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Hines Ward

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Hines Ward
refer to caption
Hines Ward in a 2006 game against the Chiefs.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Career information
College:Georgia
NFL draft:1998 / round: 3 / pick: 92
Career history
Career highlights and awards
  • 4x Pro Bowl selection (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004)
  • 3x All-Pro selection (2002, 2003, 2004)
  • 2002 Steelers co-MVP
  • 2003 Steelers MVP
  • 2005 Steelers co-MVP
  • Super Bowl XL MVP
  • Steelers Career Records for
    • Receptions - 736 (8th most among active players)
    • Receiving Touchdowns - 68 (7th most among active players)
    • Receiving Yards - 8,963 (11th most among active players)

Hines E. Ward, Jr. (Korean: 하인스 워드/Kim Hyun-ae) (born March 8, 1976 in Seoul, South Korea) is a multiracial (African American & Korean) football player who currently plays wide receiver for the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers. He was voted MVP of Super Bowl XL. Born to a Korean mother and an African American father, he has become an advocate for ethnic minorities in South Korea.

High school years

At Forest Park High School in Forest Park, Georgia, Ward showcased his athletic skills as a quarterback and was a two-time Clayton County Offensive Player of the Year. He earned All-American honors from Super Prep, Blue Chip Illustrated & USA Today, as well as All-State & Super Southern Top 100 honors.

College career

As a wide receiver for the University of Georgia Bulldogs (1995–1998), Ward's 149 career receptions for 1,965 yards placed him second in team history. He also played tailback and quarterback, and totaled 3,870 all-purpose yards, second only to Herschel Walker in Bulldogs history. In 1996, Hines had 52 receptions for 900 yards, and also ran 26 times for 170 yards. In 1997, Hines hauled in 55 passes and scored six TDs, getting All-SEC honors in the process.

When he came out of college it was discovered that Ward was missing an ACL in his left knee, which he lost during a bicycle accident during childhood.[1][2] This may well have affected his position in the NFL draft. He received his bachelor's degree in consumer economics from UGA, where he became a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity.

Ward attempts to break Sammy Knight's tackle during a game against the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006.

Professional career

Ward's versatility has served him well as a professional wide receiver. Since being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft, he has earned three team Most Valuable Player (MVP) selections. He is also a four-time NFL Pro Bowl selection (2001–2004). He also had a streak of 4 consecutive 1,000 yard seasons, which likely could have been extended in the 2005 NFL season if he had not missed a game due to injury. In 2002, he set a Steelers franchise record for receptions (112), and touchdowns (12), and was named to his first of two consecutive All-NFL teams. He is widely considered the best blocking receiver in the NFL.

In 2005, Ward missed the first two weeks of training camp in a holdout for a contract extension that would increase his salary. Ward had considered holding out before camp in 2004, but had been persuaded by the Steelers that they could work out an extension during the year. Ward eventually showed up on August 15, 2005 and was on the sidelines for Pittsburgh's first preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles that night, though he did not play in that game. On September 5, 2005, the Steelers announced that they had reached an agreement on a four-year contract extension with Ward.

On November 27, 2005, Ward became the Steelers all-time leading receiver with his 538th catch against the Browns on Sunday Night Football overcoming John Stallworth's record. The Steelers won 34-21.

Ward is also renowned as a terrific post-season receiver, accumulating 57 receptions, 761 yards, and 8 receiving touchdowns in 10 post-season appearances (including his Super Bowl XL appearance, in which he was named the Super Bowl MVP).

On February 5, 2006, Ward was named MVP in Super Bowl XL as the Pittsburgh Steelers won 21-10. Ward scored a 43 yard touchdown in the 4th quarter, thrown by fellow wide receiver Antwaan Randle El. Overall, Ward had five receptions for 123 yards, one TD and one rush for 18 yards.

Immediately following Super Bowl XL, Ward was videotaped for the latest "I'm Going to Disney World!" TV commercial, adding "...and I'm taking The Bus!" Ward and Steelers teammate Jerome "The Bus" Bettis appeared in a victory parade at the Magic Kingdom theme park on February 6 along with Emmitt Smith.

On December 2, 2007, Ward became the Steelers all-time touchdown receptions leader with his 64th touchdown reception against the Bengals on Sunday Night Football.[3] Then on December 20, 2007, Ward became the Steelers all-time receiving yardage leader in a game against the St. Louis Rams.

In 2008, Hines Ward scored 2 touchdowns as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Houston Texans 38-17. Hines Ward, coming out of what many sports analysts say a “two-year slump”, scored two touchdowns with 6 receptions and 76 yards. If it wasn’t for a pass interference call , (which cost the Steelers 54 yards) Ward would have recorded his first 100-yard game since the 2006 season.[4]

Personal

Hines Ward resides in Atlanta, Georgia with his wife Simone and his son Jaden. On his right arm is a tattoo of his name in Hangul, the Korean alphabet, and below that a tattoo of Mickey Mouse carrying a football. Ward is well known for flashing a nearly constant smile. [5]

Business and media enterprises

Ward co-owns a bar in Pittsburgh's South Side called "The Locker Room.[6] The bar sustained serious water damage in February 2007, due to flooding from a malfunctioning boiler, and it was closed for repairs until June of that year.[7] The bar received an insurance settlement of $500,000, which subsequently became an issue during a legal dispute between the bar's owners.[7]

On September 11, 2007, co-owner Thomas Lettieri withdrew the entirety of the bar's funds, approximately $19,000, from a corporate account, causing it to miss a large number of scheduled payments.[7] The company filed suit for the return of the money, and Lettieri subsequently justified his actions by claiming that the money was owed to him, also voicing the belief that the other co-owners, Ward and Kimberly Pitts, as well as Pitts's husband Korry Pitts, had falsified invoices and diverted company funds to their own bank accounts.[7] Company attorney Thomas Castello dismissed Lettieri's allegations as "baseless, ridiculous and unfounded," and the matter is currently before the court.[7]

In September 2006, Ward began hosting the "Hines Ward Show" on Pittsburgh CBS affiliate KDKA-TV.[8]

As a figure for social change

Ward's mother (Kim Young-hee 김영희) is Korean and his father (Hines Ward, Sr.) is African-American. In 2006, Ward became the first Korean-American to win the Super Bowl MVP award. This achievement threw him into the media spotlight in South Korea, where racially-mixed people often face discrimination.[9]

From April 3 through May 30, 2006, Ward returned to his birthplace of Seoul for the first time since his parents moved to the United States when he was one year old. Ward used his celebrity status to arrange "hope-sharing" meetings with multiracial Korean children and to encourage social and political reform. Ward cried when describing the discrimination he faced. At one hope-sharing meeting, he told a group of children, "If the country can accept me for who I am and accept me for being a Korean, I'm pretty sure that this country can change and accept you for who you are."[9] On his final day in Korea, he donated $1 million USD to create the Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation, which the AP called "a foundation to help mixed-race children like himself in South Korea, where they have suffered discrimination."[10]

In January 2007, Franco Harris, former Pittsburgh Steeler and owner of R Super Foods, honored Ward for his philanthropic efforts by featuring Ward's picture and story on boxes of Super Donuts and Super Buns.

References

  1. ^ Jim Corbett (2006-02-08). "Ward takes place among Steelers' legends". USA Today Sports Weekly.
  2. ^ Ed Bouchette (2007-10-04). "Steelers Notebook: Holmgren puts Super Bowl in past". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  3. ^ Ed Bouchette (2007-12-03). "Hines' field ... Steelers put best footing forward in win". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  4. ^ "AsianWeek NFL Update". AsianWeek. Retrieved on 2008-09-10.
  5. ^ . 09032008 http://www.mvp86.com/. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. ^ Karen Roebuck (2006-01-12). "Hines Ward has another Locker Room". The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
  7. ^ a b c d e Bobby Kerlik (2007-09-19). "Steelers' Ward, associate accused of taking money". The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
  8. ^ CBS Broadcasting Inc (press release) (2006-09-13). "Hines Ward Tapes First Show". KDKA-TV.
  9. ^ a b Chuck Finder (2006-04-09). "Hines Ward scores big for social change". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  10. ^ Associated Press (2006-05-30). "Ward kicks off his new charity". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by NFL Super Bowl MVPs
Super Bowl XL, 2006 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Pittsburgh Steelers Career Receptions
November 27, 2005 - present, (657) 		Succeeded by
Current Record Holder
Sporting positions
Preceded by Georgia Bulldogs Starting Quarterbacks
1994 		Succeeded by


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