James Reinard Wilson (born December 17, 1973) is an American former professional football player who was a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, pl ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

(NFL) for six seasons during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He played college football for the

Florida State Seminoles The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level ( Football Bowl Subdiv ...

and was recognized as a consensus All-American. He was picked by the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The club's home ...

in the first round of the

1997 NFL Draft The 1997 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 19–20, 1997, at the Paramount T ...

, and played professionally for the Bengals and

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

of the NFL.

Early years

Wilson was born in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, which had a population of 339,247 in ...

.National Football League, Historical Players
Reinard Wilson
Retrieved February 2, 2012. He attended Columbia High School in

Lake City, Florida Lake City is a city in northern Florida. It is the county seat of Columbia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 12,329. It is the principal city of the Lake City Micropolitan Statistical Area, which i ...

,databaseFootball.com, Players
Reinard Wilson
. Retrieved February 2, 2012. where he was a standout

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, partl ...

player for the Columbia Tigers.

College career

Wilson received an

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United Stat ...

to attend Florida State University, where he played for coach

Bobby Bowden Robert Cleckler Bowden (; November 8, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was an American college football coach. Bowden coached the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University (FSU) from 1976 to 2009 and is considered one of the greatest colle ...

Seminoles The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

teams from 1993 to 1996. As a senior in 1996, he was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American after recording thirteen sacks in his final college season.

Professional career

The Cincinnati Bengals selected Wilson in the first round (14th pick overall) of the 1997 NFL Draft. He played for the Bengals from to . In six NFL seasons, he appeared in 93 regular season games, started 23 of them, and compiled 173 tackles and 24 quarterback sacks.Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Reinard Wilson
Retrieved February 2, 2012. Wilson was also a member of the

in , but did not appear in a regular season game for the Buccaneers.

NFL statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Reinard 1973 births Living people All-American college football players American football defensive ends American football linebackers Cincinnati Bengals players Florida State Seminoles football players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players