Jacob Tamme
Encyclopedia
Jacob Tamme (ˈtæmi ; born March 15, 1985 in Lexington, Kentucky
) is an American football
tight end
for the Indianapolis Colts
of the National Football League
. He played collegiately
for the University of Kentucky
Wildcats
.
in Danville, Kentucky
, where he was a multi-sport star in football
, baseball
, and basketball
.
He was a four-year letterman and three-year starter
at wide receiver
and cornerback
for Boyle County, who won four consecutive state championships, two in Class AA and two in Class AAA, and had a 58-2 record over those seasons. He was a first-team all-state selection as a senior by the Associated Press
and Louisville's
The Courier-Journal
when he caught 46 passes for 797 yards, a 17.3-yard average, and 13 touchdowns. In addition, he was a finalist for the Kentucky "Mr. Football" Award, given to the top performer in high school football.
His career totals include 97 receptions for 1,866 yards, a 19.2-yard average, and 32 touchdowns. On defense
, he intercepted 23 passes, including two returns for touchdowns. As a kick returner
, he took 25 punts for 395 yards, a 15.8-yard average, and two touchdowns.
, he played in all 11 games for the Kentucky Wildcats
. He started three games at wide receiver before moving to his more natural position of tight end for the season-ending game at Tennessee
. For the season, he had 16 catches for 161 yards, third on the team that year. He was also named to the SEC
Academic Honor Roll for excellent work in the classroom.
As a sophomore, he played in all 11 games, starting 10. He was second on the team in pass receptions with 29 catches for 253 yards and one touchdown. On special teams, he blocked punts vs. Louisville
and Florida
. He also earned a slot on the SEC Academic Honor Roll for the second straight year.
As a junior, he was voted to the All-SEC first team by the SEC coaches and the Associated Press. He led SEC tight ends in receptions with 32, netting 386 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He made the SEC Academic Honor Roll for the third year in a row.
As a senior, he had 56 receptions for 619 yards and six touchdowns. For the second year in a row, he earned first-team All-SEC honors from both the Associated Press (unanimous decision) and coaches polls.
Tamme finished his career as Kentucky’s all-time top pass-catching tight end and 2nd in the history of all SEC tight ends with 133 catches for 1,417 yards.
just before entering the NFL.
Known for his contributions back to the community, in 2006, he was named to the National Good Works Team by the American Football Coaches Association
, the SEC Community Service Team by the SEC Office, and to the Frank G. Ham Society of Character by UK Athletics.
In 2007, he was one of 15 finalists for the prestigious Draddy Trophy
, which is presented to the top scholar athlete in the country. He gave the acceptance speech on behalf of the 15 finalists at the award ceremony in New York City
.
Also in 2007, he was named the SEC Scholar Athlete of the Year and elected to the first-team Academic All-America
squad by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
He was the 2007 recipient of the Bobby Bowden
Award, a national honor presented by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes
.
and always gets to play either in the pre-season or the last few games of the regular season. After week 7 of 2010 season, Dallas Clark
was placed on Injured Reserve
after an injury to wrist and Jacob Tamme took over the starting job as Colts
tight end
. Tamme surprised everyone by producing good statistical numbers and brought comparisons between him and Dallas Clark
. Tamme is expected to finish the 2010 season as a starter.
Tamme finished the season with a career-high 67 receptions for 631 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
) is an American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
tight end
Tight end
The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...
for the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. He played collegiately
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
Wildcats
Kentucky Wildcats
The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky , a founding member of the Southeastern Conference...
.
High school
Tamme graduated from Boyle County High SchoolBoyle County High School
Boyle County High School, located in Danville, Kentucky, is a public secondary school serving nearly 900 students from grades 9-12. Boyle County High School opened to students in the 1963-64 school year. The school was created to consolidate four county schools that included grades 1-12 in the...
in Danville, Kentucky
Danville, Kentucky
Danville is a city in and the county seat of Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 16,218 at the 2010 census.Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Boyle and Lincoln counties....
, where he was a multi-sport star in football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
, baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
.
He was a four-year letterman and three-year starter
Starting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
at wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
and cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
for Boyle County, who won four consecutive state championships, two in Class AA and two in Class AAA, and had a 58-2 record over those seasons. He was a first-team all-state selection as a senior by the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
and Louisville's
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
The Courier-Journal
The Courier-Journal
The Courier-Journal, locally called "The C-J", is the main newspaper for the city of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. According to the 1999 Editor & Publisher International Yearbook, the paper is the 48th largest daily paper in the United States and the single largest in Kentucky.- Origins :The...
when he caught 46 passes for 797 yards, a 17.3-yard average, and 13 touchdowns. In addition, he was a finalist for the Kentucky "Mr. Football" Award, given to the top performer in high school football.
His career totals include 97 receptions for 1,866 yards, a 19.2-yard average, and 32 touchdowns. On defense
Defense (sport)
In many team sports, defense or defence is the action of preventing an opponent from scoring. The term may also refer to the tactics involved in defense, or a sub-team whose primary responsibility is defense...
, he intercepted 23 passes, including two returns for touchdowns. As a kick returner
Kick returner
In American and Canadian football, a kick returner is the player on special teams who is primarily responsible to catch kickoffs and attempts to return them in the opposite direction. If the ball is kicked into his own endzone, he must assess the situation on the field while the ball is in the...
, he took 25 punts for 395 yards, a 15.8-yard average, and two touchdowns.
College
As a redshirt freshmanRedshirt (college sports)
Redshirt is a term used in American college athletics that refers to a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen his or her period of eligibility...
, he played in all 11 games for the Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky Wildcats
The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky , a founding member of the Southeastern Conference...
. He started three games at wide receiver before moving to his more natural position of tight end for the season-ending game at Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
. For the season, he had 16 catches for 161 yards, third on the team that year. He was also named to the SEC
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...
Academic Honor Roll for excellent work in the classroom.
As a sophomore, he played in all 11 games, starting 10. He was second on the team in pass receptions with 29 catches for 253 yards and one touchdown. On special teams, he blocked punts vs. Louisville
Louisville Cardinals football
The Louisville Cardinals football team represents the University of Louisville in college football as a member of the Big East Conference. Howard Schnellenberger started the program's rise to relevancy after winning the Miami Hurricanes' first national championship...
and Florida
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...
. He also earned a slot on the SEC Academic Honor Roll for the second straight year.
As a junior, he was voted to the All-SEC first team by the SEC coaches and the Associated Press. He led SEC tight ends in receptions with 32, netting 386 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He made the SEC Academic Honor Roll for the third year in a row.
As a senior, he had 56 receptions for 619 yards and six touchdowns. For the second year in a row, he earned first-team All-SEC honors from both the Associated Press (unanimous decision) and coaches polls.
Tamme finished his career as Kentucky’s all-time top pass-catching tight end and 2nd in the history of all SEC tight ends with 133 catches for 1,417 yards.
Accolades
As one of the top scholar-athletes in the country, Tamme completed his degree in integrated strategic communications in only three years and earned his MBAMaster of Business Administration
The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
just before entering the NFL.
Known for his contributions back to the community, in 2006, he was named to the National Good Works Team by the American Football Coaches Association
American Football Coaches Association
The American Football Coaches Association is an association of over 11,000 football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "maintain the highest possible standards in football and the profession of...
, the SEC Community Service Team by the SEC Office, and to the Frank G. Ham Society of Character by UK Athletics.
In 2007, he was one of 15 finalists for the prestigious Draddy Trophy
Draddy Trophy
The William V. Campbell trophy, formerly the Vincent dePaul Draddy Trophy, is a trophy awarded by the National Football Foundation that is given to the American college football player with the best combination of academics, community service, and on-field performance...
, which is presented to the top scholar athlete in the country. He gave the acceptance speech on behalf of the 15 finalists at the award ceremony in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Also in 2007, he was named the SEC Scholar Athlete of the Year and elected to the first-team Academic All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
squad by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
He was the 2007 recipient of the Bobby Bowden
Bobby Bowden
Robert Cleckler "Bobby" Bowden is a retired college football coach. He coached the Florida State Seminoles football team from the 1976 to 2009 seasons...
Award, a national honor presented by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes
Fellowship of Christian Athletes
The Fellowship of Christian Athletes is a non-profit interdenominational Christian organization founded in 1954 and that has been based in Kansas City, Missouri since 1956. It falls within the tradition of Muscular Christianity. Although established by evangelical Protestants, the concept has...
.
Professional
Tamme was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the 4th round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He and the Colts agreed to a 4-year contract with undisclosed terms on July 23, 2008.2010 Season
Tamme has been a back up for Dallas ClarkDallas Clark
Dallas Dean Clark is an American football tight end for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Colts 24th overall in the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Iowa...
and always gets to play either in the pre-season or the last few games of the regular season. After week 7 of 2010 season, Dallas Clark
Dallas Clark
Dallas Dean Clark is an American football tight end for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Colts 24th overall in the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Iowa...
was placed on Injured Reserve
Injured reserve
The injured reserve list is a list of reserved players who are injured and unable to play for a period of time, used most prominently in the National Hockey League and National Football League . It is used because these leagues have a maximum number of players on the team roster, so placing a...
after an injury to wrist and Jacob Tamme took over the starting job as Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
tight end
Tight end
The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...
. Tamme surprised everyone by producing good statistical numbers and brought comparisons between him and Dallas Clark
Dallas Clark
Dallas Dean Clark is an American football tight end for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Colts 24th overall in the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Iowa...
. Tamme is expected to finish the 2010 season as a starter.
Tamme finished the season with a career-high 67 receptions for 631 yards and 4 touchdowns.