A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
 Crabtree with the San Francisco 49ers in 2012 | |||||||
| No. 15 | |||||||
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| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | September 14, 1987 Dallas, Texas, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | Dallas Carter | ||||||
| College: | Texas Tech (2006–2008) | ||||||
| NFL draft: | 2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||
Michael Alex Crabtree Jr. (born September 14, 1987) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, twice earning unanimous All-American honors. He was selected 10th overall by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2009 NFL Draft. Crabtree was a member of the 49ers for six seasons and spent the remainder of his career with the Oakland Raiders, Baltimore Ravens, and Arizona Cardinals.
Early life
Crabtree was born in Dallas, Texas. He attended David W. Carter High School in Dallas where he played basketball, football, and ran track for the Cowboys program. He played as a quarterback for the Carter Cowboys high school football team.[1] As a senior, he passed for 870 yards and eleven touchdowns on 45 completions out of 100 attempts. He also ran for 646 yards and nine touchdowns on 100 carries. He was a four-star football recruit as an athlete.[2][3]
Crabtree ranked among the top 51 recruits in the state of Texas going into college.[2] During a visit in 2004, Texas Tech basketball coach Bob Knight asked Crabtree which sport he was going to choose. Though the decision was not an easy one, he opted to play college football exclusively.[4]
Crabtree was offered football scholarships by Baylor, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Kansas. He was also recruited by Texas, whose coaches wanted him to play defense. Crabtree refused, stating that he wanted to score touchdowns.[5]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40‡ | Commit date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Crabtree ATH |
Dallas, Texas | Carter | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 4.51 | Jul 8, 2004 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: N/A Rivals: Overall: 240th State: 22nd Position: 16th | ||||||
Sources:
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College career
Crabtree accepted an athletic scholarship to attend Texas Tech University, where he played for coach Mike Leach and the Texas Tech Red Raiders football team from 2006 to 2008.[2]
Freshman season
Crabtree was redshirted his freshman season of 2006 because of a transcript glitch and a position change from quarterback to wide receiver.[6]
In 2007, Crabtree started his redshirt-freshman season against SMU. The Red Raiders won 49–9, and Crabtree stood out with 106 yards receiving on twelve receptions for three touchdowns.[7] The next week, in a 45–31 win over UTEP, Crabtree continued his performance with 15 receptions, 188 yards, and two touchdowns.[8] Against the Rice Owls, Crabtree put up 244 yards on eleven receptions for three touchdowns.[9] In Tech's first loss of the season, against Oklahoma State, he had 14 receptions for 237 yards and three touchdowns.[10] In a 75–7 win over Northwestern State, Crabtree had 145 yards on eight receptions for three touchdowns in only two and a half quarters of playing time.[11] In the contest against Iowa State, Crabtree had 10 receptions for 154 yards and three touchdowns.[12]
During the Iowa State game, Crabtree broke the season record for most touchdown receptions by a freshman receiver. The previous record of 14 was shared by Jabar Gaffney in 2000, Mike Williams in 2002, and Davone Bess in 2005.[13] In the October 13, 2007, game, Crabtree tacked on 170 more receiving yards on eight receptions but had no touchdowns in a 35–7 win over the Texas A&M Aggies.[14] This brought his total yardage to 1,244. In the next game, against Missouri, he again did not score but still added 76 more yards on ten catches.[12] In spite of having two consecutive games without a touchdown, CBS Sports still ranked Crabtree as the top freshman in the nation.[15]
During the game against Colorado, Crabtree made his 99th catch. This set three records simultaneously—most single-season receptions by a freshman in I-A, most single-season receptions by a Red Raider, and most single-season touchdowns by a Big 12 player (18). Crabtree finished his freshman season with 134 receptions, 1,962 yards, and 22 touchdowns.[16]
Sophomore season
Before the beginning of his sophomore season, CBS Sports listed Crabtree as a Heisman hopeful. Tech quarterback Graham Harrell's name also appeared on the list.[17] Crabtree, along with Harrell and head coach Mike Leach, were featured on the cover of the 2008 edition of Dave Campbell's Texas Football.[18] His name has also appeared on the Maxwell Award preseason watchlist along with Harrell.[19] To support the Heisman campaign of both Harrell and Crabtree, Texas Tech created a website called PassOrCatch2008.com, which is modelled after political campaigns. The site has garnered national attention and was awarded a Telly Award which honors the best in local, regional, and cable commercials and programs, as well as online videos, films, and commercials.[20][21] Crabtree finished fifth in the Heisman race behind Harrell at fourth.[22]
Crabtree began his sophomore campaign in the 49–24 win over Eastern Washington, recording 9 receptions for 73 yards and a touchdown in limited playing time.[23] In the following 35–19 win over Nevada, he totaled 7 receptions for 158 yards and an 82-yard touchdown catch.[24] Crabtree was selected as the AT&T ESPN All-America Player of the Week for following 43–7 win over Southern Methodist for totaling a season-high 164 yards and 3 touchdowns from 8 receptions.[25]
In the 56–14 win over Massachusetts, Crabtree recorded 62 yards and a touchdown off of 5 receptions in limited playing time.[26] In the following 58–28 win over Kansas State, he totaled 107 yards on 9 receptions for 2 touchdowns.[27] The Red Raiders then defeated Nebraska 37–31, in which he had 5 receptions for 89 yards and two touchdowns.[28] In the following 43–25 win over Texas A&M, he totaled 71 yards and two touchdowns from 8 receptions. He also compiled his first kickoff return of his career in the game, running the ball for 50 yards. On the return however, he tweaked his left ankle and hobbled off the field.[29]
Crabtree partially recovered from his ankle sprain enough to play at Kansas, where he amassed 70 yards and two touchdowns off of 9 receptions in a 63–21 Tech victory.[30] The Red Raiders then upset #1 Texas 39–33. Down 33–32, Tech drove down into the Longhorns' territory with 8 seconds left in the game. Quarterback Graham Harrell threw to Crabtree in double coverage inside the 10-yard line. Crabtree grabbed the pass, shook a defender on the sideline, and ran into the endzone for the game-winning touchdown with a second left in the game.[31] As the Red Raiders won, Crabtree finished with 127 yards and a touchdown off of 10 receptions. In Oklahoma State game, Crabtree recorded 89 yards and three touchdowns on eight catches. He extended his streak of at least five receptions and a touchdown catch to 13 games, placing him in a tie for second-longest all time.[32] In these three games, he hobbled off the field at times after making catches.[33] He used the bye week before the Oklahoma game to fully recover from the injury.[34] On December 2, 2008, Crabtree and teammate Graham Harrell were named as Walter Camp Award finalists.[35] Crabtree started the year with the expectation that he would compete for the Heisman trophy, and in the end he finished fifth in the Heisman voting, garnering 3 first place votes.[36]
On April 23, 2009, EA Sports announced that Crabtree would be featured on the cover of NCAA Football 10 for Xbox 360.[37] Cover athletes for the other editions of the game are Brian Johnson of the Utah Utes (PlayStation 3), Brian Orakpo of the Texas Longhorns (PlayStation 2), and Mark Sanchez of the USC Trojans (PlayStation Portable). The game was available in stores beginning July 14, 2009.[38][39]
NCAA records
After only two seasons at Texas Tech, Crabtree was able to achieve eight NCAA records. See also NCAA records held by individual Red Raiders
| NCAA record | Statistic |
|---|---|
| Most passes caught by two players same team, season[40] | 243 (2007) with Danny Amendola |
| Most passes caught by a freshman, season[40] | 134 (2007) |
| Most passes caught by a freshman, season per game[40] | 10.3 (2007) (134 in 13 games) |
| Most yards gained by a freshman, season[40] | 1,962 (2007) |
| Most yards gained by a freshman, season per game[40] | 150.9 (2007) |
| Most games gaining 100 yards or more by a freshman, season[40] | 11 (2007) |
| Most touchdown passes caught by a freshman[40] | 22 (2007) |
| Most touchdown passes caught in freshman and sophomore seasons[40] | 41 (2007 (22) & 2008 (19)) |
The NCAA Record book also mentions Michael Crabtree for the following items:[40]
- Season Receptions: 134 (Rank 8th) 2007
- Season Receptions per game: 10.31 (Rank 10th) 2007
- Season Yards: 1,962 (Rank 3rd) 2007
- Season Yards Per Game: 150.9 (Rank 5th) 2007
- Season Touchdown Receptions: 22 (Rank 7th) 2007
- Season Touchdown Receptions: 19 (Rank 15th) 2008
- Career Receptions Per Game: 8.89 (Rank 5th)
- Career Yards Per Game: 120.3 (Rank 5th)
- Career Touchdown Receptions: 41 (Rank 10th)
- Annual Champion Receptions per Game: 2007
- Annual Champion Receiving Yards Per Game: 2007
- Career Points Per Game: 9.46 (Rank 19th)
NCAA Records Reference (Last referenced for 2015 season) [40]
Recognition
Crabtree has received multiple honors due to his accomplishments at Texas Tech. In addition to being a two-time unanimous first-team All-American, he is a two-time Biletnikoff Award and Paul Warfield Award winner. He is one of only five Red Raiders in school history have earned unanimous All-American honors. The other four to receive the honor are: Mark Bounds in 1991, Zach Thomas in 1995, Byron Hanspard in 1996, and Jace Amaro in 2013.[41]
| Season | Honor | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | All-Big 12 | Selected for first-team | [42] |
| 2007 | AFCA Coaches' All-America | Selected | One of two wide receivers selected; first Freshman to earn the honor since Herschel Walker in 1980[43] |
| 2007 | AP All-America | Selected for first-team | Garnered Unanimous All-America status by being selected for a fifth NCAA-recognized All-America team[44][45] |
| 2007 | AP Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year | Selected | [46][47] |
| 2007 | AT&T ESPN All-America Player of the Year | Winner | First freshman to win the award[48] |
| 2007 | Biletnikoff Award | Winner | First freshman and first Big 12 player ever chosen for the honor[49] |
| 2007 | CBSSports.com All-America | Selected to first-team | [50] |
| 2007 | CBSSports.com Freshman of the Year | Selected | Unanimous first place selection[51] |
| 2007 | ESPN All-America | Selected | [52] |
| 2007 | FWAA All-America | Selected for team | [53] |
| 2007 | Maxwell Award | Chosen as a semifinalist | Only freshman chosen as semifinalist in 2007[54][55] |
| 2007 | Paul Warfield Award | Winner | [50] |
| 2007 | Rivals.com National Freshman of the Year | Selected | [56] |
| 2007 | SI.com All-America | Selected for first-team | [57] |
| 2007 | Sporting News All-America | Selected for first-team | Garnered Consensus All-America status by being selected for a third NCAA-recognized All-America team[58] |
| 2007 | Sporting News Big 12 All-Freshman Team | Selected | [59] |
| 2007 | Touchdown Club of Columbus Freshman of the Year | Selected | [50] |
| 2007 | Walter Camp All-America | Selected for first-team | [60] |
| 2008 | Playboy All-America | Selected | [61] |
| 2008 | Preseason All-Big 12 | Selected for first-team | Only unanimous selection[62][63] |
| 2008 | All-Big 12 | Selected for first-team | Only offensive unanimous selection[64] |
| 2008 | AFCA Coaches' All-America | Selected | One of three returnees from last year's list[65] |
| 2008 | Biletnikoff Award | Winner | First ever two-time winner[66] |
| 2008 | Walter Camp All-America | Selected for first-team | [67] |
| 2008 | FWAA All-America | Selected for team | Garnered Consensus All-America status by being selected for a third NCAA-recognized All-America team[68] |
| 2008 | SI.com All-America | Selected for first-team | [69] |
| 2008 | AP All-America | Selected for first-team | [70] |
| 2008 | Sporting News All-America | Selected for first-team | Garnered Unanimous All-America status by being selected for a fifth NCAA-recognized All-America team[71] |
| 2008 | Paul Warfield Award | Winner | [72] |
| 2008 | NCAA Football 10 cover athlete | Xbox 360 release | [38][39] |
College statistics
| Season | Team | GP | Receiving | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | |||
| 2007 | Texas Tech | 13 | 134 | 1,962 | 14.6 | 22 |
| 2008 | Texas Tech | 13 | 97 | 1,165 | 12.0 | 19 |
| College Totals[73] | 26 | 231 | 3,127 | 13.5 | 41 | |
