William Buckley Conaty Jr. (born March 8, 1973) 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 played

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

for nine seasons for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

, and the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

. Raised in

Pennsauken Township, New Jersey Pennsauken Township is a township in Camden County, in the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and it is located outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which it borders directly on the Delaware River. As of the 2 ...

, Conaty played prep football at

Camden Catholic High School Camden Catholic High School (CCHS) is a four-year comprehensive private coeducational Roman Catholic high school, located in the Philadelphia metropolitan area in Cherry Hill, Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school operates ...

before playing as a

postgraduate Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor' ...

at Milford Academy.

College career

Conaty was a four-year starter along the offensive line for the Hokies, starting a then record 48 straight games. After starting his freshman year at offensive tackle, Conaty shifted over to center where he started his remaining three seasons. Conaty was a two time all Big East selection. During his senior year, he was named team captain and first-team Sporting News All-American.

Professional career

Conaty signed with the Buffalo Bills in 1997. In the 1997 season, he appeared in one game, a 28–22 loss to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

. In the 1998 season, he appeared in 15 games and started one. In the 1999 season, he appeared in seven games and started one. In the 2000 season, he appeared in all 16 games. In 2001, his fifth NFL year, he became the Bills' starting center, replacing

Jerry Ostroski Gerald Ostroski Jr. (born July 12, 1970) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive lineman for the Buffalo Bills in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. Co ...

. He started and played in all 16 games. After the 2001 season, Conaty was named to the USA Today All-Joe team. In the 2002 season, he appeared in 11 games. In the 2004 season, he played for the Minnesota Vikings and appeared in eight games. He finished his career on injured reserve with the Arizona Cardinals.

Personal life

In 2009, Conaty graduated from Rutgers School of Law and is admitted to practice law in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conaty, Billy 1973 births Living people American football centers Virginia Tech Hokies football players Buffalo Bills players Minnesota Vikings players Camden Catholic High School alumni Dallas Cowboys players Sportspeople from Pennsauken Township, New Jersey Players of American football from Camden County, New Jersey