DEZMOND SHERROD – TE

HEIGHT – 6-2

WEIGHT – 250

COLLEGE – Mississippi State

BIRTHDATE – May 11, 1985

BIRTHPLACE – Newport, R.I.

HOW ACQUIRED – FA-‘08

NFL EXPERIENCE – Rookie

 

PRO: Signed as a rookie free agent by the Steelers on April 28, 2007.

COLLEGE: Played in all 47 games of his Mississippi State career, earning 18 starts at the tight end position…caught eight passes for 50 yards, a 6.3-yard average, and was a strong blocker from his receiver position…also made five tackles on special teams…sat out his initial season on campus as a true freshman redshirt…majored in risk management and insurance and is currently enrolled in the master of business administration program. 2007: Played in all 13 games for Mississippi State during his senior season…started eight times…caught one pass for 10 yards and made a pair of tackles…battled persistent injury as his senior season’s pre-season camp came to a close, curtailing his time at the tight end position…caught one pass for 10 yards in the Bulldogs’ Week 10 victory over nationally No. 21-ranked Alabama. 2006: Played in all 12 games for Mississippi State as a reserve at tight end and on special teams…earned six starts during his junior year…caught two passes for 14 yards on the year…had one catch for 10 yards against the Tulane Green Wave…added another catch (four yards) in Week 9 against Kentucky…another solid spring kept him in the fight for playing time at tight end…caught two passes for 14 yards in scrimmage situations. 2005: Played in all 11 games during his sophomore season for the Bulldogs, earning two starts when the team opted to open the game in a multiple tight-end formation…made one catch for five yards against LSU in Week 5…also credited with one tackle against the Tigers…added another tackle in Week 10 contest at Arkansas…returned primarily to the tight end position to open August two-a-day drills, but maintained a role as a possible H-back in State’s offensive alignment…was slowed during August by a groin injury that limited his effectiveness once the season began…made a pre-spring move from tight end to fullback, a transition that came off without a hitch…ascended to the top of the depth chart at his new position due to his blocking and pass-catching abilities out of the backfield. 2004: Played in all 11 games during his redshirt freshman season, earning two starting calls at a tight end position…had four catches for 21 yards on the year…earned starting assignments when the team opted to open in multiple tight end formations against Kentucky and Ole Miss…worked as a reserve in the tight end rotation to open his redshirt freshman season…made his first collegiate catch (three-yard gain) in Week 5 work at Vanderbilt…essentially split the tight end work during the Bulldogs’ Week 7 win over Florida…caught one pass (five yards) in the 38-31 victory over the Gators…had another five-yard reception at Alabama in Week 9…culminated his first season of activity with the Bulldogs with an eight-yard reception vs. Ole Miss…took the opportunity in his first spring practice to move to second at the tight end position following that four-week session. 2003: Sat out his true freshman season as a redshirt.

PERSONAL: Attended Caledonia High School in Caledonia, Miss….listed as the No. 47 tight end prospect in the country coming out of high school by Rivals.com…was listed No. 22 regardless of position among the top 30 players in the state of Mississippi by that recruiting service…credited with running a 4.8 40-yard dash with a 35-inch vertical leap and a 270-pound bench press by Rivals…ranked with the top 25 recruits in the state of Mississippi by the Jackson Clarion-Ledger newspaper…caught 11 passes for 134 yards, a 12.2-yard average, and four touchdowns during his senior campaign…also a starter for his prep team’s basketball squad…had 24 catches for 425 yards, a 17.7-yard average, during his junior season…National Honor Society high school student…son of Mr. and Mrs. Louis Sherrod…Full name: Dezmond Allan Sherrod.