Donald Driver
Encyclopedia
Donald Jerome Driver is an American football
wide receiver
and children's author. He plays for the Green Bay Packers
of the National Football League
. Driver was picked by the Packers in the 1999 NFL Draft
in the seventh round (213th pick overall) out of Alcorn State University
.
career there with 88 receptions for 1993 yards (19.69 Yards Per Catch). Driver is one of the most decorated track athletes in the NFL (he is an Olympic
class high jumper, being able to jump 7 feet 6 inches and could have qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics
team). He was a five time "Athlete of the Year" in his conference for his track and football prowess.
Driver is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
fraternity.
in the 7th round of the 1999 NFL Draft
. As of 2011
, he has spent his entire career with the Packers.
Known as one of the toughest wide receivers in the game, Driver had the most catches in the NFL in the middle of the field in 2006. He set a career best for yards on November 12, 2006 when he caught six passes for 191 yards including an 82 yard touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings
. Driver finished the 2006 season
in the top five of the league in reception yardage with 1,295 yards. He also recorded the most receptions in his career with 92 of them, earning a spot in the 2007 Pro Bowl
.
On December 16, 2007 during a 33-14 victory over the St. Louis Rams
, Favre broke Dan Marino
's all-time record mark of 61,361 career passing yards. The new record came on a seven yard completion to Driver. Driver was selected for the 2008 Pro Bowl
.
In the NFC Championship game on January 20, 2008 against the New York Giants
, Driver had the longest play in the playoffs of the Packers' franchise history with a 90 yard TD catch from Favre.
On October 18, 2009, Donald Driver became the Green Bay Packers all-time leading receiver in catches, with 596 catches. He went on to catch six more balls for 107 yards in a 26-0 home victory over the Detroit Lions. On September 8, 2011, Driver caught 4 balls for 41 yards in the opening game against the New Orleans Saints and was only one yard short of becoming the Packers all-time leader in receiving yards. Driver finally broke the Packers all-time receiving yardage record on September 18, 2011 against the Carolina Panthers after he caught a 10 yard pass from Aaron Rodgers, surpassing James Lofton.
On February 6, 2011, Driver was injured on his second reception of Super Bowl XLV
. Out with an ankle sprain, Driver did not return to the game as the Packers went on to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers
31-25. Driver finished Super Bowl XLV with two receptions for 28 yards.
's sports director Drew Smith and has done so since 2004. Every Tuesday Donald talks football with John Mercure on Wisconsin's Afternoon News with John Mercure on AM 620 WTMJ
. He also served as host to the annual Offense vs. Defense softball game featuring members of the Green Bay Packers.
As a well-known athlete in the state of Wisconsin, Driver has been featured in marketing campaigns for companies such as McDonald's
, AirTran Airways
, Kwik Trip
, Goodwill
, Jani-King
and Time Warner Cable
.
Throughout his career, Donald Driver has been very active off the field, making over 300 charitable appearances since his rookie season in 1999. In the spring of 2001, Donald and his wife Betina created the “Donald Driver Foundation”, which offers assistance to ill children with unmanageable hospital bills, provides housing for the homeless, and donates to a variety of local charities. In December 2003, the foundation put two previously homeless families in new, fully furnished homes.
Donald has also donated much of his time and efforts to such institutions as Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin and Goodwill Industries
. In 2001, Driver was awarded the “Community Service Award” by the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce in recognition of his outstanding community involvement. Donald also received the Walter Payton Man of the Year award in 2002, the only NFL award that recognizes off-the-field community service as well as playing excellence. In 2005 he was awarded the Ed Block Courage award by his Green Bay teammates.
Driver is also an author of three children's books, Quickie Handles a Loss, Quickie Makes the Team, and Quickie Goes to the Big Game. The books are based on Driver's bedtime storytelling to his three children, and are sold statewide through bookstores, participating Goodwill locations, the Packer Pro Shop and on his website. "Quickie" is a common nickname for Donald.
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...
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 children's author. He plays for the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
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...
. Driver was picked by the Packers in the 1999 NFL Draft
1999 NFL Draft
The 1999 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 17-18, 1999...
in the seventh round (213th pick overall) out of Alcorn State University
Alcorn State University
Alcorn State University is an historically black university comprehensive land-grant institution in Lorman, Mississippi. It was founded in 1871-History:...
.
College career
Donald Driver attended Alcorn State University, where he lettered in both football and track & field. He finished his college footballCollege 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...
career there with 88 receptions for 1993 yards (19.69 Yards Per Catch). Driver is one of the most decorated track athletes in the NFL (he is an Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
class high jumper, being able to jump 7 feet 6 inches and could have qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
team). He was a five time "Athlete of the Year" in his conference for his track and football prowess.
Driver is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha is the first Inter-Collegiate Black Greek Letter fraternity. It was founded on December 4, 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Its founders are known as the "Seven Jewels". Alpha Phi Alpha developed a model that was used by the many Black Greek Letter Organizations ...
fraternity.
Professional career
Donald Driver was drafted by the Green Bay PackersGreen Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
in the 7th round of the 1999 NFL Draft
1999 NFL Draft
The 1999 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 17-18, 1999...
. As of 2011
2011 NFL season
The 2011 NFL season, the 92nd regular season of the National Football League, began on Thursday, September 8, 2011 with the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers defeating the New Orleans Saints 42–34 at Lambeau Field and will end with Super Bowl XLVI, the league's championship game, on...
, he has spent his entire career with the Packers.
Green Bay Packers
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
. Driver finished the 2006 season
2006 NFL season
The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League.Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006...
in the top five of the league in reception yardage with 1,295 yards. He also recorded the most receptions in his career with 92 of them, earning a spot in the 2007 Pro Bowl
2007 Pro Bowl
The 2007 AFC-NFC Pro Bowl took place on February 10, 2007, at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The game was held on a Saturday instead of the usual Sunday after the Super Bowl because of a request by broadcaster CBS....
.
On December 16, 2007 during a 33-14 victory over the St. Louis Rams
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
, Favre broke Dan Marino
Dan Marino
Daniel Constantine "Dan" Marino, Jr. is a retired American football quarterback who played for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League...
's all-time record mark of 61,361 career passing yards. The new record came on a seven yard completion to Driver. Driver was selected for the 2008 Pro Bowl
2008 Pro Bowl
The 2008 AFC-NFC Pro Bowl was the NFL's all-star game for the 2007 season. It was played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii on February 10, 2008. The game was televised in the United States by Fox and began shortly after 11:40am local time . The NFC won, 42–30, despite a 17-point first half AFC...
.
In the NFC Championship game on January 20, 2008 against the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, Driver had the longest play in the playoffs of the Packers' franchise history with a 90 yard TD catch from Favre.
On October 18, 2009, Donald Driver became the Green Bay Packers all-time leading receiver in catches, with 596 catches. He went on to catch six more balls for 107 yards in a 26-0 home victory over the Detroit Lions. On September 8, 2011, Driver caught 4 balls for 41 yards in the opening game against the New Orleans Saints and was only one yard short of becoming the Packers all-time leader in receiving yards. Driver finally broke the Packers all-time receiving yardage record on September 18, 2011 against the Carolina Panthers after he caught a 10 yard pass from Aaron Rodgers, surpassing James Lofton.
On February 6, 2011, Driver was injured on his second reception of Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League champion for the 2010 season. The game was held at Cowboys Stadium in...
. Out with an ankle sprain, Driver did not return to the game as the Packers went on to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
31-25. Driver finished Super Bowl XLV with two receptions for 28 yards.
Personal life
Driver co-hosts the statewide Packer analysis television series Inside the Huddle with Donald Driver, with WLUK-TVWLUK-TV
WLUK-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for the Fox River Valley area and Northeastern Wisconsin. Licensed to Green Bay, Wisconsin, the station broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 11 from a transmitter on Scray's Hill in Ledgeview; the station also broadcasts in...
's sports director Drew Smith and has done so since 2004. Every Tuesday Donald talks football with John Mercure on Wisconsin's Afternoon News with John Mercure on AM 620 WTMJ
WTMJ (AM)
WTMJ is a radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin broadcasting at 620 AM. It is a 50,000-watt station airing a format of news, talk and sports. WTMJ is owned by Journal Broadcast Group, which also owns the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and sister station WLWK-FM....
. He also served as host to the annual Offense vs. Defense softball game featuring members of the Green Bay Packers.
As a well-known athlete in the state of Wisconsin, Driver has been featured in marketing campaigns for companies such as McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
, AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of the Dallas, Texas-based Southwest Airlines, is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Orlando, Florida. AirTran operates over 650 daily flights , primarily in the eastern and midwestern United States...
, Kwik Trip
Kwik Trip
Kwik Trip/Kwik Star is a chain of convenience stores founded in 1965 with locations throughout Wisconsin and Minnesota under the name Kwik Trip, and in northeast Iowa under the name Kwik Star . The company also operates stores under the name Hearty Platter and Tobacco Outlet Plus. Kwik Trip, Inc...
, Goodwill
Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries International is a not-for-profit organization that provides job training, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have a disability, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges...
, Jani-King
Jani-King
Jani-King is the world's largest commercial cleaning franchise company reporting more than 12,000 franchisees serving tens of thousands of customers worldwide....
and Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable is an American cable television company that operates in 28 states and has 31 operating divisions...
.
Throughout his career, Donald Driver has been very active off the field, making over 300 charitable appearances since his rookie season in 1999. In the spring of 2001, Donald and his wife Betina created the “Donald Driver Foundation”, which offers assistance to ill children with unmanageable hospital bills, provides housing for the homeless, and donates to a variety of local charities. In December 2003, the foundation put two previously homeless families in new, fully furnished homes.
Donald has also donated much of his time and efforts to such institutions as Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin and Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries International is a not-for-profit organization that provides job training, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have a disability, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges...
. In 2001, Driver was awarded the “Community Service Award” by the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce in recognition of his outstanding community involvement. Donald also received the Walter Payton Man of the Year award in 2002, the only NFL award that recognizes off-the-field community service as well as playing excellence. In 2005 he was awarded the Ed Block Courage award by his Green Bay teammates.
Driver is also an author of three children's books, Quickie Handles a Loss, Quickie Makes the Team, and Quickie Goes to the Big Game. The books are based on Driver's bedtime storytelling to his three children, and are sold statewide through bookstores, participating Goodwill locations, the Packer Pro Shop and on his website. "Quickie" is a common nickname for Donald.