a linebacker for Arizona State University in 1994, when he secured the last remaining scholarship for the team. He was a teammate of quarterback Jake Plummer who would later be his teammate on the hometown Arizona Cardinals. Tillman excelled as a linebacker at Arizona State, despite being relatively small for the position at five-feet eleven-inches (1.80 m) tall. As a senior, he was voted the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year. Academically, Tillman majored in marketing and graduated in three and a half years with a 3.84 GPA. In the 1998 NFL Draft, Tillman was selected as the 226th pick by the Arizona Cardinals. Tillman moved over to play the safety position in the NFL and started ten of sixteen games in his rookie season. At one point in his NFL career, Tillman turned down a five-year, $9 million contract offer from the St. Louis Rams out of loyalty to the Cardinals.[1] Sports Illustrated football writer Paul Zimmerman (Dr. Z) named Tillman to his 2000 NFL All-Pro team after Tillman finished with 155 tackles (120 solo), 1.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, | ||||
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