National Football League

Panthers WR Gettis took different path to NFL

Published Oct. 28, 2010 5:33 a.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

foxsports

The receiver position in the NFL attracts a long line of strong personalities, big talkers and divas. Carolina Panthers receiver David Gettis isn't one of them.

The son of two former Marines who are now in law enforcement, and with a humble college background, the rookie is measured, soft-spoken - and coming off his best game in the NFL.

''I don't know if all (receivers) start out that way and things change, who knows,'' quarterback Matt Moore said Wednesday of Gettis' quiet demeanor. ''He's a good dude, man, I like him a lot. He's just kind of your normal guy who's got ridiculous skills.''

Those skills were on display Sunday, when Gettis overcame a dropped touchdown pass on fourth down to grab the game-tying TD late in the fourth quarter of Carolina's 23-20 win over San Francisco.

Gettis finished with eight catches for 125 yards and his first two NFL TDs, becoming the first Panthers rookie since Keary Colbert in 2004 to have a 100-yard receiving day.

''He's got a lot of the skill set to be a good receiver as far as size, speed,'' coach John Fox said. ''I've just seen him grow a lot.''

Just how athletic is the 6-foot-3, 216-pound Gettis? The Los Angeles native didn't run track until his sophomore year in high school - and weeks later won the state 400-meter title.

He grew up a Southern Cal fan, but went to Baylor in part because he could play football and run track. Former Baylor sprinters include past Olympic champions Michael Johnson and Jeremy Wariner.

''Jeremy Wariner was the big guy at the time coming off his (2004) Olympic win,'' Gettis said. ''Having that aura around the 400 and going to Baylor, I felt like I was one of the top guys coming out of high school.''

But he ran track only in his freshman year, a decision he said was easy because ''my passion was always football.''

Trouble was, Gettis was part of a Bears team that had trouble winning and throwing the ball. He caught only 116 passes and four touchdowns in four seasons, guaranteeing he'd be a late-round draft pick at best.

The Panthers, desperately needing depth at receiver after not re-signing Muhsin Muhammad, took Gettis in the sixth round and 198th overall.

The 23-year-old Gettis slowly worked his way up the depth chart. He beat out veteran Kenny Moore for one of the final roster spots. He was deactivated for the first game, but then overtook third-round pick Brandon LaFell for a starting job.

Gettis was in the middle of his best game Sunday when he nearly became the goat, letting a fourth-and-9 pass bounce off his hands and facemask in the end zone with Carolina trailing 20-13 and just over 5 minutes remaining.

''I felt as though I let my team down,'' Gettis said. ''But my coaches and my fellow teammates reassured me that, 'Hey, you've got an opportunity to make a big play.' The game wasn't over. Luckily and gracefully we did.''

Moore didn't hesitate to go to Gettis on the next drive, and he showed off his speed on a sideline route to make a diving catch in the back corner of the end zone with 2:37 left to tie it. The Panthers then got an interception and John Kasay's field goal with 39 seconds left to win for the first time in six games.

Gettis believes he has an edge late in games to make plays because of his track background. Unlike other sprinters-turned-football players who ran shorter races, Gettis became the first high school athlete in California to win the state title in the grueling 400 three straight years.

''The 400 is a man's race as they say,'' Gettis said. ''It's one of those races where you know how you're going to feel afterwards, but you still have to do it. I think you can carry that over to a game situation where in the fourth quarter your legs are heavy, you have lactic acid buildup and you still have to run your routes precisely and get out of your break and everything like that.''

It's the kind of discipline instilled by his parents. Mother Valerie is a sergeant with the Los Angeles Police Department and father Dale works for the sheriff's department.

Gettis said he never got into much trouble growing up, but it wasn't because he lived in such a strict household.

''Honestly,'' Gettis said, ''as a child, I never really did anything other than play sports.''

share

Get more from National Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

in this topic

National Football League