J. T. O'Sullivan

Infobox NFLactive


caption=O'Sullivan scanning the field in a 2008 preseason game.
name=J. T. O'Sullivan
currentteam=San Francisco 49ers
currentnumber=14
currentposition=Quarterback
birthdate=birth date and age|1979|8|25
birthplace=Burbank, California
heightft=6
heightin=2
weight=227
debutyear=2004
debutteam=Green Bay Packers
college=UC Davis
draftyear=2002
draftround=6
draftpick=186
pastteams=
* New Orleans Saints (2002-2004)
* Green Bay Packers (2004)
* Chicago Bears (2005)*
* Minnesota Vikings (2005)
* New England Patriots (2006)*
* Carolina Panthers (2006)*
* Chicago Bears (2007)*
* Detroit Lions (2007)
* San Francisco 49ers (2008-present):*Offseason and/or practice squad member only
status=Active
highlights=
* 2x Harlon Hill Trophy finalist (2000-2001)
* NFL Europa Offensive Co-MVP (2007)
statweek=4
statseason=2008
statlabel1=TD-INT
statvalue1=5-5
statlabel2=Passing yards
statvalue2=1,110
statlabel3=QB Rating
statvalue3=82.1
nfl=OSU394627

John Thomas "J. T." O'Sullivan (born August 25, 1979 in city-state|Burbank|California) is an American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at UC Davis.

O'Sullivan has also been a member of the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, Carolina Panthers and Detroit Lions.

Early years

O'Sullivan attended Jesuit High School in Carmichael, California, and was a letterman in football and baseball. In football, he was a two-time All-Metro League selection and led his school to a Sac-Joaquin Section crown in 1995. In baseball, he played catcher and was an All-Metro League selection. John Thomas O'Sullivan graduated from Jesuit High School in 1997.

College career

He played quarterback for the University of California, Davis and holds an NCAA Division II record (tie) for touchdown passes in a playoff game with 6, set on November 25, 2000 against Mesa State. He finished his three-year college career with 10,745 passing yards and 94 touchdown passes.

Professional career

He spent time in NFL Europe, and in 2004 he finished with the 2nd best passer rating in the league and led his team to World Bowl XII. He was with the New Orleans Saints in 2002 and 2003 before being traded with a second round draft pick to the Green Bay Packers for Mike McKenzie in 2004. He played the first regular season game of his career in 2004 while with the Packers, where he took a knee twice to end the game. O'Sullivan also spent time with the Minnesota Vikings in 2005, and New England Patriots for part of 2006. On December 26, 2006, O'Sullivan was signed to the practice squad for the Carolina Panthers.

Chicago Bears

On February 8, 2007 he signed with the Chicago Bears. In 2007, He also participated again in NFL Europa for the Frankfurt Galaxy franchise for the second time. Prior to World Bowl XV, O'Sullivan (along with Centurions RB Derrick Ross) shared the 2007 NFL Europa offensive MVP. [ [http://www.nfleurope.com/news/story/10232806] ]

On July 7, 2007, O'Sullivan was released by the Chicago Bears.

Detroit Lions

On July 10, 2007, O'Sullivan was signed by the Detroit Lions. Due to injuries to Detroit's other two quarterbacks, starter Jon Kitna and backup Dan Orlovsky, O'Sullivan played the Lions' final two 2007 preseason games in their entirety. On September 16, 2007, during his second career regular season game O'Sullivan threw his first regular season touchdown pass, a seven-yarder to Calvin Johnson.

an Francisco 49ers

After hiring O'Sullivan's former offensive coordinator Mike Martz, the San Francisco 49ers signed O'Sullivan to a one-year contract on February 29, 2008. On August 12, 2008, Coach Mike Nolan appeared on KNBR's "Murph and Mac Show" and announced that O'Sullivan had moved into the lead for the 49ers starting quarterback job.

On August 22, 2008, Coach Mike Nolan officially declared O'Sullivan as the starting quarterback for the 49ers 2008 regular season. [cite web | url = http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/49ers/ | title = Transcript: Mike Nolan talks about JTO, QBs |accessdate = 2008-08-22]

References

External links

* [http://www.detroitlions.com/bio.cfm?bio_id=466&season=9 Detroit Lions bio]
* [http://www.49ers.com/team/roster_detail.php?PRKey=174 San Francisco 49ers bio]