Sam Hurd

Samuel George Hurd, III (born April 24, 1985) is a former American football wide receiver who played in the National Football League for six seasons. He played college football at Northern Illinois University, and, though undrafted, was signed after graduation by the Dallas Cowboys in 2006. He played for the Cowboys from 2006–2010 before joining the Chicago Bears in 2011. He was released by the Bears in December 2011, after he was arrested on federal drug charges.

Early life
Hurd attended Brackenridge High School In San Antonio, Texas. At Brackenridge he was an all-state receiver catching 20 touchdowns his senior year.

College career
At Northern Illinois University, he teamed with P. J. Fleck, Shatone Powers and Dan Sheldon to form one of the best wide receiver groups in the MAC. Hurd helped NIU to a victory in the 2004 Silicon Valley Football Classic in a game that was delayed nearly 40 minutes due to a power outage. In his career at NIU he amassed 143 receptions (tied for fifth in school history), 2,323 yards (second in school history) and 21 receiving touchdowns (third in school history).

Dallas Cowboys
Hurd was signed by the Dallas Cowboys in 2006 season as a undrafted free agent. That season against the Houston Texans, Hurd recorded his first NFL reception on Tony Romo's first NFL pass (33 yards). Four weeks later, Hurd got his first start against the Arizona Cardinals recording four catches for 42 yards and also caught a touchdown pass that was negated due to offensive pass interference against Patrick Crayton. He ended the 2006 season with 5 catches for 75 yards and collected 11 tackles while also forcing 2 fumbles along with recovering 2 fumbles, while playing on special teams.

In 2009 he led the Cowboys with 19 special teams tackles and in 2010 he was named special teams captain, finishing the season second on the team with 21 tackles.

During his time with the Cowboys his contributions came mainly as a key special teams performer, earning NFC Special Teams Player of the Week in 2006 as a rookie.

Chicago Bears
After playing five years with the Cowboys, on July 29, 2011, as a free agent he signed a three-year contract with the Chicago Bears.

The Bears named him their special teams captain, but cut Hurd from the team on December 16, 2011 following his arrest on drug-related charges.

Personal life
Beginning in 2007, Hurd started co-hosting Inside the Huddle, a one-hour player commentary show that aired on live on 105.3FM Radio in Dallas as well as a 30 minute television show on Time Warner Cable's ESPN2 and Video on Demand service. In 2007, the show was co-hosted by quarterback Tony Romo, but in 2008, Hurd teamed up with wide receiver Terrell Owens for the show that aired on Tuesday nights on KLLI from the House of Blues in Dallas. Hurd runs a program called "Running with the Hurd," which is aimed at helping underprivileged young children.

Legal troubles
On December 14, 2011, Hurd was arrested in Chicago for allegedly attempting to purchase and distribute large quantities of cocaine and marijuana and will be facing federal drug charges in the Dallas Division of the Northern District of Texas. The case is being investigated by the ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement). The investigation started in July 2011, during the NFL lockout, and while Hurd was a member of the Cowboys. According to the complaint it was alleged that Hurd had negotiated to pay $25,000 per kilogram of cocaine, and another $450 per pound of marijuana. Police believe that Hurd is connected to a group of dealers arrested in California in August 2011, because a phone number traced to Hurd was found in the caller ID of one of the dealers. On January 24, after finding a new attorney Hurd entered a plea of not guilty for setting up a drug dealing network.

On August 9, 2012 Hurd was arrested again for violating his bond by failing two drug tests. The report states Hurd failed his first drug test in May and a second on July 12, testing positive for marijuana and admitting to drug use both times. His attorney, Mike McCrum, said Hurd is going through a difficult time and succumbed to pressure, according to the report. A federal judge later ordered Hurd to be jailed indefinitely.