Peyton Hillis

Hillis was born to Doug and Carrie Hillis on January 21, 1986 and raised in Conway, Arkansas. He played football for Conway High School from 1999–2003, where he played primarily as a fullback. As a junior, he rushed for 1,427 yards and 17 touchdowns, adding 133 yards and two touchdowns on receptions. As a senior, he rushed for 2,631 yards and 29 touchdowns on 261 carries for an average of 10.1 yards per carry. For his efforts, Hillis earned numerous Arkansas state football honors, including the 2003 Marvin Delph Award (named after the Conway native and Arkansas Razorback basketball legend), which identifies the Conway sportsman of the year, the 2003 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Offensive Player of the Year Award, and the 2003 Landers Award, which recognizes the top high school football player in Arkansas. Nationally, Hillis was named to the Parade All-America football team. Rivals.com listed him as the #1 fullback in the country and the #2 prospect from Arkansas for the 2004 college signing season. He was recruited by several schools nationwide including Alabama, Oklahoma, Colorado, Nebraska, Tennessee and Michigan, but chose to attend the University of Arkansas.

[edit] College career

Hillis during his college years at Arkansas

Hillis attended college at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville from 2004–2008, majoring in Sociology. As a true freshman, Hillis gained 240 yards rushing, 97 yards receiving, and scored 8 touchdowns, ranking 4th in the SEC in total touchdowns and tying Georgia's Thomas Brown for most touchdowns scored by a SEC freshman that year.^[1]

[edit] Sophomore Year

His sophomore year, Hillis accounted for 947 all-purpose yards (including more than 200 in kick-off and punt returns) and seven touchdowns while also serving as a blocker for up-and-coming star running back duo Darren McFadden and Felix Jones.

[edit] Junior Year

Hillis' junior year was marked by a change in duty as the Razorbacks began to utilize McFadden and Jones as the feature backs. Hillis remained instrumental to the Razorbacks' offense as a blocker from the fullback and tight end positions, allowing McFadden and Jones to accumulate more than 2000 combined rushing yards and helping catapult the Razorbacks to a NCAA top 10 position. The success continued through week 10 against the Tennessee Volunteers, when Hillis suffered a season-ending deep thigh bruise from an illegal hit after calling fair catch on a punt return. Although the Razorbacks went on to beat Tennessee 31-14, Hillis was out on injured reserve the next few weeks as the Razorbacks lost consecutive games against LSU in the regular season finale, Florida in the 2006 SEC Championship Game, and Wisconsin in the 2007 Capital One Bowl. For his effectiveness as a blocker during the first half of the 2006 season, Hillis was recognized as the best blocking back in the Southeastern Conference by The Birmingham News. Furthermore, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview rated Hillis as the #1 fullback in the nation for the 2007 college football season. Hillis underwent extensive physical therapy in the off-season to repair damage to his thigh and was slated to return for the 2007 season opener.

[edit] Senior Year

Hillis’ senior year at Arkansas was marked by a more active role in the Razorbacks’ offense, balancing duties as a blocking tight end, rusher, and drop-back receiver. He accumulated over 850 all-purpose yards and 7 touchdowns, averaging more than 5 yards per carry and 11 yards per reception while again serving as an integral blocker for repeat 1000-yard rushers McFadden and Jones. He was the team’s leading receiver and blocking back with 49 receptions and 52 knockdown blocks on the season.^[2] For his recovery efforts from numerous injuries throughout his tenure at Arkansas culminating in the 2006-2007 off-season and impressive play during the 2007 season, Hillis received the 2007 Paul Eells Award for the Arkansas player showing outstanding character through adversity.^[3]
In his collegiate career, Hillis generated 960 rushing yards, 1197 receiving yards, 23 total touchdowns, and added 470 yards on special teams in his four years at Arkansas. One of the most versatile players on the Razorbacks' offensive roster, Hillis was eventually used as a fullback, halfback, tight end, wide receiver, kick returner, and punt returner at different points in his collegiate career. By Wikapedia