Tee Higgins

Tamaurice William "Tee" Higgins (born January 18, 1999) is an American football wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson, where he won the 2019 College Football Playoff National Championship as a sophomore, and was drafted by the Bengals with the 33rd overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Early years

Higgins attended Oak Ridge High School in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. As a senior, he had 68 receptions for 1,044 yards and 18 touchdowns. A five star recruit, Higgins originally committed to the University of Tennessee to play college football before changing to Clemson University.

Higgins also played basketball in high school and was offered scholarships to play college basketball by numerous schools.

College career

As a freshman at Clemson in 2017, Higgins played in 13 games and had 17 receptions for 345 yards and two touchdowns.

Higgins entered his sophomore season in 2018 as a starter. In the College Football Playoff National Championship, he had three receptions for 81 yards in the 44–16 victory over Alabama. He finished with 59 receptions for 936 receiving yards and 12 receiving touchdowns.

In his junior season, Higgins had 1,167 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns as his team finished with a 14–1 record, making it all the way to the National Championship, which Clemson lost to LSU by a score of 42–25. Higgins had a 36-yard rushing touchdown in the game. Higgins decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and declare for the 2020 NFL Draft.

Collegiate statistics

Professional career

In the 2020 NFL Draft, Higgins was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round with the 33rd overall pick. On July 28, 2020, Higgins signed his rookie deal, a four-year contract worth $8.6 million.

2020

Higgins made his NFL debut in Week 1 of the 2020 season against the Los Angeles Chargers. In Week 2, he recorded his first three professional receptions for 35 yards against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football. In Week 3, against the Philadelphia Eagles, Higgins had five receptions for 40 yards and his first two professional receiving touchdowns in the 23–23 tie. In Week 6 against the Indianapolis Colts, he had six receptions for 125 receiving yards in the 31–27 loss. In Week 10 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he had seven receptions for 115 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown during the 36–10 loss.

Higgins finished his rookie season with 67 receptions for 908 yards and six receiving touchdowns. His 67 catches tied a Bengals rookie record set by Cris Collinsworth in 1981. The record would end up being broken the following year by rookie wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase, with 81 receptions. His 908 receiving yards ranked him third among all rookie receivers in 2020, behind Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb.

2021

Prior to the start of the season, Higgins announced that following the 2021 NFL season he would be changing his jersey number from 85 to 5.

Higgins finished his 2021 regular season with 74 receptions for 1,091 yards and six receiving touchdowns in 14 games played, improving upon his rookie season. In the Divisional Round against the Tennessee Titans, Higgins recorded 7 receptions for 96 yards in the 19–16 win. In the AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Higgins caught six passes for 103 yards, leading the Bengals in receiving yards in the 27–24 overtime win to advance to Super Bowl LVI.

In Super Bowl LVI, Higgins scored the Bengals' first touchdown of the game, a 6-yard pass from Joe Mixon. On the first play from scrimmage of the second half, Higgins scored a 75-yard touchdown pass, his second touchdown of the game. Higgins finished the game catching 4 passes for 100 yards, the most receiving yards by a player on either team in the 23–20 loss.

2022

In Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Higgins caught 2 passes for 27 yards before leaving the game in the second quarter with a concussion.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Postseason