Paul Seymour (American football)
{{Short description|American football player (born 1950)}}
{{Use American English|date=April 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Paul Seymour
| image =
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption =
| number = 87
| position = Tight end
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1950|2|6|mf=y}}
| birth_place = Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| height_ft = 6
| height_in = 5
| weight_lbs = 252
| high_school = Shrine Catholic {{nowrap|(Royal Oak, Michigan)}}
| college = Michigan
| draftyear = 1973
| draftround = 1
| draftpick = 7
| pastteams =
- Buffalo Bills ({{NFL Year|1973|1977}})
| highlights =
- Consensus All-American (1972)
- First-team All-Big Ten (1972)
- Second-team All-Big Ten (1971)
| statlabel1 = Receptions
| statvalue1 = 62
| statlabel2 = Receiving yards
| statvalue2 = 818
| statlabel3 = Receiving TDs
| statvalue3 = 3
| pfr = SeymPa00
}}
Paul Christopher Seymour (born February 6, 1950) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines from 1969 to 1972 and was selected as a consensus first-team offensive tackle on the 1972 College Football All-America Team. He later played professionally as a tight end for the Bills from 1973 to 1978, catching 62 passes for 818 yards.
Early life
Seymour was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1950. He grew up in Berkley, Michigan, and attended Shrine Catholic High School in Royal Oak, Michigan.{{cite web|title=Paul Seymour|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Pro-Football-Reference.com|access-date=March 27, 2015|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/SeymPa00.htm}} His older brother, Jim Seymour, also attended Shrine High School and went on to become a standout wide receiver at the University of Notre Dame. Both Seymour brothers were inducted into the Shrine High School Hall of Fame in 2009, along with their brother, John, who played running back at West Point.{{cite web|title=Shrine Knight Hall of Fame|publisher=Shrine Knight Alumni|access-date=March 27, 2015|url=http://www.shrineknightalumni.com/hall-of-fame/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402111516/http://www.shrineknightalumni.com/hall-of-fame/|archive-date=April 2, 2015|url-status=dead}}
University of Michigan
Seymour enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1968 and played for coach Bo Schembechler's Michigan Wolverines football teams from 1969 to 1972. He played as a split end in 1969 and a tight end from 1970 to 1971. In his two seasons as a tight end, Seymour caught 19 passes for 257 yards and one touchdown.{{cite web|title=Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page|publisher=University of Michigan|access-date=March 27, 2015|url=http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040907204739/http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php|archive-date=September 7, 2004|url-status=dead}}
At 6'5", 250 lbs., he was converted to an offensive tackle in 1972.{{cite web|title=All-Time Football Roster Database|publisher=University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library|access-date=March 26, 2015|url=https://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/rosters/football.php}} At the end of the 1972 season, Seymour was selected as a consensus first-team offensive tackle on the 1972 College Football All-America Team.{{cite web|title=2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections|publisher=National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)|year=2014|access-date=February 10, 2015|page=6|url=http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2014/Awards.pdf|archive-date=November 26, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181126094941/http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2014/awards.pdf|url-status=dead}} He received first-team honors from the Newspaper Enterprise Association, the Football Writers Association of America, the American Football Coaches Association, the Sporting News and Time magazine.{{cite web|title=ESPN College Football Encyclopedia: The Complete History of College Football from 1869 to the Present|url=http://search.barnesandnoble.com/ESPN-College-Football-Encyclopedia/Michael-MacCambridge/e/9781401337032|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081112070028/http://search.barnesandnoble.com/ESPN-College-Football-Encyclopedia/Michael-MacCambridge/e/9781401337032|archive-date=November 12, 2008|url-status=dead|access-date=March 21, 2009}}
Professional football
Seymour was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the first round (seventh overall pick) of the 1973 NFL draft. He was selected primarily as an offensive lineman to block for O. J. Simpson, but he was converted back to the tight end position. As a rookie, he started all 14 games as a tight end for the Bills and caught 10 passes for 114 yards. Seymour ultimately played five seasons for the Bills from 1973 to 1977, appearing in 69 games, 68 of them as the team's starting tight end. His best game as an NFL player came against the undefeated New England Patriots on October 20, 1974. In that game, Seymour caught three passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Bills to an upset victory over the Patriots.{{cite news|title=Bills' Seymour 'Redeems' Himself|newspaper=The Ledger, Lakeland, Florida (AP story)|date=October 21, 1974|page=4B|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1346&dat=19741021&id=u6ROAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7foDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3788,6009660&hl=en}} In five seasons with the Bills, Seymour caught 62 passes for 818 yards.
In August 1978, the Bills traded Seymour to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for wide receiver Frank Lewis. However, Seymour failed to pass the Steelers' physical when they discovered that he had undergone surgery on his arches.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19780823&id=SMkdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=i1gEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3546,3872399&hl=en|title=Fails Physical Exam: Steelers Return Seymour|last=Sheeley|first=Glenn|date=August 24, 1978|publisher=Pittsburgh Press|page=D-1|access-date=March 27, 2015}} Seymour was returned to the Bills, but he never played another NFL game.
Later years
Seymour currently resides in Okemos, Michigan.
References
{{Reflist}}
{{1972 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1973 NFL Draft}}
{{BillsFirstPick}}
{{Bills1973DraftPicks}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seymour, Paul}}
Category:Players of American football from Detroit
Category:All-American college football players
Category:American football tight ends