Willie Foster (born December 13, 1984) is a former

gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

. He played

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

Rutgers Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College and was aff ...

, then played for the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL) in 2007.

Early life

Willie Foster was born on December 13, 1984, in

Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. He began his

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 ...

career at

Miami Central High School Miami Central Senior High School is a secondary school located at 1781 NW 95th Street in West Little River, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States.0.1% 80.7% of students were eligible for free or reduced lunch. Miami Central has a large Hai ...

. Although Foster sat out his freshman and sophomore seasons, he was a dual athlete in both football and

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

. As a football player, Foster started every game as a junior and senior as a

for the Miami Central Rockets, totaling 17 touchdowns in two years. Foster was also part the 2002 Miami Central track and field team, which won the Class 6A state title, led by teammate

Bershawn Jackson Bershawn D. Jackson (born May 8, 1983) is an American track and field, athlete, who mainly competes in the 400 metres hurdles, 400 m hurdles, but also is a 400 metres, 400 m runner. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Bershawn "Batman" Jacks ...

. After graduating from Miami Central in 2003 he was considered a four-star football prospect by Rivals.com. He eventually accepted a

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

scholarship offer.

College career

As a freshman for the

Rutgers Scarlet Knights The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are the athletic teams that represent Rutgers University's New Brunswick campus. In sports, Rutgers is famously known for being the "Birthplace of College Football", hosting the first ever intercollegiate football ...

in 2003, Foster played a total of six games as a

and

kick returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

. As a freshman Foster totaled four kickoff returns for 67 yards and four punt returns for 54 yards. As a sophomore in 2004, Foster scored his first collegiate touchdown on an 80-yard kickoff return against the

UConn Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, with its main campus located in Storrs, Connecticut. The school is a member of ...

. As a junior in 2006, Foster was one of six Rutgers players who earned All-Big East honors, and he was named the Big East Special Teams Player of the Year. Foster was also named to the All-Big East First Team as a kick returner/punt returner.

Professional career

Foster played for the

of the

(CFL) in 2007.

Early life

College career

Professional career

References

Further reading