Michael Gerard Sullivan (born December 22, 1967) is an American former professional football offensive lineman and current assistant offensive line coach for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He played college football at the University of Miami.
 Sullivan with the Titans in 2021 | |||||||
| Tennessee Titans | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Assistant offensive line coach | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | December 22, 1967 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 292 lb (132 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | St. Francis DeSales (IL) | ||||||
| College: | Miami (FL) | ||||||
| NFL draft: | 1991 / round: 6 / pick: 153 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| As a player: | |||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||
| As a coach: | |||||||
| |||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||
| |||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
| |||||||
Early life
editSullivan attended St. Francis DeSales High School, where he was a three-year starter and was named All-Midwest as a senior. He accepted a football scholarship from the University of Miami where he was redshirted as a freshman. He played his first two years at left offensive guard, before being switched to left tackle as a junior.
He started a school record 48 consecutive games (all of the games in his college career), despite dealing with different injuries, including the removal of a benign tumor near his left ear in 1989.
Sullivan contributed to a 44-4 record, two national championships (1987, 1989), and the first 36 contests of the 58-game NCAA record home winning streak. One of two players in school history to earn an NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarship (only 15 are awarded per year) and the only two-time winner of the CBS/Toyota Leadership Award.
In 2009, he was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame.[1]
Professional career
editDallas Cowboys
editSullivan was selected in the sixth round (153rd overall) by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1991 NFL draft, with the intention of playing him at offensive guard.[2] He originally failed his physical but was later approved to participate in training camp.[3]
He was waived on August 26 and later re-signed to the practice squad.[4] After being signed to the active roster, he was released on November 22 and re-signed to the practice squad.[5]
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
editIn 1992, he signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He played four years mainly as a back-up offensive lineman and on special teams. He became a free agent on February 16, 1996.[6]
Chicago Bears
editOn March 26, 1996, he was signed as a free agent by the Chicago Bears.[7] He was released before the season started on August 28.[8]
Coaching career
editSullivan helped four teams to championships over the span of his coaching career in the European Federation of American Football. After spending the 2000 season as a graduate assistant for the University of Miami, he joined former Hurricane coach Butch Davis's coaching staff with the Cleveland Browns. He was an offensive assistant for three-and-a-half seasons and coached tight ends for half a season in 2004.
On January 21, 2005, he was named offensive line coach at Western Michigan University. In 2007, he was named the offensive line coach for the Browns. In 2009, he was hired as the offensive line coach of the San Diego Chargers. In 2013, he returned to the Browns as their offensive line coach. In 2014, he was hired as an assistant offensive line coach for the Tennessee Titans.
References
edit- ^ "University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame". May 7, 2013. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
- ^ "1991 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
- ^ "Sullivan fails physical". Retrieved February 19, 2022.
- ^ "Transactions". The New York Times. August 27, 1991. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
- ^ "Transactions". The New York Times. November 23, 1991. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
- ^ "NFL Free Agents". Standard-Speaker. February 18, 1996. p. 15. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
- ^ "Tampa Bay lineman corralled by Chicago". Retrieved February 19, 2022.
- ^ "Salaam deals with not being able to play in the opener". August 29, 1996. Retrieved February 19, 2022.