John Talley (American football)
{{Short description|American football player (born 1964)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = John Talley
| number = 87
| position = Wide receiver
Tight end
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1964|12|19}}
| birth_place = Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
| height_ft = 6
| height_in = 5
| weight_lb = 245
| high_school = Shaw (East Cleveland, Ohio)
| college = West Virginia
| undraftedyear = 1988
| pastteams =
- Phoenix Cardinals ({{NFL Year|1988}})*{{cite web |title=John Talley |url=https://profootballarchives.com/transactions/t/tall00600.html |website=Pro Football Archives |access-date=2 June 2024}}
- Cleveland Browns (1989)*
- Miami Dolphins ({{NFL Year|1989}})
- Philadelphia Eagles (1989)*
- Cleveland Browns ({{NFL Year|1990|1991}})
- Indianapolis Colts ({{NFL Year|1992}})*
| highlights =
| statlabel1 = Receptions
| statvalue1 = 3
| statlabel2 = Receiving yards
| statvalue2 = 41
| pfr = T/TallJo20
}}
John Thomas Eugene Talley Jr. (born December 19, 1964) is an American former professional football wide receiver and tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at West Virginia.
College career
Talley spent four seasons as a member of the West Virginia Mountaineers and originally played quarterback. He started several games for the Mountaineers as a sophomore in 1985 and became the second African-American to start at quarterback in the school's history, completing 53 of 109 passes for 507 yards with four touchdowns and seven interceptions while also rushing for 181 yards and two touchdowns.{{cite web|url=https://www.wvgazettemail.com/sports/columnists/frank_giardina/frank-giardina-make-no-mistake-reggie-oliver-was-a-quarterback/article_8fa0833c-3409-5b15-b507-5abbb3b84d62.html|title=Frank Giardina: Make no mistake, Reggie Oliver was a quarterback|first=Frank|last=Giardina|work=Charleston Gazette-Mail|date=August 18, 2018|access-date=May 9, 2020}} He moved to wide receiver during his junior season.{{cite web|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/john-talley-3.html|title=John Talley College Stats|website=Sports-Reference.com|access-date=May 9, 2020}} As a senior, Talley had 25 receptions for 307 yards and two touchdowns.{{cite web|url=https://oklahoman.com/article/2209945/mirror-images-osus-williams-wvus-talley-hauntingly-similar|title=Mirror Images OSU's Williams, WVU's Talley Hauntingly Similar|first=Tom|last=Kensler|work=The Oklahoman|date=December 24, 1987|access-date=May 9, 2020}}
Professional career
Talley was a member of the Philadelphia Eagles and the Miami Dolphins during the 1988 preseason, but did not make either team's active roster. He spent the 1989 season with the Cleveland Browns practice squad after being waived from the active roster at the end of the preseason.{{cite web|url=https://buffalonews.com/1990/09/02/hog-for-dawg-deal-provides-no-answer-to-browns-problem-minnifield-swap-proving-tough/|title=HOG FOR DAWG DEAL PROVIDES NO ANSWER TO BROWNS' PROBLEM MINNIFIELD SWAP PROVING TOUGH|first=Larry|last=Felser|work=The Buffalo News|date=September 2, 1990|access-date=May 9, 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1989/09/05/nfl-transactions/0b530f72-d775-40f7-bda0-a4b3457c1276/|title=NFL TRANSACTIONS|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=September 5, 1989|access-date=May 9, 2020}} He played in 14 games as a wide receiver and tight end with two starts the following season, catching two passes for 28 yards.{{cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/T/TallJo20.htm|title=John Talley Stats|website=Pro-Football-Reference.com|access-date=May 9, 2020}} He played in three games during the 1991 season with one reception for 13 yards before he was placed on injured reserve in early November.{{cite web|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1991-11-02-1991306052-story.html|title=BaseballAtlanta Braves -- P Alejandro Pena filed for free agency|work=The Baltimore Sun|date=November 2, 1991|access-date=May 9, 2020}} Talley was waived by the Browns after the 1991 season.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/13/sports/transactions-202192.html|title=Transactions|work=The New York Times|date=May 13, 1992|access-date=May 9, 2020}}
Personal life
Talley is the younger brother of College Football Hall of Famer and former All-Pro Linebacker Darryl Talley. Talley now resides in Brunswick, Ohio.{{cite web|url=https://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/2012/07/former_shaw_high_star_darryl_t.html|title=Former Shaw High star Darryl Talley goes from overlooked to College Football Hall of Fame|first=Bill|last=Lubinger|work=The Plain Dealer|date=July 18, 2012|access-date=May 9, 2020}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{West Virginia Mountaineers quarterback navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Talley, John}}
Category:American football wide receivers
Category:West Virginia Mountaineers football players
Category:Players of American football from Cleveland