Andre Pierre Collins (born May 4, 1968) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

for 10 seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He started in

Super Bowl XXVI Super Bowl XXVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion f ...

for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

. Collins currently serves as director of retired players for the

National Football League Players Association The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is the labor unions in the United States, labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by executive directo ...

(NFLPA), where he works to ensure retirees make successful post-football transitions. A standout inside linebacker playing

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Penn State Nittany Lions The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Penn State Lady Lions basketball, Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot ...

, Collins was named a 1989

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

and a

Butkus Award The Butkus Award, instituted in 1985 by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football. The award, named in honor of College Football Hall of Fame ...

finalist. He attended Cinnaminson High School in

Cinnaminson Township, New Jersey Cinnaminson Township is a township in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Cinnaminson Township borders the Delaware River, and is an eastern suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population ...

. Collins was in the first group of inductees to the Cinnaminson High School Athletics Hall of Fame. He was selected by Washington in the second round of the 1990 NFL draft. Collins earned a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

in Health Policy and Administration from Penn State in 1991.

References

External links

"Andre Collins, Transition Player"
, NFL Players Association website, July 16, 2004. 1968 births Living people American football linebackers Chicago Bears players Cincinnati Bengals players Cinnaminson High School alumni Detroit Lions players Penn State Nittany Lions football players Sportspeople from Cinnaminson Township, New Jersey People from Riverside Township, New Jersey Players of American football from Burlington County, New Jersey Washington Redskins players Gaziantep Basketbol players 20th-century American sportsmen {{linebacker-1960s-stub