Kirk Botkin
Encyclopedia
Kirk Randal Botkin is a former American football
tight end
and long snapper
who played four seasons in the NFL
with the New Orleans Saints
and the Pittsburgh Steelers
. He has since coached football at the collegiate level.
where he attended Robert E. Lee High School
.
. In 1992, he was selected to the All-SEC
football team, named by the conference's coaches. He was the first Razorback to ever earn that honor.
, but was signed by the New England Patriots
just afterward. He was released by the Patriots during training camp in August 1994. He was picked up by the New Orleans Saints once the 1994 season was underway. He remained with the Saints though the 1995 season.
Botkin was waived by the Saints prior to the 1996 season, but was claimed off waivers
by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was used by the Steelers over the next two seasons primarily as a long snapper
, but also saw some work at tight end
due to an injury to the team's starting tight end, Mark Bruener
.
Botkin did not return for 1998 after the Steelers rescinded a contract offer to him.
by head coach Jack Crowe
under whom Botkin had played at Arkansas. He moved on to become the linebacker
s coach and special teams coordinator at the University of Louisiana at Monroe
in 2006.
Botkin returned to his alma mater, Arkansas, in 2008 as the defensive end
s coach and special teams coordinator under head coach Bobby Petrino
. He was relieved of his special teams responsibilities in 2009, but remained as a defensive coach. He left Arkansas in January 2010.
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...
and long snapper
Long snapper
In American football and Canadian football, the term long snapper refers to a player who is a specialized center during punts, field goals, and extra point attempts. His job is to snap the ball as quickly and accurately as possible....
who played four seasons in the NFL
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...
with the New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
and 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...
. He has since coached football at the collegiate level.
Early life
Botkin was born in Baytown, TexasBaytown, Texas
Baytown is a city within Harris County and partially in Chambers County in the Gulf Coast region of the U.S. state of Texas. Located within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area, it lies along both State Highway 146 and Interstate 10. As of 2010, Baytown had an population of 71,802...
where he attended Robert E. Lee High School
Robert E. Lee High School (Baytown, Texas)
Robert E. Lee High School is a secondary school in Baytown, Texas, that serves grades 9 through 12. Lee is one of three high schools in the Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District, which serves all of Baytown and Highlands, Texas. The other two are Ross S. Sterling High School and...
.
College football
Botkin matriculated at the University of ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...
. In 1992, he was selected to the All-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...
football team, named by the conference's coaches. He was the first Razorback to ever earn that honor.
Pro football career
Botkin went undrafted in the 1994 NFL Draft1994 NFL Draft
The 1994 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 24-25, 1994. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and...
, but was signed by the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
just afterward. He was released by the Patriots during training camp in August 1994. He was picked up by the New Orleans Saints once the 1994 season was underway. He remained with the Saints though the 1995 season.
Botkin was waived by the Saints prior to the 1996 season, but was claimed off waivers
Waivers (American football)
Waivers is a National Football League labor management procedure by which a team makes an American football player contract or NFL rights available to all other teams...
by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was used by the Steelers over the next two seasons primarily as a long snapper
Long snapper
In American football and Canadian football, the term long snapper refers to a player who is a specialized center during punts, field goals, and extra point attempts. His job is to snap the ball as quickly and accurately as possible....
, but also saw some work at 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...
due to an injury to the team's starting tight end, Mark Bruener
Mark Bruener
Mark Frederick Bruener is a former American football tight end of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers 27th overall in the 1995 NFL Draft. He played college football at Washington.Bruener played nine seasons with the Steelers followed by five with the Houston...
.
Botkin did not return for 1998 after the Steelers rescinded a contract offer to him.
Coaching career
Botkin was hired as a football coach at Jacksonville State UniversityJacksonville State University
Jacksonville State University is a regional public coeducational university located in Jacksonville, Alabama, USA. Founded in 1883, Jacksonville State offers programs of study in four academic units leading to Bachelor's, Master's, and Education Specialist degrees, in addition to continuing and...
by head coach Jack Crowe
Jack Crowe
Jack Crowe is an American football coach. He is currently the head coach at Jacksonville State University in Alabama, a position he has held since 2000. Crowe served as the head football coach at the University of Arkansas from 1990 until he resigned one game into the 1992 season after an upset...
under whom Botkin had played at Arkansas. He moved on to become the linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
s coach and special teams coordinator at the University of Louisiana at Monroe
University of Louisiana at Monroe
The University of Louisiana at Monroe is a coeducational public university in Monroe, Louisiana and part of the University of Louisiana System.-History:...
in 2006.
Botkin returned to his alma mater, Arkansas, in 2008 as the defensive end
Defensive end
Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
s coach and special teams coordinator under head coach Bobby Petrino
Bobby Petrino
Bobby Petrino is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at the University of Arkansas, a position he has held since the 2008 season...
. He was relieved of his special teams responsibilities in 2009, but remained as a defensive coach. He left Arkansas in January 2010.