Sean Thomas McHugh (born May 27, 1982) 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 ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

. He was a member of the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

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), winning

Super Bowl XLIII Super Bowl XLIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champions Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champions Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League (NFL) champ ...

Early life

McHugh played running back and linebacker from 1996 to 1999 at Chagrin Falls High School in

Chagrin Falls, Ohio Chagrin Falls is a village in eastern Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 4,188 as of the 2020 census. The village was established around the eponymous Chagrin Falls on the Chagrin River. A suburb of Cleveland, it is part ...

, where he was a four-year

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. Upon his graduation in 2000, McHugh had set single season (2,260 yards) and career (5,855 yards) rushing records that still stand at Chagrin Falls. He also lettered in

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

his freshman and sophomore years.

College career

McHugh was a four-year letterman at

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

from 2000 to 2003, starting at fullback his junior and senior seasons. During his career, McHugh ran 82 times for 322 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also made 44 catches for 297 yards and one touchdown.

Professional career

Tennessee Titans

McHugh was drafted by the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, in the seventh round (241st overall). He was cut at the end of

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

Green Bay Packers

McHugh would then sign with the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He made his NFL debut in the Packers' September 13, 2004 game at Carolina.

Detroit Lions

The next season, McHugh signed a free agent contract with the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

. He saw action in 3 games that season. The Lions allocated him to the Frankfurt Galaxy for

NFL Europa NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally founded ...

's 2006 season. He would play in Frankfurt's

World Bowl XIV World Bowl XIV, officially known as Yello Strom World Bowl XIV, was the 2006 championship game of the NFL Europe League. It was held at the LTU arena in Düsseldorf, Germany on Saturday, May 27, 2006. The game was between the defending World B ...

victory over the

Amsterdam Admirals The Amsterdam Admirals were a professional American football team based in Amsterdam, Netherlands, playing in the NFL Europe. History The Admirals were formed in 1995 as part of the NFL's plan to restart the World League of American Football, t ...

. McHugh returned to Detroit for the

2006 NFL season The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006. The season began with the reigning Super Bowl XL champion Pittsburgh Steelers defeati ...

. He was momentarily elevated to the #1 tight end slot due to a wrist injury to

Casey FitzSimmons Casey FitzSimmons (born October 10, 1980) is an American former professional football tight end who played for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). Early life FitzSimmons attended Chester High School in Chester, Montana and ...

in the preseason, but found himself on the team's practice squad at the start of the season. A week 7 injury to fullback Cory Schlesinger moved McHugh back onto the active roster as a fullback on October 22, 2006. McHugh saw action at fullback on that week versus 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 ...

. His first career reception came against the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

on November 5, 2006 for seven yards. He would appear in 6 games in 2006, starting 3, and finishing with 3 receptions for 25 yards. McHugh saw increased playing time in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, mostly back at tight end. He played in 15 games and finished the season with 252 yards on 17 receptions. He was released by the Lions on August 31, 2008 at the end of training camp.

Pittsburgh Steelers

McHugh signed with the

on September 3, 2008. He would dress for the Steelers' week 2 game versus

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

. An ankle injury to

Carey Davis Carey Alexander Davis (born March 27, 1981) is an American sportscaster and former professional football player. He played as a fullback in the National Football League (NFL). Davis played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and ...

prompted McHugh's move to fullback, where he would be the starter for the Steelers' week 7 game versus

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. He would be used primarily as a fullback for the remainder of the season and throughout the playoffs, making 3 receptions, totaling 24 yards. In his first season at Pittsburgh, McHugh won the AFC Championship and ultimately

, earning McHugh his first

Super Bowl ring The Super Bowl ring is an award in the National Football League given to the team members of the winning team of the league's annual championship game, the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl ring offers a collectible memento for the actual players and t ...

.My Super Bowl Journey: Sean Mchugh
During the two-week period leading up to the Super Bowl, McHugh gained notoriety for having been cut by the Lions, deemed not good enough to play on a team that ultimately went 0-16 for the season, but good enough to play on a

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...

team such as Pittsburgh and make major contributions as a blocker for Willie Parker and

Ben Roethlisberger Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr. ( ; born March 2, 1982), nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Ste ...

Personal life

McHugh and his wife Ashlee reside in the suburbs of

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. with their son Jack and daughter Emma. McHugh is now an assistant football coach at South Lyon East High School in

South Lyon South Lyon is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 11,746 at the 2020 census, up from 11,327 at the 2010 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of wh ...

, where he is the offensive line and defensive line coach and also serves as special teams coordinator. Sean is also an assistant Vice President of Sales at United Wholesale Mortgage.

References

External links

Pittsburgh Steelers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:McHugh, Sean 1982 births Living people Players of American football from Springfield, Massachusetts American football tight ends American football fullbacks Sportspeople from Chagrin Falls, Ohio Players of American football from Cuyahoga County, Ohio Penn State Nittany Lions football players Tennessee Titans players Green Bay Packers players Detroit Lions players Frankfurt Galaxy players Pittsburgh Steelers players