Alfred Gene "Jitter" Fields, Jr. (born August 16, 1962) is an American former professional football defensive back and return specialist who played in the National Football League, Canadian Football League and Arena Football League.[2][3] He played college football at The University of Texas.
| No. 26, 25, 29, 40[1] | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Defensive back, return specialist |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | August 16, 1962 Dallas, Texas, U.S. |
| Height: | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
| Weight: | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | H. Grady Spruce High School (Dallas, Texas) |
| College: | Texas |
| NFL draft: | 1984 / round: 5th / pick: 123 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Early life and college
editFields was born and raised in Dallas, Texas, and played high school football at H. Grady Spruce High School there. He played college football for Texas where he lettered for four years.[4] In 1982, he led the team in pass breakups and in 1983 he stood out as a punt returner.[5] In his senior year, he helped the Longhorns win the Southwest Conference Championship and go undefeated through the regular season with a #2 ranking. They went into the Cotton Bowl needing a win over Georgia and a loss by Nebraska in the Orange Bowl to win the National Championship. They got the loss by Nebraska, but came up short against Georgia, losing 10–9. The game turned with 5 minutes left on a muffed punt by Fields' team mate Craig Curry which Fields had a chance to recover, but it slipped through his hands setting up the game winning touchdown for Georgia.[6]
Professional career
editHe was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the 5th Round of the 1984 NFL Draft.[7] He played for them in 1984, appearing in 13 games and returning 27 punts and 13 kick offs. He had a punt return for 61 yards, which was the 6th longest one that season and the Saints team record at the time.[8] He was cut by the Saints at the end of the 1985 training camp.[9]
After being cut by the Saints, he finished the season in the CFL with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, where he had 423 yards receiving and 104 return yards in 5 games.
He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts in September of the 1987 season to play as a replacement player during the 1987 NFL player's strike. He played one game with the Colts, was cut and quickly signed by the Kansas City Chiefs. During his first game with the Chiefs, during the last weekend of the strike, he had a career-high 85-yard punt return for a TD which was the 3rd longest punt return in the NFL that year. In the same game he tied the Chiefs record for most punt return yards in a game with 123 yards.[10] He played in one game after the end of the strike and was released. But the Chiefs resigned him in December and during the final 3 games of the season he returned 6 punts. He was cut at the end of training camp in 1988.
Fields then spent two years playing semi-pro football in the Minor Football League (MFL) where he was also a defensive coordinator for the Oklahoma City Twisters.
In 1991 and 1992 he played in the Arena Football League. In 1991 he helped the Detroit Drive to get to ArenaBowl V and the next year he helped the Dallas Texans win the Western Division Championship.
Later life
editFields went into coaching and education after ending his pro football career. He taught school in Detroit and coached Track and Field. He was the head coach of the Michigan Coyotes in the Stars Football League in 2012.[11] He was then an Assistant Football Coach and an education professor at Kentucky Christian University. In 2016 he earned a master's degree in coaching education from Ohio University.
References
edit- ^ "Jitter Fields". Pro Football Archives. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Jitter Fields". Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ "Jitter Fields". Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ "Jitter Fields College Statistics". Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Texas Football Record Book" (PDF). Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ Bradley, John Ed (3 January 1984). "No. 2 Texas Blows Its Title Shot, 10–9". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Jitter Fields". Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ Whittaker, Rachel. "This date in New Orleans Saints history: Overtime heartbreaker vs. Chiefs; RB Gajan catches TD from RB Wilson in 1984". Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Jitter Fields NFL transactions". Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ "Monday Morning Takeaways: Chiefs vs Redskins". Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Al "Jitter" Fields and Ron Johnson head Coyotes Coaching Staff". Retrieved 28 November 2024.