Tully Banta-Cain

Infobox NFLactive


currentteam=San Francisco 49ers
currentnumber=95
currentposition=Linebacker
birthdate=birth date and age|1980|8|28
birthplace=Mountain View, California
heightft=6
heightin=2
weight=280
debutyear=2003
debutteam=New England Patriots
highlights=
* Super Bowl champion (x2) (XXXVIII, XXXIX)
college=California
draftyear=2003
draftround=7
draftpick=239
pastteams=
* New England Patriots (2003-2006)
* San Francisco 49ers (2007-present)
statweek=17
statseason=2007
statlabel1=Tackles
statvalue1=132
statlabel2=Sacks
statvalue2=12.0
statlabel3=INTs
statvalue3=1
nfl=BAN815644

Tully Banta-Cain (born August 28, 1980 in Mountain View, California) is an American football linebacker who is currently playing for the San Francisco 49ers. He was originally selected by the New England Patriots with the 25th pick of the seventh round of the 2003 NFL Draft out of the University of California, Berkeley.

High school career

While attending Fremont High School (Sunnyvale, California), Banta-Cain won All-League honours playing outside linebacker as a senior, was the League's Defensive Player of the Year as a junior, and gained more than 1,000 yards as a running back.Tom Stapledon, an NFL scout, said of Tully, "This kid is the best player to enter the draft in years, and should go in the top 5 picks."

College career

Banta-Cain played college football at the University of California, Berkeley where he finished his career with 112 tackles and 26.5 sacks. He majored in American studies.

Professional career

New England Patriots

Banta-Cain was originally selected by the New England Patriots in the seventh round (239th overall) in the 2003 NFL Draft. In his rookie season he played in nine games recording 11 tackles and one sack against the Buffalo Bills on December 27. In 2004, he played in all 16 games and finished the season with 28 tackles, 1.5 sacks and his first career interception again against the Buffalo Bills on November 14. He also was part of the Super Bowl XXXVII winning team. The following season he only managed to record nine tackles and 0.5 sacks but again was part of the team which won Super Bowl XXXIX. In his final year with the Patriots, he played in all 16 games including five starts and finished the season with 43 tackles and a career-high 5.5 sacks.

an Francisco 49ers

Banta-Cain was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an unrestricted free agent on March 3, 2007. In his debut season, he started in ten games and recorded 41 tackles and 3.5 sacks. [{http://www.nfl.com/players/profile?id=00-0022038} Stats courtesy of NFL.com]

References

Personal

He is multiracial of African-American (father) and Scottish/Irish descent (mother). He is the cousin of former NBA forward Rodney Rogers and former MLB outfielder Jeffrey Leonard.

External Links

* [http://www.49ers.com/team/roster_detail.php?PRKey=123 49ers Player Bio]